Letters

Unruly Passions The attack on the Orissa assembly by our own people is of greater consequence than a similar attempt by foreign terrorists in Srinagar (“13/12 Reenacted Hindutva Style”, April 1). The lesson from the inaction of the Gujarat Police against rioters too is unmistakable: predicting the next bout of lawlessness is impossible in the face of government failure to enforce rule of law. We must remember that no individual, community or organisation is sacred to people who have no respect for law. B.N.S. Walia, on e-mail Do our mlas and mps have the moral right to impose punitive measures on those who stormed the Orissa Assembly? Specially when these so-called saviours of democracy have themselves indulged in violent acts inside state assemblies—think of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Maharashtra—many times in the past. Satish Madhekar, on e-mail

The Ayodhya imbroglio spells doom not only for the bjp but for the nation’s peace and harmony as well (“bjp’s Temple of Doom”, March 25). The only feasible solution to the crisis now is to leave the disputed site empty or build a cenotaph in memory of the Hindus and Muslims who lost their lives for this unwanted cause. The gods surely would not want a shrine to be built over a place that has taken a toll of so many people.

K. Chidanand Kumar, Bangalore

Of late religious leaders have become tools in the hands of politicians. It is time to get intellectuals and social workers to solve the Ayodhya problem. The services of religious leaders should be limited to removing poverty, hunger, unemployment and in other welfare measures.

P.V. Madhu, on e-mail

When at some future date the history of India is written, honest historians will state that the bjp ushered in the era of communalism between 1990 and 2001, and succeeded in burying the concept of secularism. In its election campaign, the bjp claimed to be different from the Congress and other parties who had been in power. It has proved as much by giving free rein to the rabid communalism of the vhp, Bajrang Dal and similar organisations.

J.C. Trivedi, Ahmedabad

Out of Sync

Tarun Vijay’s defence of the Ayodhya movement—his thinking that the Ram temple will be like the Statue of Liberty—is illogical (“Stop Secular Talibanism”, March 25). He forgets that that statue was erected by the American colonies as a sign of victory over the unjust British. What war will the Ram temple be a memorial to? The one against hapless Muslims who died in the riots engendered by the Ram temple movement?

Sharad Abhyankar Wai, on e-mail

G.M. Banatwalla is quite incorrect in his view that a “masjid” once consecrated is a masjid in perpetuity (“Let Law Prevail”, March 25). Hagia Sophia, the Christian basilica built in Constantinople around 540 a.d., was forcibly converted into a mosque when the Ottoman Turks captured the city in 1453 a.d. Centuries later, Kemal Attaturk had the “masjid” taken away from clerical Islamic control and converted into a national monument under state administration. Today, it is precisely this sense of retributive justice that is missing among Islamic leaders in modern India.

V.S. Parmar, Ranchi

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