MyVoice: Views of our readers 9th August 2022

Amit Shah's malicious intent

Congress party did wake up a little late to take up the protest against the price rise, joblessness and other issues. It should be appreciated and commended for trying to raise the popular issues concerning ordinary people. The price of basic items such as oil, daal, aata prices has increased drastically. Congress wore black dresses against and held the nation-wide protest on price rise of essential items, fuel price hike, GST hike, unemployment, rupee downfall etc. But our Home minister Amit Shah gave a malicious twist to Congress workers wearing black dresses that it is a message against Ram temple foundation stone-laying by Prime Minister. Amit Shah is trying to polarise innocent people by issuing a misleading statement. He is unnecessarily dragging temple issue ignoring the common man's perspective of the government.

Zeeshaan, Kazipet

Kudos to Dr N Kalaiselvi

Dr N Kalaiselvi is Lithium-powered battery expert and a senior electro-chemical scientist who has taken over as the first woman Director General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). She will lead India's energy transition mission. Her area of research interest includes lithium-powered batteries, a key to the achievement of India's pledge of net zero carbon emissions by 2070, which the PM made at the COP26 in Glasgow recently. She is expected to lead the transition, with the government mulling changes to the Mines and Minerals Act to permit private players to mine a range of atomic minerals, including lithium. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has for the first time in its 80-year history appointed a woman Director-General.

M R Jayanthi, Mumbai

Disunity continues to ail Opposition

Apropos editorial "Opposition unity looks more of a chimera" (The Hans India, Aug 8). The impressive victory of NDA candidate Jagdeep Dhankhar as the new Vice-President has again underlined the dominance of the ruling alliance at the Centre over a struggling Opposition. As in the case of the presidential election, the NDA candidate got the support of some Opposition parties like the BSP and regional parties. Whatever the reason behind Trinamool's boycott, it weakens the Opposition and shows how difficult it is for it to come together and make common cause on issues of importance. This disunity among opposition will certainly have an impact on the parties' plans to present a united fight against the BJP in the 2024 election. For the NDA and the government, Dhankhar's candidature complemented the choice of Droupadi Murmu for President. Murmu, as a woman from a tribal community, had wider acceptability, but Dhankhar's election would also serve the BJP's political purpose well.

N Sadhasiva Reddy, Bengaluru

The opposition at the moment in India is divided as most of them are battling for their own survival in few states where they are in power except two states Odisha and AP whose Chief Ministers are not willing to annoy the twin rulers of Delhi as it can lead to Enforcement Directorate knocking on their doors. The Center has and will continue to set ED behind the non-BJP leaders, the latest being Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut preceded by Sonia and Rahul Gandhis. As long as possible Modi and Shah wouldn't allow unite and make every effort to use ED to keep them divided at least until 2024. During Ms Indira Gandhi's regime she used to cajole the opposition to unite and then fight her. But Modi and Shah are in the process of eliminating opposition in India.

N Nagarajan, Hyderabad

In this complex political scenario and in the highly polarised political atmosphere, it is clear that unless the voter is wary of selecting the leaders, the much publicised opposition unity is bound to be a non-starter due to the inability to strike right alliances in the midst of resignations, defections continuing to plague every party. Further, the way members cross-voted in favour of NDA candidate in the presidential election, TMC boycott and TRS dithering in Vice-President election is ample proof that the much-talked-about opposition stitching a strong anti-BJP plank appears more an illusion than a fact. All said and done, it is important that in the first place, opposition must understand that merely shouting from the roof-top with unpalatable slogans to bring down NDA government will not be a game-changer as they find it difficult to sort out differences, which prevents them from chalking out a clear strategy and plan in its combined fight to take on BJP.

K R Srinivasan, Secunderabad