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Manmohan's defence

This refers to the report “Congress rallies behind Manmohan” (Nov. 20). It is not uncommon for a ruling party to rally behind the Prime Minister when he faces a crisis situation. It is expected to shield its leader when an allegation is levelled against him. But it is unfortunate that the new Telecom Minister, Kapil Sibal, chose to describe Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy's attempt to get answers in the 2G spectrum scam as looking for political space. If Dr. Swamy's act is purely political, why did the Supreme Court direct that an affidavit be filed on behalf of Dr. Singh explaining his alleged inaction and silence for 16 months?

Everyone knows that Dr. Singh, whose integrity is beyond doubt, does not have control over the UPA government. The alliance has caused the Congress an avoidable embarrassment and left the Prime Minister helpless.

S. Radhakrishnan,

Chennai

The Centre's move to replace Solicitor-General Gopal Subramaniam with Attorney-General G.E. Vahanvati to appear in the case filed by Dr. Swamy is surprising. Replacing the legal team is certainly not the way forward.

Ashok Jayaram,

Bangalore

None can beat the Congress in damage control exercises. Replacing the Solicitor-General with the Attorney-General to defend the Prime Minister in the Supreme Court, and making Mr. Sibal counter Dr. Swamy's accusations of inaction on the part of Dr. Singh, are amusing, to say the least. The Congress is desperate to save the Prime Minister from a situation in which he finds himself by his own action, rather inaction.

T.K. Nagarajan,

Bangalore

Mr. Sibal's remark that the Prime Minister would have been justified had he thrown Dr. Swamy's letters in the wastepaper basket is in bad taste. Every citizen has a right to question the government for its actions and alleged misuse of resources. In India, it seems to have become a habit for the so-called netas to rule according to their whims, with nobody questioning them. Misuse of public money has become routine. The common man surely has a right to know the facts.

K.V.L. Shanta,

Singapore

It needs no great intelligence to guess the reasons for Dr. Singh's alleged inaction on the spectrum issue. Coalition politics has landed the unimpeachable Dr. Singh in a soup. Even now, when the scam is rocking the country, there are efforts to smoothen the DMK's ruffled feathers. Mr. Sibal's defence of the Prime Minister is unconvincing.

A.V. Reddi Sastri,

Srikakulam

The number of skeletons tumbling out of the cupboards of political parties is becoming too numerous to count. Amid all this, Dr. Singh maintains a stony silence, seeing no evil, hearing no evil and speaking no evil. The Prime Minister cannot be so naive as not to have known the consequences of the scam. Coalition compulsions made him look the other way.

R. Vasudevan,

Chennai

No one, including members of the Opposition, is likely to doubt Dr. Singh's personal incorruptibility. Nor does anyone question his contributions to the nation in the last two decades and more. But he and the Congress err in underestimating the nation's outrage over what is, at the least, a mismanagement resulting in (presumptive but not any the less real) huge losses to the exchequer. Dr. Singh would do well to be sensitive to this, instead of concentrating only on defending himself.

A. Ramachandran,

Kochi

The rough and tumble of Indian politics needs a seasoned, street-savvy Prime Minister who should be deft enough to know the pressure points of his Ministers and coalition partners. Dr. Singh has not had the tough schooling to acquire the relevant experience. It is inexplicable that this highly gifted economist has not been able to surround himself with the right kind of advisers. It is necessary for the Congress to fortify his camp to win the war. Dr. Singh is the best bet yet for the party.

R. Narayanan,

Ghaziabad

The electronic media give news round the clock and, at the same time, keep listeners interested in what they say. Unfortunately, this has had a negative effect. Listeners are fed up with what the channels are dishing out, each claiming that it is the first to run the story. The familiar refrain is “sources known to us have told us.” Most of the anchors want to hear their own voices and, as a result, achieve nothing. Among the newspapers, it is only The Hindu that gives authenticated news without indulging in sensationalism.

In a democracy, processes exist to give a just and fair deal to everyone. In the 2G scam, the government is following the right constitutional procedure. The matter is also being investigated by the CBI. It is surprising that even senior parliamentarians have allowed chaos to rule the House.

S.N. Iyer,

Bangalore

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