Memorial at Matoshree

CCTVs to check chain snatching
I was the victim of a chain snatching on Friday evening in Bandra. I was walking on St Cyril Road, near St Andrew’s High School at about 6.45pm, when a man came up to me and asked plainly, “Kya hua sahub?” (He pronounced saheb as sahub.) I stopped, as I felt something amiss. Then suddenly another man stepped up from the other side, stretched his hand to feel the gold chain around my necl, snatched it, and the two of them got into an autorickshaw parked a few steps away and dashed off. It must have all happened in 15-20 seconds. I believe there were three other incidents of chain snatching the same day in Santacruz and Vile Parle. It’s time we have some CCTVs on our streets, beginning with St Cyril Road, St Leo Road and St Dominic Road as these are usually quite lonely streets and there could well be more such incidents in these areas. Besides, St Cyril Road in particular is used by many people attending functions (particularly wedding receptions) that are regularly held at prominent venues in the area. I have lodged a complaint with the police and they visited the spot where the incident happened. But I seriously doubt whether I will get the chain back. I treasured it more because it was used by my dad.
—Francis H D’Sa, Bandra

Memorial at Matoshree
The controversy over the memorial for Bal Thackeray can be avoided if it is located at Matoshree, where he lived and carried out all his activities. Wherever else the memorial may be set up, people will always associate Matoshree with Bal Thackeray. The building should be kept as it was during the years that he lived there, without any internal rearrangement. A statue may be erected in front of the house. An additional building may be constructed in the compound for a museum to display memorabilia and photographs, and an auditorium for video shows that tell the story of his life. The government of Maharashtra should be gracious enough to agree to meet the expenditure for this.
—A Seshan, Mumbai

If not hanging then what?
Apropos of “A hanging in Thackerayistan”, if the editor-in-chief of DNA believes that Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray was not a political figure of importance, then why did the newspaper feature detailed news and articles chronicling his entire life in the edition of 18 November 2012? A small news item mentioning his death would have proved the point. And how can one explain the lakhs of followers who attended the cremation? Further, if the execution of Ajmal Kasab was improper, then can one suggest some other punishment for the terrorist? Should we have continued to provide him with VVIP security and biryanis for his meals and looked after him till his death in old age, or wait for some one to take some more innocent citizens hostage and bargain for his release?
—Ketan R Meher, by email 

Congress minus aam aadmi
The Congress party will be disappointed that Arvind Kejriwal has named his new party as the Aam Aadmi Party, a phrase that it used often to hoodwink the people, although most of its actions have  favoured the badaa aadmi, whether the Ambanis, Vadras, Rajas, Kalmadis. Let’s hope that the Aam Aadmi Party functions true to its name. People will be pleased to see a break from the present set up of political groups based on religion, caste, sub-castes, regions, and so on, whose only aim is to capture power at any cost and loot the country within the short period of their existence.
—V S Ganeshan, Bangalore

II
Taking a slightly different course from what Anna Hazare charted in the fight against corruption, Arvind Kejriwal has launched a new party. This is a very good start as the name itself represents the common man. Whether Kejriwal will be able to fulfil the expectations of the people and whether he will stay truthful to his promise only time will tell. The Congress Party promised much to the common man, who has had to pay a heavy price for its misdeeds. The Aam Aadmi Party will have to stay clear of the dirty politics engaged by the existing political parties, as in the covert and overt support some have given to the Congress at different times. That is the value of a leader like Anna Hazare who has taken up the fight for the aam aadmi without seeking personal gain.
—Ravishankar G Iyer, Thane

Village school boy
With the eagerly-awaited christening of the Aam Aadmi Party, commoners owe it to Arvind Kejriwal that they can still hope for a society free of corruption. While it is difficult to forecast what the ultimate results will be, the endeavour is certainly laudable. In a lighter vein, however, I often wonder why Kejriwal does not wear the Gandhi cap in the traditional manner (at a slight angle across the head), which otherwise makes him look like a careless village schoolboy! Lately, he has been looking like a peripatetic shilajit medicine vendor, and it makes me smile each time I see him on TV. If he wears the cap in the traditional way, it will likely add to his stature as he sets out on the long march in the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. Looks may not be important, but appearance matters.
—KK Wajge, Mumbai

Shifting focus
Apropos of “I was following orders: RP Singh”, if the UPA government and the Congress party thought that they could retrieve the credibility they had lost in the 2G scam by propping up the former auditor in the office of the CAG, it is sadly mistaken. No sensible person would give much importance to RP Singh’s story as it has more holes than a sieve. Singh’s explanation why he waited till now to reveal these secrets borders on fiction. What’s more likely is that the Congress party struck a deal with him only now, to help it restore its position which is weakening by the day. Sadly, in all the cacophony over the presumptive loss figure, we are losing sight of the criminality of the scam and the fraudulent processes adopted by A Raja and his cronies in the allocation of spectrum and that the prime minister and the finance minister turned a blind eye to this. This was the thrust of the CAG’s report.
—VM Swaraj, Chennai