Readers? Forum

Make it reach faster:

Reference to your appeal (Organiser, 20-6-2004), I am very glad to hear that circulation of Organiser has doubled in recent past. I am sure it will definitely increase further due to your fine neutral presentation of facts, as against that of ?secular? media. In my perspective, currently you have problem of ?timely postage? aspect of your weekly. I am saying this after taking note of my routine experience which is as follows: On 11th of July (Sunday), I was yet to receive your issue, dated July 4, when actually I should have received a copy of July 11, also. I don'tknow why this happens. When I receive it in time, I get it by preceding Friday or Saturday of your issue dated Sunday. And when I don'treceive it, it could be as late as the current example. Sometimes, though rarely, I don'treceive the copy at all. And strangely, many times, I receive copies of two subsequent weeks on two subsequent days. So for me the nature of your publication has become as a fortnightly issue, rather than a weekly edition. Unless you address this problem, I wonder how you can increase your circulation!
?Milind A. Vartak, Pune

Timely call:

The call by the RSS Sarsanghchalak, Shri K.S. Sudarshan, to teach children in Indian languages is timely and in keeping with the demands of democracy and national self-respect (Stop this de-Indianisation of education, Organiser, 11-7-2004). We experience every day how children educated in English-medium schools are cut off from their roots. Sending children to English-medium schools means telling them from the nursery level itself that they are second class and children born in English-speaking countries like England and America are first class. Children brought up with a feeling of being second class cannot be expected to achieve anything positive for the country.
?M.H. Pahoja, mhpahoja@hotmail.com

?Unbiased? Commission:

This refers to Communalism as UPA brand equity (Organiser, 4-7-2004). The alacrity shown by the National Human Rights Commission in calling for a report from the Gujarat police within six weeks taking suo motu notice of the newspaper reports is indeed commendable. The fact that similar action was not taken in respect of scores of other cases such as encounter death of Venkatesa Pannaiyar in Chennai, killing of hundreds of Sikhs in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi'sassassination, extermination of Hindus in the Kashmir Valley, etc.?to name only a few?may be due to the fact that the members of the Commission ?might not have read the newspapers during the relevant period? and ?not because of the fact that they are non-Muslims?. They can now call for copies from the archives if they so please and start reading them at their leisure and render ?speedy? justice.
?R. SRIDHARAN, saishivbharath@yahoo.com

Gimmick budget:

An economist reformer like P. Chidambaram was never expected to create the dangerous India-Bharat divide by nourishing the rural population by taxing the urbanites through the gimmick budget (Good in intent, bad in substance, Organiser, 18-7-2004). Rural sectors should make equal contribution to the nation by including agriculture in taxable income. How far is it logical to give special favour to Bihar exclusively just for political purposes? Gimmicks of exemptions/subsidies and hardships of surcharge/cess are continued, contrary to a simple tax regime.
?SUBHASH CHANDRA AGRAWAL,
subhashmadhu@sify.com

The leader India needs:

This is in reference to your cover story regarding the ?volte-face? of Atal Behari Vajpayee on Gujarat (Organiser, 27-6-2004). Actually, Vajpayeeji has remained aloof from the Hindutva movement. Our country needs such a leader who must have the four essential traits in him, which are: (a) authority (b) popularity (c) shrewdness/tact (d) ideology of RSS/Hindutva. Indira Gandhi had three of the above qualities in her?she had the authority, massive popularity and the brain. But without the proper nationalistic principles, her authority got converted to dictatorship and her shrewdness to cunningness. The BJP leaders must take lessons from Chanakya in his Chanakya-niti on how to run a government.
?Nirmal Laungani, Hong Kong

Colonial mindset:

I sincerely believed that Organiser being the mouthpiece of the RSS would do anything and everything to build pride within the Hindu community?well, if not the whole community, at least the readers of the weekly. Sadly, I find that not to be so. The Ganga is frequently described as the Ganges in most articles in Organiser much like an Englishman would do. There are also frequent articles where some odd old Europeans are portrayed as super heroes, like the article on Louis Pasteur (Organiser, 27-6-2004). Would the mindset of Hindus ever change? When would Hindus believe that they also have a culture superior in many ways and many times to that of the White man? If we keep setting examples of Europeans as super heroes in the minds of our children, how can you expect them to be good and proud Hindus when they grow up?
?Bramh D. Mishra, Texas (US)

To be or not to be:

This refers to Comaradisation of education (Organiser, 4-7-2004), in which Leftists have been blamed for distorting history textbooks. In fact, Leftists, according to whom ?Rama, Krishna and Arjuna? were imaginary warriors, are no different from Mahatma Gandhi. One example would be sufficient to prove my contention. Gandhiji said in Harijan (27-7-1937): ?I do not mention Rama and Krishna, because they were not historical figures…? The question arises, if Gandhiji believed that Rama and Krishna were not historical figures, then why did he chant Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram and preached Ramrajya, which, according to him, never existed?
?Anand Prakash, Panchkula

