The Congress is pinning its hopes on welfare measures, soft hindutva and Kamal Nath in Madhya Pradesh, and why not! The Congress is definitely going to win Madhya Pradesh (‘Kamal vs lotus’, November 5).
Nath is a popular and experienced leader with good track record. What is wrong with the Congress projecting itself as a better Hindu compared with the BJP? It is wrong to associate only the BJP with Hindus. So many politicians, across parties, have spoken for Hindus, and they will continue to do that.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan has been ruling Madhya Pradesh for way too long. It is time for a change. There are reports that Amit Shah has taken over the poll campaign in the state and that Chouhan has been sidelined. That the state government has failed on every front is a fact. People in Madhya Pradesh will vote for change (read Congress).
Arkashish Basu,
On email.
Nath will help the Congress return to power in Madhya Pradesh, but the BJP will win all 29 Lok Sabha seats in the state in 2024. Indians, across states, are today wise enough to differentiate between Lok Sabha and assembly elections. Assembly elections are contested only on local issues. There are many I know who vote for the Congress in the state, and the BJP at the Centre. So many of us don’t have any political leanings. We only vote for the best leader or party in current circumstances.
Radhika Gautam,
On email.
The BJP will win in all states—Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. There is Modi wave everywhere in the Hindi belt. He is attracting massive crowds everywhere. People in these states know well that Modi is all set to return in 2024. And, they would ideally want a BJP government in their state. Also, I feel the Congress’s “temple runs” will not work in its favour. If the Congress continues to play the soft hindutva card to woo Hindu voters it will lose minority votes. It is clear that the Congress has double standards.
Vikas Asthana,
On email.
Overinflated egos
Your special report on Israel versus Hamas brought out the stark reality of the multipolar world where human lives have no significance (‘Gouging Gaza’, November 5). With blatant disregard, innocent people are killed. Are we transforming ourselves into barbarians with no empathy for fellow human beings?
The pandemic, frequent earthquakes, floods are a reminder by the Almighty that if you do not care for nature, you will face its wrath.
It needs serious introspection to realise the fallacies of overinflated egos. A world of peace and harmony are the need of the hour to save our planet.
Vidita Mehta,
Jabalpur, MP.
Leaking the enemy’s war plans and crossing physical barriers have been known to be deciding factors in a war.
Hamas is fallible when faced with real-time war. It is not the physical separators but the mental dividers that need to be overhauled to enable a peace process. Restoration of normalcy is the first step to peace between Israel and Hamas.
Sachidananda Satpathy,
On email.
Let me praise THE WEEK for an impartial report from Israel. A war is always an aftermath of political vendetta that results in the brutal killing of innocent people and peace-loving neighbours. While many Indian politicians prefer to support the Palestinian struggle for a free and safe abode, for reasons best known to them, can we justify the atrocities committed by Hamas and Hezbollah on the Jewish community?
While I strongly condemn the massacre of unarmed innocent Palestinian women and children, how do we justify the preplanned, pre-meditated camouflaged intrusion into Israel by Hamas? While the Palestinians have the right to have a motherland of their own, whatever the ancient history may point to, they cannot deny the right of the Jewish community to return and settle in their motherland. They were driven into exile for centuries and were humiliated as slaves under the Egyptians, Babylonians and Assyrians, long before being the victims of the Nazi holocaust. Would the crisis have ever emerged, had it not been for a multi-pronged attack on the Jewish state after the inception of Israel?
T. Koshy Cherian,
On email.
Care for stray dogs
I fully agree with Anuja Chauhan that Parag Desai did not die of stray dog attack (‘Schizo-nation’, November 5). Desai is a well-known dog lover and has been taking care of them for so many years. Desai must have fallen down on his own. As Chauhan said, these dogs barked to draw the attention of people nearby.
It has become a fashion of sorts to blame stray dogs for everything. They are not at all dangerous and would harm you only if you harm them. Stray dogs get aggressive because they were mistreated. If you are kind, they will respond to you in the same manner.
Ranjan Khosla,
On email.
My heart goes out to Desai’s family. It was unfortunate that Desai died in the manner that he did. But why are we even blaming stray dogs? Desai was an animal lover who was not the victim of savage bites from rabid dogs as it is made out to be. Even his family is not saying so. All animals experience varied degrees of emotional reactions. Many of us run at the mere sighting of a stray dog, as if they are about to bite us. Let us not treat stray dogs as wild animals, please.
Sukhbir Gupta,
On email.
There is no need for stray dogs in India. They pose public safety risk and there are too many of them out there. There have been many instances of stray dogs attacking humans and other animals. I feel sad for Desai. If not for his love for stray dogs, he would not have died.
Gaurav Kapur,
On email.