Look who?s talking Sir ? Laloo Prasad Yadav?s sarcasm loaded wit in Parliament during the debate on the Bharatiya Janata Party led government?s confidence motion reveals his incredible lack of shame (?Laloo brings life to lacklustre debate? April 15). His own brand of politics deserves comments far more severe than mere digs. Yadav?s scathing but sugar coated attack on George Fernandes for having ?changed sides? and forgotten the way he would once swear by socialists like Ram Manohar Lohia is a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Was Bihar?s de facto ruler himself not an anti-establishment idealist, a Jayaprakash Narayan devotee who once raised his voice against the Emergency? What Yadav has been reduced to is not even a shadow of his former self, and all for the sake of power and pelf. As for the charge against Yashwant Sinha ? that he has the uncanny ability to grab high posts ? perhaps the criticism better applies to the fodder scandal tainted politician himself. Yours faithfully, Ananya Banerjee, Calcutta Flash of success Sir ? With the successful launch of Agni II, India has taken a leap forward in missile technology. Of course, this is not India?s debut in the field. India earlier successes include the launching of Trishul, Agni I, Prithvi, Nag and Akash. The significance of those tests was not as perceptible as that of Agni II for obvious reasons. Technically, Agni II is deadly compared to its predecessors with respect to penetration range, warhead capacity, incisive power and veering mechanism. All these are said to be positive attributes of the new ballistic component that can flash through the stratosphere to strike enemy targets within 2,500 kilometres. So for the Bharatiya Janata Party, the launching of Agni II was one remarkable achievement in its short and controversial stint at the Centre. Following Pokhran, the country?s defence has been consolidated further. India has drawn flak from the United States, China, Japan and Pakistan for Agni II. Western countries allied to the US may be expected to join the chorus of disapproval. Their fears that India?s success in missile technology may create power imbalances in Asia ? and thus cause a fresh arms race ? cannot be ruled out. The worries of China and Pakistan from the strategic standpoint are easily comprehensible since Agni II may reach right into the two countries. Beijing?s displeasure in the context is understandable given India?s advancement in missile warfare makes it capable of attacking an enemy 2,000 miles away in 11 minutes. The new development will surely affect the bilateral ties with China, at a time India is trying for a thaw in relations after Pokhran. Pakistan?s reaction is all too familiar despite the recent bus diplomacy the Atal Behari Vajpayee government took the trouble to initiate. The Lahore accord calls for exercising restraint by both sides on equal terms, but India is not ready to make compromises on national security. Nor is Pakistan. Just as India?s Pokhran got a reply from Pakistan, so has Agni II. As long as this attitude persists, the Lahore accord will be irrelevant. Pakistan will no doubt import technological knowhow from China and North Korea to ensure its own security vis a vis India. The Bill Clinton administration?s heartburn at Agni II may be attributed to the fact India is marching ahead independently and deserves to be recognized as a power in its own right in a unipolar world. This attitude is unjustified ? what happens when the US or China conducts nuclear and missile tests? India?s armed preparedness aims at bolstering its own security, not hegemonism or global domination like the US. Perhaps Washington has not comprehended that the Agni II launch is a measure for minimum nuclear deterrence. One should not be surprised if the US slams a further embargo on trade with India as it did after Pokhran. Inflicting such punishments are the only weapons the US can apply on developing countries. Yours faithfully, Ashok Ray Chaudhuri, Calcutta Sir ? Agni II has given new laurels to India vis a vis the capability to defend itself (?Atal fires Agni in diversity?, April 12). Both Pakistan and China ought to accept India?s newfound might and begin to treat the country with due respect and stop meddling in its internal affairs. One of the last decisions of the BJP led government before it lost the motion of confidence, the results thrilled the nation. The then opposition felt dutybound to criticize the BJP and was not magnanimous enough to acknowledge national achievement with pride. Atal Behari Vajpayee, along with the scientists who launched Agni II, should be congratulated. The US is critical of India?s defence policies. But it is worth noting that while the Clinton administration is pursuing an aggressive foreign policy India is concerned only with nuclear deterrence and self-defence. The US has repeatedly committed blunders at home and abroad but Vajpayee gave the nation much cause for pride. Yours faithfully, Sush Kocher, Calcutta Sir ? While India?s efforts in the field of defence technology were being lauded by the public, resident ?non-Indians? kept denouncing the former government for making the nation self-reliant in defence. D. Raja of the Communist Party of India flayed the BJP government for the successful firing of Agni II. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) also condemned that government for this reason. The communists do not want India to emerge as a strong modern nation capable of defending itself. These resident ?non-Indians? have never condemned China or North Korea for developing missiles or nuclear arms. It beats one how the left, with meagre mass support, can make the noise it makes and mouth opinions on almost every subject on ?behalf of the people?. The media should stop publicizing the left?s views since it does not seem interested in India?s wellbeing. Who does not remember its anti-India role in the Quit India movement, 1942, its support for the Chinese aggression on India in 1962 and the CPI?s support for the Emergency? Indian leftists had denounced a leader of the stature of M.K. Gandhi as a bourgeois and abused Jawaharlal Nehru as a follower of Anglo-American imperialism. They stooped to condemning Subhas Chandra Bose as an agent of fascists. Communists are being rejected by people over the world. When will the leftists in India learn from this? Yours faithfully, T. Mani Chowdhary, Secunderabad Bizarre mistake Sir ? An error has crept into my article ?Bihar to bizarre is only a step? (April 6). The last sentence of the third paragraph says, ?B.P. Mandal was anointed chief minister for three days.? This is the result of a misinterpretation of a sentence in the article. The reference was to the appointment of one Satish Kumar as chief minister for three days to nominate Mandal to the legislative council to enable him to become the chief minister. Mandal was lured with the office of chief minister by the political managers of the Congress. He split the party, formed the Bharatiya Shoshit Dal, made Satish Kumar, the then chief minister, nominate him to the council and took over as the chief minister three days later. Yours faithfully, Ajay K. Mehra, via e mail Letters to the editor should be sent to: The Telegraph 6 Prafulla Sarkar Street Calcutta 700 001 Email: the_telegraph_india @newscom.com Fax: 225 3240/41