True lies

• Sir - Owing to the mobile phone, people can get in touch with one another even when they are separated by great distances. But the popularity of the gadget is also affecting the moral fibre of society. These days, it is not uncommon to hear people on the mobile phone lie about their exact location. Just the other day, I heard a man holler - discretion is still an alien concept in India's public spaces - that he had reached Shyambazar even though he was waiting for a train at the Tollygunge metro station. Perhaps there ought to be a Make in India project to develop a phone app to catch the white lies of citizens and politicians.

Gautam Bhowmik,
Calcutta

Spiritual matters

• Sir - With the life imprisonment sentence awarded to the godman, Asaram, by a Jodhpur court for raping a 16-year-old girl five years ago, justice has been served. He has been trying to escape punishment for a long time. He thought that his exalted status as a spiritual guru meant that he was above the law. The verdict has proved that all wrongdoers, including devious godmen, have to pay for their crimes.

The mindless outrage among the godman's followers is to be expected: they claim that their guru has been falsely implicated. This shows that they treat Asaram like a god; in their eyes, he is infallible. In spite of the fact that his crime has been proven, they are ready to sacrifice logic and rationality in favour of blind faith.

Self-styled godmen who exploit their followers are a dime a dozen. The sexual crimes of Gurmeet Ram Rahim, another dubious godman, were exposed a few months ago. These charlatans thrive on political patronage, build business empires worth crores of rupees and live opulent lifestyles.

In the case of Asaram, one must appreciate the courage shown by the rape survivor and her father in defying repeated threats from the godman's followers all these years and fighting the case till the end. Other witnesses, who were either intimidated or killed for their role in exposing Asaram's crimes, should also be remembered.

Aditya Mukherjee,
Delhi

• Sir - Although a special scheduled caste/scheduled tribe court in Jodhpur has pronounced that Asaram shall remain in prison for the 'rest of his natural life', the latter does not appear to be too perturbed by the judgment. He seems to be sure that he can use his power to avert incarceration in one way or another. He must also have gained confidence after the recent exoneration of Maya Kodnani - the former cabinet minister in Gujarat when Narendra Modi was the chief minister of the state - who was initially sentenced to 28 years in jail for the Naroda Patiya massacre. This bleak state of affairs makes one wonder how India can be saved from such fake godmen and their supporters.

Tharcius S. Fernando,
Chennai

• Sir - India has traditionally had great spiritual thinkers - such as Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Shirdi Sai Baba - who led simple lives, seeking neither power nor wealth. They served humanity till death. But the present-day gurus are money-minded and have huge business empires. They are surrounded by devotees who have blind faith in their gurus and do not feel disturbed by their unacceptable conduct, even when it involves the sexual exploitation of women.

The nexus that these godmen share with political leaders and bureaucrats is also well known. They might wear saffron robes instead of tailored suits, but they are all in the business of 'selling' spirituality. It is embarrassing that many of these godmen have politicians as followers.

Jubel D'Cruz,
Mumbai

• Sir - The Jodhpur special court's sentencing of Asaram to life imprisonment for raping a teenager should serve as an eye-opener for the general public. The sexual assault of women devotees by their gurus is not uncommon in India.

Although it is expected that the lawyers representing Asaram would move to a higher court to challenge the verdict, the law must be allowed to take its own course. In this context, it was shocking that D.G. Vanzara, the former deputy inspector-general of Gujarat who was behind bars for extra-judicial killings, has jumped on the chance to express his opinion on this case. What authority does he have to make statements about a matter on which the honourable court has already pronounced its verdict?

Even more astonishingly, the Bharatiya Janata Party has strongly opposed the circulation of a video showing the prime minister, Narendra Modi, with Asaram. It has become rather common for criminals to be associated with those in power.

Manas Kumar Majumdar,
Barasat