A fine diagnosis
Your cover story on the network of
illegal funding to Islamist terrorism
in the state of Jammu and Kashmir
offers a fine diagnosis of the
disease that has continued to
torment the Indian Republic since
the forties . It is shocking that the successive
dispensations in New Delhi have allowed Islamist
terrorism to penetrate into the Valley and flourish
even after seven decades of the whole of Jammu
and Kashmir's accession to the Union of India.
The Union of India must take steps to set the
matter right .
It must exercise its jurisdiction over
the state and protect its citizens in the Valley from
terrorism sponsored by certain elements in
Islamabad. Our National Intelligence Agency must
thoroughly probe into the matter and bring to book
all elements involved in the illegal funding of
terrorism .
I will take this opportunity also to applaud your
takes on the verdicts the Supreme Court of India
has delivered on the issues of talaq and the right
to privacy. The verdicts are commendable indeed.
You have rightly observed that Islam prohibits injustice to any genders, including female. Yet the
reactionary forces in India have been perpetuating the dark
personal laws of triple talaq that allow men to commit the
crime of divorcing their wives just by uttering the word
'talaq' thrice over any mode of communication. You have
rightly said India's is a democracy . The Constitution of
India guarantees every citizen the right to privacy. The
Government cannot act in the way that would take away
our right to privacy.
Sundaram Pillai
Chennai
When black money turned white
In his address to the nation on November 8 last, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that his policy of demonetization was aimed at bringing back black money, ending corruption, suffocating terrorist funding and tackling counterfeit currency. He said, "The... notes hoarded by anti-national and anti-social elements will become just worthless pieces of paper." His premise seemed to be that a sizeable part of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore of the two high-value ( Rs 1000 and Rs 500) banknotes would become invalid in the hands of the holders. They would not be tendered back into the banking system due to fear of punitive government action. The windfall gains made from the scrapped currency notes that would not be deposited in banks would be deployed for social welfare schemes and infrastructure projects. But according to the Reserve Bank of India's annual report, all but 1.4 per cent of the 1,000 rupee note that was banned last year has returned to the banking system. Does it not prove that the demonetization was nothing but an exercise of money laundering where the black money was converted with the help of the government into white? The Prime Minister owes an explanation to the Nation on this. Will he oblige ? Finance Minister Arum Jaitely has recently claimed that the "confiscation of money" had not been an objective. His Ministry has said the government "had expected all the SBNs [specified bank notes] to come back to the banking system to become effectively usable currency." This does not jell . Was not there a RBI circular setting a Rs 5,000 limit on deposits of withdrawn notes unless done under the government's amnesty scheme?
M Thapa
Guwahati
Need for caution
Both China and Pakistan continue to pose
threat to India . China's support to its client
state Pakistan is intact and its intention has
never been clear. India must contain Pakistan
directly and China indirectly. China's military
and economic prowess cannot be glossed
over. India must deal with China
diplomatically, politically, multilaterally and
economically. New Delhi must canvass
against China's imperialist expansionist
designs in the region.
In the recent Doklam case the Indian Army
did well to deploy itself in Bhutan against
China . Of course, the 2007 India-Bhutan
Friendship Treaty just states that the two
countries "shall cooperate closely with each
other on issues relating to their national
interests." Also, Bhutan also did not explicitly request any military assistance from India
during the stand-off . But India has legitimate
security and strategic interests in Bhutan.
New Delhi can never let China undermine
them.
New Delhi must not rest complacent. The
Doklam friction may return . China's road
construction activities in the Sikkim sector
near the point of India's connection with its
north-eastern region have to be constantly
watched. Bhutan needs to shun its ambiguity
on India's moral obligation to defend its
territorial integrity . Like India , Bhutan did not
attend China's recent Belt and Road Forum in
Beijing. But Thimpu maintained a curious
silence on Doklam issue .
Cauvery Mukherjee
Kolkata
Save Larung Gar
Right to one's religion is one of
the basis human rights in the modern world. It
has been under threat in China since
long. Today the world must come together
to save Larung Gar on the eastern edge
of the Tibetan Plateau. It is in danger .
It was founded in 1980 by the late Lama Jigme
Phuntsok. It has attracted tens of thousands of
monks and nuns over the years. Larung Gar has
long operated as an independent centre of
learning .
Since Jigme Phuntsok's death in 2004 it has
been administered by a group of revered
khenpos. The khenpos regularly visited
campuses in Europe and the United States to
spread their teachings . These khenpos have had
a broad following at home. They have attracted
thousands of lay practitioners and monastics,
both Tibetans and [Han] Chinese. It is now being
taken over by the Communist authorities.
Krishna Raj
Bodh Gaya