Disgraceful conduct

Sir — The legislators who led the assault on Taslima Nasreen at a function in Hyderabad should have acted in a more civilized manner (“MLA shame on Lajja author”, Aug 9). They could have taken up their pens to criticize Taslima instead of assaulting the exiled writer. These self-appointed guardians of Islam needed to pick someone of their own size — Bal Thackeray, for instance. After all, Thackeray has said worse things about Muslims. The disgraceful behaviour of the MLAs against a woman author is a matter of shame for all Muslims.

Yours faithfully,
M. Hasan Jowher, Ahmedabad

Seeing red

Sir — The Left seems to have suddenly woken up from its slumber to oppose the nuclear deal scripted between the United States of America and India (“Left in nuclear rage but won’t explode”, Aug 8). Unfortunately for the Left, its doublespeak now stands exposed. When the Bharatiya Janata Party decides to criticize the government in parliament, left parties seldom join in, preferring to remain silent. However, on other matters such as liberalization and privatization, the Left resorts to token protests. The communist parties are not interested in bringing down the government. On the contrary, their game plan is to remain in power and simultaneously play the role of a ‘constructive Opposition’.

There are other instances of the Left’s hypocrisy. It opposes the Congress in the states, but supports the party at the Centre. Similarly, in Bengal, the Left has been busy doling out agricultural land to industries, while in Khammam, Andhra Pradesh, the communists have been supporting the demand for land by landless peasants. There is no reason for the Congress to get alarmed by the Left’s posturings over the nuclear deal. It should know by now that the Left barks often, but it seldom bites.

Yours faithfully,
Danendra Jain, Ranchi

Sir — Communist parties in India are to be pitied, not criticized. Having been orphaned by the Soviet Union in the early Nineties, and disappointed by China’s overtures to capitalists, Indian communist parties today resemble a rudderless ship. Some people may find their loyalty to Marxism admirable. But in politics, holding on steadfastly to a set of archaic principles is a weakness, not a strength. The Left’s opposition to the nuclear pact is in keeping with its traditional animosity towards anything that involves America. The barbs from the Left need not be taken seriously. Its main concern is to stay in the limelight, even if it means mouthing the same old rhetoric.

Yours faithfully,
C.V.K. Moorthy, Calcutta

Sir — The din raised by the Left over the 123 Agreement is quite unnecessary. It is difficult to understand why the Left opposes a nuclear treaty with the US despite knowing that it is in India’s interest to forge a strategic alliance with the world’s only remaining superpower. The problem with the Left is that it has a regressive point of view on everything. Left parties are unwilling to take a pragmatic stand based on the current geo-political reality. They are still captives of the Cold-War mentality, and believe in antiquated policies such as non-alignment. It would be better if the Left gave up on its opposition to the nuclear deal. By agitating against the government, it is only strengthening the hands of the communal BJP.

Yours faithfully,
Kalyan Ghosh, Calcutta

Sir — Now that the Left and the BJP have rejected the nuclear deal, the Congress-led government would do well to scrap the deal instead of going ahead with its plans to transform India into a vassal of America.

Yours faithfully,
J. Mukherjee, Calcutta