The battle for Dalit votes is hotting up in UP

It’s unfortunate that the turf war between Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati (It’s a Rahul-Maya bash on Ambedkar’s birthday, April 15) has resurfaced.

It’s unfortunate that the turf war between Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati (It’s a Rahul-Maya bash on Ambedkar’s birthday, April 15) has resurfaced. The ‘controversy’ on Babasaheb Ambedkar’s birthday on April 14 shows how both leaders are leaving no stone unturned to consolidate their respective votebanks.

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Bapu Satyanarayana, Mysore

All’s well that ends well

Shobhaa De’s witty analysis of the Sania-Shoaib marriage controversy made for interesting reading (Honey, it was all about the money, April 10). The future of a relationship that is formed on lies is questionable. Shoaib lied to the media about his first marriage to Ayesha Siddiqui, only to reveal the truth later. Even Sania admitted that she had liked Shoaib for years. If that was the truth, then why did she go ahead with her engagement with Sohrab Mirza? All said and done, hopefully, the couple will lead a happy married life and do well in their respective sports.

Ashok Goswami, Mumbai

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In her distinct writing style, De brilliantly summed up the ‘Shonia saga’. The controversy was no less than a Bollywood potboiler. Thanks to media’s sustained efforts, we all enjoyed the saga too and Ayesha Siddiqui got her due.

Akshay Dua, Noida

IPL mess: punish the guilty

With reference to the editorial Not a league of its own (Our Take, April 15), the controversy around the Indian Premier League (IPL) is unfortunate for both players and fans of the game. The editorial asks the League management to ensure transparency and accountability. But it’s unlikely to happen because most of the senior officials of the League are corrupt. The government should demand an explanation from IPL chief Lalit Modi and punish those found guilty of violating the law.

Janaki Narayanan, via email

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Indian politicians rarely make for good role models. But we expected Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor to be different. Sadly, he too has proved us wrong.

Piyush C. Sharma, Bhopal

The poor need work, not doles

Sagarika Ghose in Chart a new course (Bloody Mary, April 14) correctly says that the condition of the poor will never improve till the rich don’t change their mindset. Even the government should realise that the poor need opportunities and not freebies. As Ghose states, the right to food must be replaced with the right to work and the right to employment.

Lakshmi Bhargava, via email

Don’t be a US puppet

The nuclear summit in the US is over and by now the participating nations must have realised that it was a futile exercise. The truth is that neither North Korea nor Iran is a threat to world peace — it is Pakistan. On the one hand, the US is mounting pressure on Islamabad, but on the other hand, it is giving financial aid. The government should not depend too much on the US, which is using both countries to further its regional interests.

OP Tandon, via email

Monitor safe disposal of N-waste

With reference to the editorial Atoms of nuclear terror (Our Take, April 14), apart from a regulating body to ensure nobody misuses nuclear technology, the government must set up a monitoring process to ensure the safe disposal of nuclear waste. The recent radiation leak at the Mayapuri scrap market also raises questions over the methods employed by Delhi hospitals for radioactive waste disposal.

RK Malhotra, Delhi