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ELECTION 99
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E-mail from readers the world over'Well done, Mr Naidu'Date Sent: Wed, 08 Sep 1999 19:27:59 +0000
Interesting and excellent. Well done, Mr Naidu. Keep it up and do it all across the state. We want to see this happening all the time. Date Sent: Wed, 8 Sep 1999 14:45:23 -0500
Hi, I read your article, 'Naidu turns his constituency into island of prosperity', and was very impressed. I believe we should encourage the chief minister for all the good work he has done for the state and his constituency. Keep up the good work. Sukarna Grandhi Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 18:58:13 -0500
Mr Babbar, Shri Atalji lost by one vote because we have Congress workers with a slavery mentality who can't pick a single Indian born to be their leader. Just think, a housewife who ran away during 1971 war and during the riots was hiding in the Italian embassy is the Congress leader. It shows how capable and mature are the party leaders. We have many Jaichands in India. That's why Atalji lost by only one vote. Look at the Congress, reduced to 140 seats now. It may manage 90 seats this time. Watch out, Congress, people are getting educated. You can't fool people for a long time. Now there are so many channels of the media. You can't bribe and buy them all. Truth always prevails and wins. Your days are numbered. Once Sonia loses I am sure she will go to Italy. Enjoying Indian money.
Date Sent: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 10:13:47 -0400
Your question to Mrs Sushma Swaraj, about the Gandhi name, if it troubled her? This is an irresponsible question. The Gandhi name implies Mahatma Gandhi and someone who is from his family. Sonia Gandhi is not related to Mahatma Gandhi even in any remote way. But yes, right from Indira Gandhi's time, they (Indira Gandhi and her children) have continuously perpetuated the false notion that they are related to Mahatma Gandhi and are of the same family. As the press, the watchdog of society, it is important that you do not also perpetuate this ignorance through such irresponsible questions. You can check the veracity of this observation by walking in the villages of India and you will find whether what I am saying is right or wrong. Illiteracy and ignorance have been systematically taken advantage of for the last 50 years. The result is that if an actual relative of Gandhi was to surface, his or her relationship will be suspected. Shame on us and the media for not having foreseen and exposed this. It is not too late even now. Avinash Chopde. Date Sent: Mon, 13 Sep 1999 14:09:41 -0700
Dear Sir/Madam, I do not agree with Mr Veer Shetty of LIC on his comments that we should fold hands before the prince. I remember that when I was a student of Yuvaraja College in Mysore, Wodeyar studied in the neighboring Maharaja College. Rumours abound that the prince was one of the dumbest student, the type eating peanuts on the last bench. I was mesmerized bythe royal treatment given to him. He had different foreign cars dropping him off, bringing lunch etc. He did not associate with other students or show any interest in other poor souls who attended college. He was enjoying himself and living in his rich, untouchable world. I wonder what his achievements are to improve Mysore during his two terms as MP. Why is he running and what is he trying to accomplish? If his interest is only in his tax problems, shame on him for running and make a mockery of the people who are trying to better themselves and don't live in huge palace like him. I have nothing against his wealth but have plenty against his lack of accomplishments. His father, King Jayachamaraja Wodeyar, was well known for his talents in arts and literature as well as a popular and able ruler. I hope the prince has something to prove other than being his father's son. Prabhu@sempra.com Date Sent: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 19:39:10 -0700
Nawab sahib, Your views are right on the mark -- do not mix politics and religion. How come at the eve of every election we hear fatwas being issued? I am not saying every Muslim votes on the basis of a fatwa, but I do not find anyone condemning them either. As long as the minorities treat BJP as untouchables, the BJP has no reason to work for them; for even if it does, the concern that a fatwa can undo all the good work worries them. So I guess, education is where everything starts. I am aware of your wonderful effort in the direction of progressive Islam and in maintaining peace and communal amity. I also know that a lot of Muslims prefer this to the more rabid versions of Islam propagated beyond our borders. It's time a person of your stature come out and states openly that the Muslim League must not be a political party since it mixes religion with politics, and that Muslim clerics must allow their people to choose the representative of their choice. Unfortunately, this time Alan-de-Lastic has chosen to communalize the country further with his version of a fatwa for Christians. So where does it all end? You mentioned Hindu atrocities. How about Muslim and Christian atrocities? The uniform civil code is not being propagated to prevent Muslims from practising Islam. It is being propagated to ensure that a Hindu does not need to feel ashamed of being a Hindu, so that a Hindu will not be given a bad deal just because he happens to be in a majority. The civil code aims for justice for all, irrespective of religion. We would like to see microphones removed from temples and mosques and religion being practised as a private affair with the government remaining neutral. But every time a Shah Bano episode brings out cases of the exploitation of minorities, people get upset. It has been found during the course of the elections in the last decade that the tag "minority" does not quite apply when it comes to determining the outcome of an election. If the minority community decides to vote en masse against a particular candidate, that is sufficient to ensure his/her defeat. Thus the tendency to ignore the merits of a candidate and to vote based on religious guidelines is the only reason the BJP strikes a responsive chord in the majority. The party is not without flaws and will be punished when it exceeds its brief. That is to say that India is inherently secular notwithstanding the politics of hate. The vast majority of Hindus would love to see more leaders of your stature reforming the minority community's outlook and help them integrate with the majority rather than encouraging the current notion of allegiance only to the land because they were born in India. India is for Indians and no one disputes that. But if minorities are going to view their religion as something they cannot compromise on for the large interests of the country then it causes trouble. Take family planning for example. Is it wrong to expect Indians to reproduce more slowly as our population is too large to sustain any decent economic growth? If not, then why is it wrong to ask an Indian Muslim to practice family planning? If improving the life of Indian womenfolk is required through legislation, why does a Muslim woman have to be denied these benefits just because her religion places constraints on her. Doesn't her prosperity, in turn, leads to India's prosperity? So instead of practising policies of exclusion, we need policies of inclusion. We need genuine equality and justice for all irrespective of caste or community. We need to respect human rights; this is guaranteed by our constitution to a certain extent but not by religious practices which have carried on obsolete practices despite the advancement of man and society. Given these larger issues, your call is a definitely a first step in that direction. I hope you will be a spokesman for a more humane society rather than a mouthpiece of one community alone. Regards Arun Date Sent: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 13:54:05 -0400
Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali, the Prince of Arcot seems a well-meaning person. But do Muslims really think of India like he does? And when will our secularists and well-meaning Muslims will ever look inside and consider the evils in the minority society and what they should do to prevent hurting the majority community? If a well-meaning person lands up giving lectures to only the majority community then he is most likely petty-minded, thinking only about what others should do to make his life better. This is a problem with all well-meaning people in India. They lose focus on evils on either side and become reluctant to condemn the bad elements in their own society. Regards, Mukund M Kute Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 08:50:39 +0530
Excellent coverage for the news on exit poll. The news report presentation can be further improved by including a summary of news items (could be a summary of one paragraph) and inclusion of graphs. Thanks, Rajeev Kapoor Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 12:12:05 -0400
My car bumper sticker now reads: "Varsha Bhosle for President". Deepak
Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 10:15:47 -0700
Varsha, I love you. Srikrishnan Sivaraman Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 12:56:16 -0400
Simply outstanding! G Ramanath Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 11:41:50 -0700
This is what I call "grilling". The man must have run to the toilet once Varsha left. I cannot believe that scoundrels like these even get elected -- people with no scruples. I think the interview was in the mould of Jeraldo on NBC.
Date Sent: Fri, 17 Sep 1999 10:37:06 +0530
Mind-blowing! Great interview, Varsha! This is how we should tackle these free-booters -- head-on! No punches pulled! Plain simple hard-hitting questions! Keep it up! If we were Americans I would have said I love you, but in India it can be misunderstood so I'll say I love the way you think and also the way you write. Just ask him one more question: If Indian soldiers have the duty to die defending Kashmir, why don't Indian citizens have the right to buy land in Kashmir? Bye. More power to your pen! Manish Maheshwari Date Sent: Fri, 17 Sep 1999 15:28:30 -0400
It's excellent. Varsha's questions are straightforward. This guy has a problem saying, 'I am Indian first and Kashmiri later'. Varsha proved that this guy has no brains and doesn't know what he wants and talking about -- like a majority of our politicians and specially politicians and parties supporting the Congress, with that Italian, Sonia, as their leader. Good job, Varsha. Amar Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 17:25:00 -0400
This is complete waste of your space and Ms Varsha Bhosle's time. Date Sent: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 17:06:12 +0100
A very insightful interview that shows Soz's frame of mind. Good job. Paritosn
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