Editor,
Apropos the letter, “STP running scared of taxi mafia” by Frankie Nengminza (ST Jan.24,2015), the writer has sought to portray all taxi drivers as criminals in the same manner that all members of a particular religious community are stereotyped as “terrorists” by some of our countrymen.
Admittedly, there have been a number of cases when a few taxi drivers have been arrested for serious crimes. It is also a fact that some taxi drivers do fleece passengers and tourists and hardly bother to observe traffic rules when opportunities arise. To my mind these are only aberrations. As a taxi driver myself, I would like to ask, is it fair to tar all taxi drivers with the same brush? I can say with confidence that those taxi drivers who break the law belong to a miniscule minority of black sheep among us, just as there are black sheep among businessmen, public servants, taxi passengers (the kind who refuse to pay their fares), etc.
I am sure the law enforcers know that most of us are no mafia. Although poor, we are mostly decent, educated and less educated “boys next door” who are struggling from dawn to night to make an honest living despite the fact that some “genteel” folks look down upon our profession as ” lowly”. The qualified among us have to take up this profession because after many bitter experiences we have concluded that there is no hope in hell for us to enter the “respectable” and relatively high paying government sector due to rampant and blatant disregard for merit and fair play.
Having stated the above, I would like to add that what hurts more is the way some regular contributors to your newspaper whom I highly respect for their rational, sensitive and balanced views on many issues have not been sufficiently objective when it comes to the issue of taxi drivers. As their views are valued by many, I just hope that they will be more thoughtful when they express themselves on this issue in the future.
Finally, I also hope that this letter will be considered in proper perspective and above all lessen the rancour that some people may harbour against taxi drivers in general.
Yours etc.,
Name withheld on request.
Kudos RS of Riatsamthiah!
Editor,
Mr BS Lyngdoh, Rangbah Shnong of Riatsamthiah did not participate at the meeting called by the Deputy Commissioner (Election), East Khasi Hill on January 25 last to observe National Voters’ Day (NVD). This has not come as a bolt from the blue to discerning intelligentsia like me. As a conscientious Rangbah Shnong this was a noble dissent on the part of Mr Lyngdoh to vent his unhappiness against the Meghalaya High Court Order of December 10, 2014, which directed the powers that to no longer recognize the time honoured privileges of the Rangbah Shnong of the Hynniewtrep.
In this context and with due respect to the Hon’ble High Court of Meghalaya it bears recall that the former Chief Justice of India, Mr SH Kapadia had in the 5th MC Setalvad Memorial Lecture (New Delhi on April 16, 2011) unambiguously asserted that fair criticism of court judgments by any aggrieved party does not amount to contempt. The bold action of Mr Lyngdoh therefore falls within the fairness of our judicial system.
Yours etc.,
Jerome Diengdoh,
Shillong-2
Need to dismentle rebel camps
Editor,
Apropos the news report “NE rebels have 39 camps in Bangladesh”(ST January 23, 2015), the question to ask is who is going to dismantle these camps? The IG, BSF, Meghalaya, Sudesh Kumar put forward the details which have been shared with our counterparts in Bangladesh. A coordinated effort and joint-intelligence sharing with Bangladesh on the command and control facilities should be done on a regular basis and acted upon. Bruce Riedel director of the Brookings Institution Intelligence Project analysed and estimated that the fertile ground for recruiting and establishing new bases for Al Qaeda exists in countries like Yemen, Somalia, Algeria, Bangladesh and many others.
Hence India and Bangladesh should identify and prioritize actual or potential insurgent or terrorist sanctuaries as we are not at war with terrorism but engaging in a struggle with violent, radical Islamist extremists who spew the venom of terror and other tools to erect their own ideologies. Lastly, timely action by law enforcement and intelligence organizations is imperative.
Yours etc.,
C Gatphoh,
Shillong-14