Predictable Report"M.C. Jain deserves an award for authoring the most predictable political whodunit: every reader knew the beginning and the end." -R.C. Khanna, AmritsarThe Right ImpressionThis is with reference to your cover story ("Damning the DMK", November 17) which carries pictures of Justice M.C. Jain and Prabhu Chawla, and the letter from D.R. Luthra, secretary to the Jain Commission ("For the Record", November 24). Luthra has written to you that the two photographs have created a "wrong impression". I am quite amazed, as in fact they have created the correct impression in the mind of every reader. While teaching police officers in various institutes across the country to assess photographic evidence, I used to give the example of the man who was caught with his pants down, with the woman also in the frame, in a rape case. In such a case, if the man pleads that his pants just happened to fall down because they were loose and by coincidence he was photographed before he could pull them up, his statement should be accepted with a pinch of salt. -K. Madhavan, inspector general of police, CBI (retd), Delhi.preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}Your exclusive cover story has ruffled more than a few feathers. The implications of the Jain Commission report have not only rocked the unstable Indian Government, but has also made the citizens less likely to trust their leaders. It is amazing how some people, professing to be protectors of the country, have colluded with the enemy. It only strengthens the view that politics is ridden with corruption and deceit and those who finally suffer are the people themselves.-Hemanth Rao Meka, Atlanta, USAAmong the many conjectured consequences of the Jain Commission report, there is one scenario that is not being talked about. The Gujral Government does have an ace up its sleeve: it can use the revelations on the Bofors issue to silence the threatening noises in the Congress camp. -Saroj Kulshreshtha, DelhiThe findings of the Jain Commission have been blown out of proportion to malign the DMK and its leadership at a time the Tamil Nadu Government is taking severe action to expose the misdeeds of former chief minister Jayalalitha and her associates. Perhaps the aim is to divert public attention from her. -C. Murukadas, ChennaiIt is ironical that the Jain Commission attempts to portray the DMK as the villain in the Padmanabha case, while a judge had earlier discharged 15 of the 17 accused in the same case. It must be remembered that the Jain Commission is only a fact-finding institution and the report is also interim in nature. Curiously, you have chosen to overplay the interim report while turning a blind eye to the judicial verdict in a case which is more relevant to the issue concerned. -M. Naganathan, ChennaiEven after six years of labour, it is unfortunate that the Jain Commission has failed to pinpoint the actual reason for Rajiv's assassination. Though the present ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka dates back to 1956, when the then Lankan government adopted a "Sinhala only policy", what happened in 1985 is also significant. Instead of acting as an honest broker between the Lankan government and the Tamil militants, the Indian government adopted a partisan attitude, forcing the militants to abide by the wishes of the Lankan government. This was followed by the signing of the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement that led to the deployment of the IPKF, which fought militants in that country. The responsibility for Rajiv's assassination should therefore be laid at his own door. -V. Sagar, DelhiSuccess StoryThat Kalpana Chawla is the first Indian woman astronaut in space is indeed a matter of pride for Indians ("Strapped Up and Ready to Go", November 17). Stories of women hailing from ordinary backgrounds who are venturing into challenging areas like space travel will encourage many others. At the same time, one question comes to mind. Did Arundhati Roy's success feature as a cover story only because it was more glamorous? I am rather surprised that you did not give this particular event more coverage.-N. Rajeswari,ChennaiChawla's selection for the space odyssey is commendable. She has reached this landmark by her desire to be an achiever. Her well-deserved success should be an inspiration for all young girls and boys to try and excel in their respective fields against all odds. -Sudhir Bisht, NoidaWrong ConnotationWhile the efforts to expose the darker side of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) can be appreciated, the entire social development sector should not be stereotyped ("Antisocial Service", November 17). It does not do justice to genuine social change initiatives in the country. The term NGO has a deceptive connotation as it is being used to appropriate the identity, values and experience of the entire social change sector under one blanket criteria - not being governmental. The general decadence of values that has crept into all democratic institutions is creeping into the socalled NGOs as well. But if Capart and such other bodies distributed funds to fraudulent organisations, it is basically because of the inefficient bureaucracy and widespread corruption in such government departments. Bureaucrats often conceal the corruption in their own backyards by indulging in cynical NGO-bashing. -John Samuel, National Centre for Advocacy Studies, Pune"With our leaders being constantly occupied in saving their governments, will they ever find the time to save the country's endangered tigers?"-Raj Khanna,DelhiFutile ExerciseNow we know why the Government's credit policies and investment schemes go down the drain ("Pay up or Else ...", November 17). Economic programmes like these are futile if the majority of the population continues to avoid paying taxes. Only 12 million people in India file their tax returns. This speaks volumes not only for the inefficiency of the Income Tax (IT) Department, but also for the ethics that govern a huge majority of our population. We can be sure that schemes like VDIS won't work in India. What we really need are stringent measures against defaulters, not the present nonchalant attitude of the Government and IT Department. -Prashant Sharma, DelhiProtecting WildlifeMan will do anything for his own selfish ends, so it's hardly surprising to see that birds are being blatantly sold in violation of existing laws. ("Flying in the Face of Law", November 10). While any threat to nature will harm mankind, it is foolish to expect the Government to pass relevant laws because the current political situation gives little scope for such things. With the help of the media, the educated must intensify their campaign against bird trafficking. -A. Joshua Anand, TrichyDiscerning ViewersMovie buffs are a discerning lot; casting a so-called star or a Miss World in a film and making her prance around in exotic foreign locales is not enough to ensure its popularity ("A Crisis of Flops", November 10). Many of the current directors think that saleable names and technical gloss are enough to make the audience drool. A good script is last on their list of priorities. Leave aside nubile nymphets and expressionless actors, even Amitabh Bachchan could not save a bad film like Mrityudaata. -Vimal Kapoor, Dehradun"To say the megarich are not concerned with the price tag, only exclusivity, is wrong. It is the tag that makes things exclusive."-Rishi Kumar,DelhiStrong Medicine NeededIt is a pity that while common people languish in government hospitals, politicians go abroad for treatment of minor ailments - at the taxpayers' expense ("Chronic Ailment", November 3). It is time the judiciary intervened in the matter. Or else, it won't be long before angry people take the law into their own hands and give the politicians a taste of their own medicine. -Sasidharan Nair, KottayamPublished By: AtMigration Published On: Dec 1, 1997--- ENDS ---
