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| Toast to Tradition: The famous Reynolds Room in Bengal Club |
It was dreadful to learn that despite violating traffic rules and manhandling a constable, former Trinamul Congress MLA Sanjay Bakshi has been let off scot-free (Hostile leader, upright cop, April 14). All that Partha Banerjee had done was ask Bakshi’s driver to produce papers after the car jumped the traffic light.
In a city where scores of people die every month on the streets due to reckless driving, this act of disciplining was perfectly valid, nay praiseworthy.
The 50-year-old constable of the Jorabagan Traffic Guard paid for his ‘mistakes’, with abuse and assault from the politician and his henchmen.
What message does it send across? The incident serves as a warning to right-thinking people in society that the worst is yet to come. It proves that politicians have elevated themselves above the law.
If the government remains a mute spectator when its law-enforcers are under attack, it is anybody’s guess what ordeal ordinary people might have to go through in everyday life when they dare to step on the feet of the politically powerful, however just their cause may be.
Kajal Chatterjee,
Sodepur.
It was amusing to note that a former president of Bengal Club had objected to the celebration of Bengali New Year on the premises as it went “against” the culture of a “cosmopolitan” club. It seems that to be cosmopolitan, one has to shed one’s ethnic identity and immerse oneself in foreign culture. However, good sense has prevailed among other club members despite opposition from those who have scant respect for anything Bengali despite living in Bengal.
K. Chatterjee,
Sodepur.
Apropos the report ‘Three HS scripts go missing from venue’, April 13, it is surprising how answer-scripts went missing after the candidates handed them to the invigilator. Were they taken away by some mischievous students? I wonder what sort of measures the HS council would have to take to guard against such possibilities!
Piyal Mukherjee,
Lake Town.
HS answerscripts went missing from a school only to be found later in a vat. What the fate of the three students would be is anybody’s guess.
Chandan Ray,
Sarsuna.
The picture ‘Drums of elation’ (April 7) was a feast for the eyes.
Aditya Basu,
Address not given
Apropos the report ‘Torture fail jolt for CU ragging panel’, April 14, ragging has increased in most educational institutions. Unless there is a change in the attitude of the student community, such practices will continue. Counselling programmes seem to be the only solution.
Rabindra Nath Kar,
Sankar Ghosh Lane.
Assaults on doctors in hospitals and nursing homes have become a regular feature (Clinic ransacked, Apr 10). They face accusations of neglect, but no one gives a thought to the problem of limited infrastructure.
Anil Kumar Sen,
Ram Chandra Chatterjee Lane.
We were shocked by the article ‘Women’s panel block for abuse case probe’ (April 12). Anjali Nair made a written complaint to us alleging continuous torture by her husband so that she was in fear of her life. She also wrote that she had lodged a diary at Lake Town police station. We asked the officer-in-charge over the phone to investigate the complaint and to give her protection if necessary. The report presents the case as just the opposite.
Jasodhara Bagchi,
Chairperson, West Bengal Commission for Women.
lMetro replies: We are no less surprised at the observation made by Jasodhara Bagchi. The principal source of our report is the OC of Lake Town police station who was elaborately quoted to enable the reader to grasp the import of the event. Before going to print, we called Bagchi several times at her residence, only to be informed that she was not readily available. However, we did speak to officials of the commission, after realising that Bagchi would be hard to contact.
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