•In her article, ‘Demagoguery apart’ , Shazia Ilmi has unmasked the father-son duo Farooq and Omar Abdullah. It is true that the Abdullahs have done literally nothing to help J&K out of its troubles; rather they have been opportunist. They never followed their conscience to resign from posts of power that they enjoyed generation after generation in the Valley; these eloquent and elitist the media-savvy politicians have time and again evaded their moral responsibility. After Omar’s demagoguery in the Lok Sabha, the media seems to have found a new poster boy of Indian politics. This dispassionate coverage of how the Abdullahs failed to deliver restores my faith in Indian journalism. Thanks to such wonderful articles I have never strayed into other glossy newspapers despite temptations since I came from Kolkata to Maharashtra some three years ago. Please keep it up.— Biswa Prasun ChatterjiMumbaiTerror fight•It is amusing to see the Government of India raking up the issue of a federal police every time the country’s poor citizenry is devastated by terrorist bombs. We have the IB and the RAW. What will yet another police unit achieve? Prosecute better, with our judiciary moving at snail’s pace? Will it do better than the IB in busting potential terrorist modules and nabbing their local supporters? How? It is time political leadership and agencies responsible for law and order took some ground-level steps like improving human intelligence, quality investigation uninfluenced by media glare and local political pressure and a mechanism for quick and sure punishment. — R. VenkatanarayananNoidaGlobal action•This refers to ‘The three-day echo’ by Y.P. Rajesh and ‘A city divided’ by Amrita Shah . The latest terror strikes indicate that there is a desperate attempt by terrorist groups to catch the public eye. Those who speak of “underlying” or “root” causes of terrorism, offer alibis to extremists. The threat to peace-loving societies from the globalisation of terror is an ugly reality of today’s world. The menace of terrorism must be dealt with effectively to save the lives of innocent people. It is a matter of grave worry that we have to fight with “an enemy” who is not seen. The leaders, all over the world should unite and decide on how to fight international terrorism. We may be free, but there is no glow of joy on our faces. — Vinod C. DixitAhmedabadUltimate victim•It is worrisome that a blast in any corner of the world fetch fresh troubles for the Muslims, and this is creating an unnecessary guilty feeling among most of its people. Whether or not attached to any organisation, a Muslim man and woman feels suspected, secretly followed, and directly or indirectly targeted. In this sense every blast is an attack on Islam or Muslims. The intelligence agencies not only in India but anywhere around the world seem to be either in slumber or too quick to catch innocent Muslims. — Ustad Humaid New Delhi