Honest governance:

In the article Boot out the casteist (Organiser, 4-7-2004), M.V. Kamath has raised a number of issues affecting governance in the country. It is obvious that the democratic form of governance as practised in India has all but failed since it has led to criminalisation of politics. In the present milieu, money and muscle powers are the main ingredients for success. So much so that an honest person can never think of entering politics and win elections by honest means.
?Dr Vidya Sagar, Delhi

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Shri Kamath'ssuggestion that a presidential form of government in place of the present parliamentary system to overcome the many ills in our polity is most welcome. An equally important aspect is the method of elections. The present system, in which there are several large constituencies, where many voters do not know candidates, is hardly representative of the people, and is the root cause of evils like casteism, muscle power and money power.
?C.B.D. Rao, Bangalore

Powerless Prez?:

Reference to Minorityism as the ideology of UPA (Organiser, 18-7-2004); the constitutional provision is that the Governor shall remain in office as long as he commands the ?pleasure? of the President. It is a cunning word used to suit the convenience of political party in power at the Centre. If the President is to be led by the Council of Ministers? advice, does he not have an independent conscience and discretion? If his ?pleasure? is to be subdued by the decision of the Council of Ministers, what high value does his throne command?
?Dr L.S. Madhava Rao, Hyderabad

First detoxify yourself:

This letter is in continuation to my previous letter (Organiser, 11-7-2004). The reported recommendations made by Messrs S. Settar, Barun De and J.S. Grewal suggest that they themselves are not unbiased and need to be detoxified. They are self-styled historians masquerading as educationists and curriculum framers. They have propagated the names of a couple of private publishers whose books could be used as alternatives. Would these gentlemen tell the public what vested interest do they have in publicising the names of these publishers?
?Man Mohan, Gurgaon

Evil suppressor:

A.T.M. Anwar in his letter has asked the question. ?Is Hinduism represented by whatever the followers of Hindu religion do? (Organiser, 4-7-2004)? The answer is yes. Whatever a Hindu does in the name of dharma is dharma in a way he understands it. Enlightened Hindu leaders try to correct the perception of the lay Hindus about dharma through discourses. They illustrate dharma by examples from lives of dharmik persons and also illustrate adharma by illustrations from life, to avoid doing the same. Both good and evil reside in man. Dharma brings out the good and suppresses the evil.
?S.D. Laghate, New Delhi

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Shri Anwar alleges that Theodore Dalrymple is biased and his version is distorted. The fact is that he is a highly prestigi-ous journalist of the quality newspaper, The Times, and also the BBC. By profession he is a medical doctor with thorough knowledge of community relations in the inner-city areas in the UK. Shri Anwar deserves to have a perception and ought not to deny others having their own perception too.
?B.K. Chaudhari, UK

Mollycoddling the minority:

One must be amazed at the prosperity of the Abul Kalam Azad Urdu University in Hyderabad, funded by the Union Government, in contrast to the Potti Sriramulu Telugu University in Andhra Pradesh. The Urdu University can teach any subject in Urdu, can affiliate colleges outside the state and now it wants to establish campuses outside India?in the Gulf States. Contrary to this the pitiable Telugu University is under-funded, cannot affiliate colleges outside the state, cannot start courses in Telugu for the Telugu-speaking people in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Orissa, and also cannot teach science and engineering in the Telugu medium. This is the hallmark of secularism as practised in our great country.
?A. Srinivasan, Hyderabad

Missionary ?zeal?:

Recently one Christian lady teacher was sacked from service in a Christian missionary school in Warangal town of Andhra Pradesh for marrying her colleague, who happens to be a Hindu. When questioned by some reporters regarding the dismissal from service, the management replied that their missionary zeal and tradition is against marrying a person from other religions. If that Hindu teacher embraced Christianity, they would certainly rehabilitate that Christian lady teacher back in service. The ?secular? brigade should understand the real motive of the charitable institutions and schools that are working day and night to wipe out Hinduism and Hindus from this land.
?Chilakamarri KrIshna, Rajahmundry (AP)

Information wanted:

Lately we have heard that there have been interactions between the RSS and Muslim leaders. Can we know the outcome of these meetings through your weekly?
?Hamza Ali, hamza@metallicequipment.ae

Take the bull by horn:

It is becoming unbearable for millions and millions of people in this country, who identify themselves with your ideology, to see almost all of you fumble when replying to various ?self-proclaimed judges?, who either anchor the TV programmes, or other vested groups of people, who bully you at every given opportunity. It is high time that you start responding to one and all in their own tone and tenor. Further, why can'tyou challenge the media in particular for authentication of their false accusations?
?Srivastavaji, srivastavaji@vsnl.net