Mysterious death
The facts presented by the family and the discrepancies in the procedures that followed the death of the judge sow seeds of doubt in our minds (“Why the Supreme Court should take questions about the death of a CBI judge seriously”). But if there are such gaping holes, why hasn’t the Supreme Court taken this up? Is the judiciary too victim to corruption? Is the power wielded by those in government so strong that judiciary cannot do much? The scales of justice are being tipped by those in power. – Pradeesh R
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Well done. Keep the flag flying high. The nation and every law-abiding citizen in the world backs this effort of bringing criminals to book and exposing those in power who are destroying the country through their cold-blooded acts. – Sugunakumar Samuelraj
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The country seems to be firmly in the grip of goons. With questions raised on the judiciary too, will there be any respite? Why has there been no outcry over the mysterious death over the last three years? None of the news channels are picking up this story. How can we expect justice to be done, then? – Mervyn Rebello
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There were many deviations from the standard procedure to be followed in such death cases. So many procedural lapses cannot be ignored; they are indicative of conspiracy. Why have these facts been ignored for so long? The Supreme Court must look into the matter and bring the facts to light. – Swapan Ray
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This is horrifying. How will the common man get justice when even judges can be murdered? The Supreme Court should have a panel of judges to look into instances where people use their power to suppress the truth and undermine the law. Thank you for highlighting this case. – Bismarck
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The matter must be the subject of an inquiry, as requested by the judge’s family. – Bhanwar Singh Rathour
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The highest court must take note of this and find out the truth behind the judge’s death. – Tajinder Singh
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The story may be the true and there does seem to be some foul play involved by why has this been brought to the public’s attention just before the Gujarat elections? This makes it run the risk of being labelled as political vendetta and it may therefore not get due attention. – Harbans Choudhary
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It is happy to note that there are some people who work in the interest of society. I pray to god to shower his blessings on Justice Loya’s family. – M Jafarullah Khan
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As an advocate and a human being I deeply mourn the sad and suspicious death of Justice Loya. The grave allegations and the conduct of some the judicial officials in a high profile case calls for a high-level enquiry. – Vishwanath Shendge
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This is a responsible and fearless example of journalism, something that is becoming increasingly rare in these days. – KP Fabian
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This incident is sad and frightening. So many innocent people have been killed in connection with this case and justice has not been served for even one of them. Where are we taking this country? This is a very serious matter and the judiciary needs to intervene. Citizens of the country are feeling helpless. – Anirudha Singh
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A sitting judge presiding over such a high-profile case is being pressured into accepting bribes to deliver a judgement and he tells no one? Except his family and sister? And all this comes out on the eve of the first Gujarat elections? These allegations should be investigated but so should the timing of the revelation. – Mukund Dhananjay
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We would have been totally in the dark about such crucial issues but for such coverage. It is strange that the mainstream newspapers are staying silent on this. – Chandana Ghosh
Farm crisis
I stand in solidarity with people’s movements and particularly with farmers’ struggles in the face of agrarian crises that are snowballing into various other security and safety issues (“‘Government has sacrificed the farmer’: Farm leader Raju Shetti explains India’s agrarian crisis”).
The farmers’ coalition has demanded waiver of all loans, including those from village money lenders, supposedly keeping the landless sharecropper in view. Are sharecroppers officially registered in the country? If they are, they would benefit from this demand, but if not, how would their debts be paid off?
Also the understanding that profits in farming will lead to a rise in farm labourers’ wages is really encouraging. But will that truly happen is it only a naive assumption? Can there be some way to ensure this happens, such as by increasing the minimum support price?
The leader has accepted that the coalition comprises farmers from varying ideologies and also refers to big farmers. What about Dalits sharecroppers and Adivasi farmers? Are they overlooked or are they discounted from the farmers’ issues just because they are marginal and landless?
To what extent to such coalitions and farmer agitations include marginalised voices? – Lee Macqueen
But natural
While India is not a Hindu state it is the only homeland for Hindus, save Nepal (“From Indian to Hindu nationalism: Why the Modi government commented on a communal riot in Bangladesh”). So, it is not a case of Hindu nationalism, news about Hindus being persecuted in another country is bound to resonate with India and provoke a response. It is prudent to work with the Bangladesh government to resolve the issues rather than wait for the situation to deteriorate. Why ask India to speak up for Rohingya Muslims and then also demand silence or inaction over the fate of Bangladeshi Hindus? – Nirav Mehta
Shared experience
In Ireland too, we experienced a devastating famine in the mid-1840s, the Great Hunger, which many people now call a Holocaust (“Who was the photographer who took these dehumanising images of the Madras famine?”). Blight struck the potato but what turned a so-called famine into a holocaust was local militia and no less than 67 armed regiments of the British army supervising the export of food from Ireland to Britain. A crushed people, after centuries of colonialism, finally began to give up their own language, Irish (Gaelic) and embrace the language of their masters.
This double blow of famine and language loss has left its mark on the Irish psyche. Some authors, such as Dr Tomás Mac Síomóin in his book The Broken Harp, suggest that the trauma of these events is imprinted in the DNA. – Gabriel Rosenstock
Old science
Ayurveda cannot be explained using the parameters of modern medicine (“Ayurveda, yoga and western medicine: Understanding the human body depends on medical tradition”). It has altogether different principles and fundamentals. It has stood its ground for five thousand-plus years despite the advent of modernity. It can be argued that today’s modern medicine is Ayurveda in a new avatar. Ayurveda, with its enormous knowledge base, will continue to be relevant. – TR Prasad
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In my opinion the information in this article is misleading. The depth of knowledge in Ayurveda is impossible to capture. It is better to consult an Ayurvedic expert of repute. – Dhanwantari G Pancholi
Women in history
As a non-Indian I am proud to learn about Dr Rukhmabai Raut (“Google honours Rukhmabai Raut, one of India’s first practicing women doctors, with a doodle”). Another woman who should be honoured is the brave queen mother Yaa Asantewaa in the then British Gold Coast, now Ghana, who stood up to oppressive colonial British Empire. This will be pleasing as well as educational to all and Africans in the diaspora. – Midodzi Tay
Unequal law?
A judge is not above the law and should be open to criticism (“Tamil Nadu: Woman arrested for Facebook post criticising Madras High Court judge”). Arresting someone who has not committed a heinous offence is wrong. – Veeramani Rajangam