Editor,
H H Mohrmen’s recent piece “Do I love less, because I refuse to hate’ (ST Sep 8,2014) is commendable in many ways. It is straightforward, unambiguous, and demonstrates the moral courage of the writer to speak out against the so called popular opinion. Just as the mind cannot hold two contrary thoughts at the same time the heart cannot simultaneously shelter two opposing emotions of love and hate. Generally people who hate, abhor everybody and the truly loving souls do not confine their love to themselves, their families, or their own community. As we have seen from decades of experience the merchants of intolerance have not spared anybody when it comes to achieving their ends and have used rhetoric, violence and extortion for personal ends and not for social betterment.
Kudos to you Mr Mohrmen for your courage. It is true that a number of closed minds will want
to shower you with brickbats but let me assure you that a large section of readers will also
appreciate your honesty and courage. Edmund Burke said, “All that is necessary for the
triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”, and may I add that untruth prevails only if good men ( and women) keep say nothing.
Yours etc.,
Paramjit Bakhshi,
Via email
All smoke and no fire
Editor,
The intense dissident moves in the past month to unseat Dr Mukul Sangma as CM remained the highlight of political drama with the CM himself and the dissidents led by all-time old horse D.D. Lapang frequently camping in Delhi for a hearing with the Queen of the practically defunct Congress High Command. The AICC General Secretary in charge Meghalaya, Luizinho Faleiro’s recent visit to this state and the subsequent statements by both warring camps to the public declared that the issue of change of leadership was not on the agenda, though it is all too clear that Faleiro’s visit was to sort out this bone of contention. Mukul Sangma had earlier stated there was no threat to his Govt but his absence from Meghalaya for most of the past month was for reasons of fear of losing his post. The post-Faleiro visit media reports talk of nothing beyond denying the controversy of removal of Mukul Sangma. So why have the dissidents and the ruling righteous created so much smoke if there was no fire in the first place? And what is Mukul Sangma doing back in Delhi in the company of Faleiro when he should be doing active duty to normalise the working environment of his Govt. which otherwise appeared to be devoid of governance.
Yours etc.,
Lewis Sooting,
Via email
Local taxis a law unto themselves!
Editor,
Apropos the report in your paper about the flouting of rules and regulations by the cabbies (Sep 5, 2014) I must say that it appears as if the Shillong Traffic Police (STP) have decided to allow the cabbies a free for all. They park anywhere; pick up passengers from everywhere and in some areas taxis are completely lawless. What is disheartening is the fact that the Transport department is doing nothing about it apart from issuing the “official seating capacity”. As I was driving from home towards my office today I saw one Mawlai bound local taxi squeezing 4 passengers in the front seat! Hello, are these guys’ nuts? They shove passengers like vegetables. The Traffic Police is not bothered to look into such public distress. Maybe it is high time to ask the East Khasi Hills, District Transport Officer H. F. Khongsit to start doing the rounds and board a local taxi from Mawlai in order to know what the public goes through every day.
Yours etc.,
Lawrence Pherliam Sumer,
Shillong-8
Is secularism dead?
Editor,
Narendra Modi is not only the Prime Minister, he is also a RSS Pracharak (full- time worker) whose duty is to try to bring more recruits to his ideology (faith).His open religious attachment to Varanasi; to his Maa (mother) Ganga, his spending time visiting temples in Japan and gifting of the Gita to Japan PM and Emperor, all are indications of a Pracharak, not a PM of a secular India.
So is it not unconstitutional and does it not violate the core essentials of a secular Constitution for a person occupying the highest post in the country to openly and directly communicate to school kids on a secular Teachers day? If adult Dalit minds can be influenced what is the difficulty to convert young minds not only by words but even by his body language and tone and the media aura surrounding him. If child labour is a crime, then so is the subliminal conversion of impressionable children!
Yours etc., ,
Rasputin Bismarck Manners
Kolkatta.
