Demolition guidelines

Refer to ‘Free run for bulldozers’; when the prosecutor, judge and executioner is the same person, the dispensation degenerates into dictatorship, notwithstanding democratic pretensions. This would have a negative cascading effect and social upheaval may assume explosive dimensions. The judiciary must play a proactive role to stamp out dictatorial trends in the polity. The Supreme Court should intervene and lay down clear guidelines regarding demolition of encroachments. No demolition must be allowed soon after protests by people. Holding a protest is the people’s right.

Prem Singh Dahiya, Rohtak

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Family not to blame

I do not agree with the administrative decision of demolishing the house of one of the alleged accused in Prayagraj violence. Even though he is the alleged mastermind of Friday’s mob violence, he should be punished as per the law. Such actions may only create serious communal conflicts and further widen the gap. If a person has been behind mob violence, why should his family be rendered homeless? What if someone was hurt in this action? Who will take the responsibility?

Jayani Mattu, Patiala

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Act of revenge

It is shameful if the MC uses a bulldozer or JCB to remove an encroachment in the name of revenge. Why was the encroachment allowed in the first place? Encroachments are ignored for the sake of votes and later these are demolished without due notice or a chance for hearing. This is not as per the Constitution of our country. Moreover, demolishing the house of a person belonging to a particular community must be condemned. The judiciary should take suo motu cognisance and give clear orders to all elected heads to stop it with immediate effect. Otherwise, the consequences of this act may snowball into more controversies.

PK Patpatia, Ambala

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Punjab liquor policy

Apropos of ‘New policy aims to curtail liquor mafia’, Punjab does need overhauling of its liquor-cum-excise policy. Certain welcoming features like barcoding, tracing and tracking are likely to be incorporated, but this is not enough. If non-alcoholic drinks etc., get supplied efficiently by the system of wholesale and retail trading, why not liquor? It should be sold through departmental stores and other commercial establishments. The creation of government shops will be unviable and involve huge overhead costs. Such stores/shops could create a separate corner on their premises for the purpose. Also, the excise policy should be consumer-centric. The state should not waste resources on regulating the contractors. The outdated system of quota-fixing, auctioning, cheap sale during March, carrying limit, storage limits, permits during weddings, and many others are breeding corruption. This sector, plagued by licences and permits, needs out-of-the-box solutions.

Jaswinder Singh Brar, Patiala

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Why isn’t war ending?

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has persisted for over three months now. All attempts at restoring peace through diplomacy and de-escalation have proved futile. This is surprising because a viable peace plan exists — Ukraine must declare binding neutrality and the West must relinquish its ambitions of bringing Ukraine into the NATO fold. The US has an incentive not to end the war as its continuance benefits it financially. It is earning millions through the supply of high-tech weapons to the war-torn country. Also, the severance of the Russia-Europe energy relationship has presented it with the opportunity of exporting LNG to Europe, which is a lucrative deal. The primary factor impeding the settlement of this international dispute is the mercantile nature of the US. Unfortunately, it has obfuscated its ulterior motives by projecting itself as the benevolent protector against the belligerent aggressor, Russia. The reality is that western solidarity with Ukraine is a facade and has nothing to do with restoring peace in the region.

Nissim Aggarwal, Chandigarh

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Indian, playing for India

Kudos to Nikhat Zareen, the ‘Indian’ boxer who gave a befitting reply to questions about her community. She said she was representing her country as an athlete and not any community. Like any Indian, she wants to win for her country. This is true sportsmanship, where a player rises above the narrow walls of religion or region and just plays for the country. We all must be proud of such players, and instead of binding them to any particular community, they must be encouraged so that they may bring more and more laurels to the country. Players do not belong to any religion or region, rather they belong to the whole humanity and the country they represent.

Bir Devinder Singh Bedi, Sangrur

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