Delhi’s Diva

The cover story on Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit (IE, August 2005) misses several important facts about the lady. It’s her birth in a leading political family of Delhi which gives her the advantage vis-a-vis her rivals rather any political acumen. The story also glosses over her failure to clear the city of polluting industries. Pollution is Delhi’s No.1 enemy today.

Vikrant Pawa
New Delhi

Sheila Dikshit doesn’t create a fuss over what she does. Unlike other chief ministers, she goes about the business of governance with an easy confidence borne of the fact that she believes that what she is doing is right. Much of her modesty has been described by uncharitable people as owing to the fact that she works right under the watchful eyes of the central government. However, Dikshit is by nature a reticent person who likes to work in a businesslike fashion.

Alka Arora
New Delhi

Best wishes for your forthcoming anniversary issue. Refer to Sheila's Spirit. Once she said ‘I will fulfill Delhi's dreams.’ Dikshit has proved to a powerful lady for Congress. How about making her the head of Congress Party. Who knows, she may be the head of the Congress?

Mahesh Kumar
New Delhi

Haryana’s Bhupinder Singh Hooda seems to be man in a hurry. Most Haryana chief ministers are preoccupied guarding their own turf to be bothered about minor issue like economic growth and per capita income. But here is a man who has wooed industry and business soon after he took the oath of office. This would seem most un-Haryana like because the state, with its easy paced agricultural existence, would be content with it Bt cotton and paddy. However, Hooda wants to introduce an industrial bent of mind in the Haryanvi and it seems he is going to achieve his ambition.

Santokh Singh
Chandigarh

The story Plane Truth was perhaps the best piece of reporting by India Empire. It completely exposes Pakistan’s hand in the hijack of Indian Airlines flight IC 814 in December 1999. Pakistan’s hand in the 1971 hijacking of another Indian Airlines aircraft to that country has also been revealed recently by one of the hijackers. What India knew all along has been confirmed by the hijacker who says the Pakistanis encouraged the hijackers to blow up the aircraft which was parked at the terminal.

Vivek Mansukhani
Mumbai

The article Plane Truth was really a shocker. It’s insane that terrorists like Masood Azhar—who were captured after the combined efforts of the army, Border Security Force and the intelligence agencies and after great loss of life and sacrifice by our soldiers—were released by the Indian government in a shameful swap at Kandahar airport. Agreed, the Taliban and the Pakistani government were hand-in-glove with the hijackers, thereny limiting India’s options, but abject surrender was uncalled for.

Rajeev Somani
Seattle

I like your column on new gizmos and cars but, hey guys, could you please stick to stuff you can buy and maintain in India. The dune buggies are fine but will out authorities allow such stuff to be brought into India? Maybe you could just mention Indian products.

Ravi Kumaran
Chennai

Minister of state for external affairs E. Ahamed seems to be on autopilot. Alright, he seems to winning friends and influencing rulers in West Asia, but don’t we need to cultivate the big boy on the block—Israel? It’s not our country is dependent on Gulf remittances. We never were but the liberals at South Block made it appear like we were. But now oil supplies are coming from as far as Sakhalin in Russia and in terms of remittances, CEOs of multinatioanals take home more than Indian workers send. So can we not revisit that street again?

Anil Jayaram
Oslo

India Empire is superb. Could you introduce an astrology column, too, so what the magazine remains fresh for a month.

Nikky Walia
London

September 2005