Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Whose fault?

Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf’s statement that Benazir Bhutto was partly to blame for her assassination as she threw security precautions to the winds (Jan. 4) seems reasonable. He is right in pointing out that it was because Benazir ignored his warnings despite an earlier attempt on her life that she was killed. She should not have emerged from the sunroof of her vehicle. That made the assailants’ task easy. She made the same mistake as Rajiv Gandhi.

T.T.V. Raman,

Tirupati

General (retd.) Musharraf, who has weathered all political storms since he came to power, will, in all likelihood, come out of this controversy too. For the PPP leader, the election was not worth risking her life. A boycott of elections by all political parties and people would have brought the desired result slowly but surely. How long could Washington have supported a discredited regime?

Benazir’s ambition to become Prime Minister for the third time consolidated dictatorship in civvies. Pakistan lost a golden opportunity to usher in democracy. From the beginning, it is Pakistan’s political leaders who have helped the army consolidate its grip over governance. Military generals, retired or serving, will continue to rule Pakistan.

Capt. T. Raju (retd.),

Secunderabad

True, Benazir was partly responsible for her death as she emerged from her car. But it does not absolve the Pakistan government of the lapses and loopholes in her security. How did the assassin manage to get so close to her vehicle by jumping the security ring? Why was she not provided with greater security as an attempt had already been made on her life? Why did the government not insist on a post mortem? Why was the road at the blast site washed down?

Aalok Patel,

New Delhi

The authorities have committed too many blunders in handling Benazir’s assassination. To begin with, her body does not seem to have been examined properly by an independent panel of doctors. Any medical professional can differentiate between a bullet injury and a fracture. So the official confusion over the cause of her death seems strange.

Secondly, the site of the assassination was immediately washed. So there is little chance of getting any forensic clue. Can the Scotland Yard carry out a just and proper inquest?

S. Singh,

Rajpura

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Desperate measures
Abolish the death penalty
Russia-Iran ties on the upswing
On the razor’s edge, care and caution
At times like this, nations are forged
Anxious New York traders seek therapy
Whose fault?
Dynastic politics
Gujarat elections
Shameful

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu