Slain for love

Sir — Tanya Banerjee’s death exposes the shortcomings in the security arrangements in business process outsourcing companies (“BPO girl falls to 25 stabs”, July 27). Why did the employers not bother to ascertain the real reason behind Banerjee’s refusal to use company transport even as the memories of the brutal rape and murder of Pratibha Murthy remain fresh in our minds? Murthy’s murder should have made the employers of the BPO firms in Bangalore more alert about the safety of their female employees. The murders, along with the rising crime graph in cities such as Bangalore, only goes to show that greed and lust are fast destroying the universal values of love, compassion and mercy.

Yours faithfully,
Arvind K. Pandey, Allahabad


Sir — The murder of Tanya Banerjee is a ghastly crime and the perpetrator should definitely receive the harshest punishment. But the government cannot be accused of failing to protect women BPO workers considering the circumstances that led to Banerjee’s stabbing (“By the wayside”, July 28). It is not possible for the government to provide security to all working women. Banerjee refused to avail herself of the transport facility provided by her employers. Instead, she usually left office with her ‘friend’ in his car. So neither the government nor the company can be held responsible for her death.

This brings us to another crucial point. It is certainly not fair to accuse society of being against the economic empowerment of women. The high-flying lifestyle of some working women and the manner in which they flaunt their money has created problems in their lives. The prospect of earning easy money has lured many a woman to lead dangerous lives. It is the lure of money and a fast life that has been the downfall of many a woman. Tanya Banerjee seems to fallen into the same trap.

Yours faithfully,
A. Roy Mukherjee, Calcutta

Sir — Some people have blamed Tanya Banerjee’s death on the lax security system in call centres. But Banerjee’s death has nothing to do with the issue of safety for women employees. This is an isolated incident where a jilted man stabbed his lover in a fit of anger. There is no reason to believe that BPO companies have remained indifferent to the issue of women’s security. In this particular case, Banerjee had decided not to take the office car while going home. Women working in call centres should not be intimidated because of a stray incident like this. One admits that the rise in crime in all major cities has made it risky for a woman to work long hours in the night. But this should not make women shy away from lucrative careers.

Yours faithfully,
Nandini Saraf, Calcutta

Sir — What purpose does the front page photo of Tanya Banerjee’s murderer serve for the readers (“Lover owns to Tanya murder”, July 28)? This is nothing but the glamorization of a heinous crime. Worse, the murderer, Gururaj Kishore, sporting an Adidas T-shirt, hardly looks remorseful in the picture. This kind of blatant sensationalism reminds one of soap operas. It would be a good idea for the media to concentrate on hard news instead.

Yours faithfully,
Surajit Das, Calcutta

The enemy within

Sir — The slaughter of tribal villagers in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district serves as a chilling reminder that India’s national security is threatened by more than one enemy (“India lives, terror to terror”, July 18). Ever since the Chhattisgarh government created a state army called Salwa Judum to mobilize tribals against the Maoist marauders, the red army has been desperately trying to regain control over the thickly-forested areas by unleashing a reign of terror. Villagers returning from anti-Maoist rallies are being targeted by the rebels, who threaten villagers with dire consequences if they interact with state officials. It is time India starts tackling its internal adversaries before pointing fingers across the border.

Yours faithfully,
J.S. Acharya, Hyderabad

Sir — The people at the ‘safe’ camp in Errabore village trusted the State to protect them. But the government proved totally unworthy of their trust. The camp was supposed to be heavily guarded, but, in reality, there was no security cover at the time of the attack. Hence the camp proved to be an easy target. Would the government, as a first step to restore faith in the minds of the public, punish the security personnel who were supposed to protect the camp from the rebels?

Yours faithfully,
G. Raghuram, Calcutta

Parting shot

Sir — The death of 79 farmers in in Vidarbha, Maharastra, proves that the Union agriculture minister is finding it difficult to take time off his sporting commitments. During the National Democratic Alliance regime, the Congress had raised a hue and cry over farmer-deaths in Andhra Pradesh. But, once in power, the party has conveniently forgotten the plight of poor farmers in the country.

Yours faithfully,
C.R. Bhattacharjee, Calcutta