Ending in a whimper

Not the end of the road

Sir — Democracy and people’s welfare have been mocked at by the political parties in West Bengal (“Mamata storms out of meet”, May 25). In the wake of the Nandigram killings, the all-party meet at Mahajati Sadan — which went on for a little less than two hours — could not decide on a plan to facilitate the return of the evicted families to their homes in Nandigram. This is a sad state of affairs. The Left Front looks divided and out of its wits, while the main opposition is lacking in both direction and scruples (as Ashok Mitra points out in “Ego and destiny”, May 25). Some well-meaning groups and persons, headed by the veteran Forward Bloc leader, Ashok Ghosh, made this meeting possible. He was humble enough to accept that they had not done proper homework prior to the talks. Irrespective of whether the Naxalites are creating trouble in these areas and preventing the homeless Communist Party of India (Marxist) supporters from entering the villages, every political party should understand that the homeless will have a very hard time if they cannot return before the monsoons.

Most of the villagers, whether CPI(M) loyalists or belonging to the Trinamool Congress-led Bhumi Uchchhed Pratirodh Committee, have understood that the political parties are interested only in gaining political mileage before the panchayat elections (“Villagers gun for ‘selfish’ politicians”, May 25). When the people are completely convinced about this, they will stop depending on the Calcutta-based political leaders and ask the local leaders to restore normalcy in the troubled villages.

Yours faithfully,
Ranesh Chandra Dey,
Calcutta

Sir — It is unfortunate that the much-vaunted all-party meeting on Nandigram was no more than a war of words (“Drama over, stage waits”, May 25). While the restoration of normalcy in Nandigram is the priority, fixing the responsibility for the massacre on March 14 and punishing those named in the CBI report, are matters of great importance too. It is not enough for the chief minister to accept responsibility personally and shield the government officers, policemen and party workers who committed atrocities on the farmers and their families on March 14. The opposition parties, on the other hand, should remember that providing aid to the people of Nandigram and pushing for justice are more important than getting the killings branded as genocide. In other words, future all-party meetings have to go beyond empty rhetoric. A stalemate over the use of a particular word in the resolution may further aggravate the already volatile situation in the Nandigram villages.

At the Mahajati Sadan meeting, Ashok Ghosh should not have allowed Nandagopal Bhattacharya to move a resolution without some deliberation. The opposition leaders should have been allowed to release their steam before the real business began.

Yours faithfully,
A. Roy Mukherjee,
Calcutta

Everybody loves a ban

Sir — No one, be it a custodian of the law, or a moral guardian at a governmental level, is competent enough to define obscenity in a way that is acceptable to all (“TV under obscenity watch”, May 26). What is obscene to minors may not be so to adults. Again, something that is common practice in American society, may be considered a taboo in India. With the kind of global access one has today, it is impossible to stop those who want to watch pornography by creating legal curbs, self-regulatory mechanisms or by appointing administrative watchdogs. Moreover, disputes over the interpretation of obscenity will spawn innumerable court cases.

Yours faithfully,
Gobinda Chandra Biswas,
Barasat

Sir — The debate on the issue of obscenity on television continues. Agreed, bans can be imposed on certain TV channels, but who can ban the circulation of obscene images through the internet, DVDs and VCDs. We need something more concrete to address the issue than the constant imposing and lifting of bans.

Yours faithfully,
Lubna Salim,
Calcutta

Parting shot

Sir — I recently stayed in Hyderabad for a few weeks and went to pay an electric bill for my son who occupies an apartment there. I gathered from neighbours that the bill was to be paid at any of the “e-seva” centres in the city. I walked to the nearest centre and found myself inside a hall on the ground floor of a building. The board outside read “Government of Andhra Pradesh Integrated Citizens Service Center e- Seva. Open All Days Including Sundays and Second Saturdays, From 8 am to 8 pm.” Inside, there was a long table at the far side of the hall, with half a dozen computers operated by ladies, and a chair in front of each for customers. Near the entrance, there were rows of chairs for the waiting public. No queues, no sweat, no jostling. Customers were being ushered in as their token numbers were displayed on illuminated digital boards behind the counters, each time one was falling vacant. No shouting, no fighting. It took me no more than two minutes to get my job done. While coming out, another board on the wall drew my attention. It was a list of services offered at the centre. This included electric bills, telephone bills, municipal taxes, trade license renewal, passport applications and a host of others. What struck me most was that all this activity was happening on the day of a bandh supported by the ruling party of Andhra Pradesh.

On returning to Calcutta, I had to spend three-and-a-half days to pay my electric bill, telephone bill and municipal tax, each time standing in queues a hundred feet long. When will Bengal start thinking what the rest of India has already put into action?

Yours faithfully,
P. Mookerjee,
Calcutta