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Glorious uncertainties
In a single day in Cape Town, the test between Australia and South Africa saw 23 wickets, 294 run scored and 4 innings. But something looks fishy, particularly as Australia is not a team that will score a measly 47 runs.  But they created a new record when Nathan Lyon, the eleventh player was the top scorer with just 14 runs. His dogged last-wicket stand of 26 runs with Peter Siddle saved Australia from making the lowest ever Test score.
—Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee, Faridabad

Intentions are not enough
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani may be a man of peace but his intentions matters little unless he also has power. It is no secret that the real power in Pakistan rests with trigger-happy army chief, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. For opening a new chapter in Indo-Pak relations, Kayani has to transform into a man of peace.
—MC Joshi, Lucknow

II
Apropos ‘Once again, a fresh start to Indo-Pak ties’, while the thaw in the bilateral relations with our neighbour is a welcome move, the government is advised to tread cautiously. Pakistan’s change of stance in bringing to book the 26/11 perpetrators could be a positive sign, but out prime minister’s certificate to his counterpart Gilani as a man of peace can not be taken on its face value. Also the move to open branches of Habib Bank in India should be taken up with utmost caution as it could open up a legitimate channel for funding terrorist activities in India in due course. At official level the present initiatives seem to be encouraging, but simultaneous reports emerging from Pakistan that Imran Khan, a prospective prime ministerial candidate, has asked India to forget Kashmir and that Rehman Mallik, the interior minister’s statement that there is no evidence for banning Jamaat-ud-Duwa, the religious wing of LeT are enough to put brakes on the move.
—KV Chandrasekharan, Bangalore

III
This is with reference to the high profile meeting of Dr Manmohan Singh and Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani at the SAARC summit in Maldives. The two PMs made an effort to resolve their differences. The generous compliment of Indian prime minister to his counterpart as ‘man of peace’ is appreciated. Though it has been dissected by the Indian intelligentsia, and particularly media, in a negative connotation, perhaps the two ‘men for peace’ are endeavouring to find harmony for people at both the sides. This is a welcome gesture and the positive articulations should not be a hurdle to the confident building measures. Let us hope Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani will leave up to the expectations for peace against odds.
—Syed Khaja, New Delhi

No more, Team Anna
I am sure that out of all politicians, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has the strongest back bone. For the last six months Anna and his team have been hurling threats at the Indian Parliament and the ruling party at Centre. Media reports indicate that the Bihar CM has told them that they cannot dictate the terms every time. May be people backed Team Anna due to the suffering they underwent due to the rampant corruption. But Anna and his team have been put in place after Nitish Kumar told them that as a chief minister he is accountable to people and does not need
intermediaries.
—SS Nair, via email

Remove posters & banners
This is with reference to ‘The city’s ugly poster boys’ by Santosh Andhale. People have been trying to do their best to prevent such posters from being put up on the streets. The people put up posters wishing their ‘beloved leaders’ to enter some local committee to enable them to get power and money. Such displays of wishes are not going to stop until the citizens wake up and help the civic officials to get rid of such posters. Is it possible to have a strict law to prevent such posters being put up? I sincerely feel that some kind of restriction is a must. One can’t expect too much from the authorities as their hands are tied to a certain extent.
—Ramakrishnan MC, via email

Cricket clean-up
This is with reference to ‘Spot-fixing claims wickets of culprits Butt, Asif’’, (November 2). The conviction of Salman Butt, former captain of the Pakistan cricket team, and Mohammad Asif, a pace bowler, in a London criminal court on Tuesday for charges of “conspiracy to cheat”, “conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments” by spot-fixing during the fourth Test between England and Pakistan in August 2010 has invited an angry reaction from the cricket lovers. The punishment is a healthy development that will more surely deter others. It is very shameful for the cricket world and specially the Pakistan Cricket Control Board, whose two main players have been convicted. Although the International Cricket Council has said that the verdict was “consistent” with the findings of its own tribunal, the fact remains that few players really had to pay the price of fiddling with the game. Here in India we have often skirted the issue. It would be in the interest of the Pakistan Cricket Control Board to have a strict vigil and monitoring. Moreover, it is for the ICC to establish a mechanism to weed out corrupt practices.
—Dilbag Rai, Chandigarh