India's brand of secularism is unique indeed ("Is Secularism Dead?", April 8). It has abjured the democratic and pragmatic principle of not making any law based on any religious precepts and founded itself on the principle of granting legal favours and special rights to any and every religion whenever that act promises political dividend. The prevailing situation in India is, consequently, not surprising. A uniform civil code-the first step to secularism-will no doubt be violently opposed by fundamentalists of all major religions. However, it will also produce the opportunity to jail both murderous mullahs and sanyasi thugs, thus ending the nightmares they have regularly visited upon India.

Anutosh Moitra, Sammamish, USA

Apparent Complicity

Your fond wish that "Post-Godhra, the Government in Gandhinagar should have anticipated a Hindu backlash" ignores the fact that the Modi regime had actually worked towards it by allowing the VHP to declare a Gujarat bandh ("Modi Apart", April 15). Within 24 hours of the bandh, mobs were ordered to go for the kill. However, the people rejected the BJP's dangerous game plan and that, in the final analysis, remains India's saving grace as well as the true measure of her unshakeable spirit to survive.

Ghulam Muhammed, Mumbai

Rough Review

The report of the Constitution Review Commission ("An Artful Dodge", April 15) leaves a lot to be desired. By deftly side-stepping important issues-like the presidential form of government, uniform civil code and occupation of high posts by persons of non-Indian origins-the commission has only managed to put off the inevitable. Such crucial issues tend to re-emerge in uglier, nastier forms. In this respect, the commission has done a disservice to the nation.

D. Pramod, Chennai

Clarification

Your story has some factual errors regarding the case of my mother, Mrs Neena Bonarji ("The Last Right", April 15). She was suffering from a progressive illness and was aware the final stage was indicated by the patient requiring a respirator/ventilator. My mother was against this and told me that if she was put on a ventilator by doctors, I was to instruct them to pull her off the machine. Once the doctors said my mother was beyond recovery, I communicated to them her wish. But they were very clear that they could not act on her instructions. The doctors could only put her on minimal life support, which is what they did. The quotes attributed to me in the story give an impression contrary to these facts.

Richa Chitransh, on e-mail

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