Look within
Sir — The maxim, ‘Do not judge a book by its cover’, has become impossible to adhere to. Even before the title page has been turned, readers are informed that a book is a ‘tour de force’, a ‘magnum opus’ and so on. The book blurb has become pivotal for sellers to position books and the temptation to solicit glowing endorsements from peers is difficult for many writers to resist. But Sean Manning from Simon & Schuster has declared that he will now abjure this “incestuous and unmeritocratic” practice. Now readers can finally judge a book by its content and not the many famous names stamped on the cover.
Ruhika Singh,
New Delhi
Political gimmick
Sir — At a time when people are still searching for their relatives who are missing or feared to be dead after the stampede at the Mahakumbh, the prime minister, Narendra Modi, visited Prayagraj and took a holy dip at Sangam. This betrays an insensitivity towards the tragedy.
The fact that Modi visited the Mahakumbh on the day the assembly polls were held in Delhi also goes to show that this was a gimmick to consolidate the Hindu voter base. Modi’s penchant for mixing politics with religion to influence voters goes against the values enshrined in the Constitution.
S.K. Chowdhury,
Bengaluru
Sir — It is unfortunate that Narendra Modi took a dip at the Mahakumbh amidst tight security even though state administration helmed by the Bharatiya Janata Party failed to provide adequate security to pilgrims, leading to the loss of many lives in a stampede.
Arun Gupta,
Calcutta
Sir — Narendra Modi has previously been seen meditating and offering prayers at temples as ritualistic gestures. He has now been photographed at the Mahakumbh, taking a holy dip in the Ganga dressed in a dark orange jacket and blue track pants. He clearly thinks that devotion is something that needs to be seen by the public to be believed.
Avinash Godboley,
Dewas, Madhya Pradesh
Rich symbolism
Sir — Members of Parliament from the Samajwadi Party held a shroud with “Chunav Aayog” emblazoned on it to imply that the Election Commission of India is dead. This was a protest against the EC’s alleged complacent attitude towards the irregularities in the assembly bypolls in Milkipur. The EC, supposed to be an independent, constitutional body, has undoubtedly been favouring the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The prime minister, Narendra Modi, never misses a chance to criticise the Congress for imposing the Emergency. However, India has been in a state of undeclared Emergency since Modi came to power. His involvement in the Gujarat riots, too, must not be forgotten.
T. Ramadas,
Visakhapatnam
Behind the times
Sir — The Indian postal service was established in the 19th century. Lately, it has been falling behind in terms of the services it provides. Currency counting machines must thus be installed at the cash counters of post offices to save time and increase efficiency. Further, the government must take appropriate steps to ease the experience of hundreds of customers still dependent on the Indian postal service.
Samares Bandyopadhyay,
Calcutta
Hall of fame
Sir — It is heartening that the Indian Football Association has set up a stall at this year’s book fair. Among other things, the IFA stall is displaying the Santosh Trophy, which the Bengal football team clinched after six years, and the Dr. B.C. Roy Trophy, which was won after two decades.
Sourish Mishra,
Calcutta
