75 ‘Concerned Citizens’ Voice Concern over Recent Developments
As many as 75 people including eminent personalities have written an open letter to Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavaraj Bommai, expressing concern about “recent developments” that threaten to destroy peace and diversity in Karnataka.
The group, calling themselves ‘concerned citizens’, pressed for restoring the state to a ‘Sarva janangada shantiya thota’ (a garden of peace for diverse communities), as mentioned in ‘Naada Geethe’ (state anthem) penned by Kuvempu. They said the “current spate of divisive actions aimed at alienating particular communities and denying them their fundamental rights” will not only hamper development but also hurt our state’s reputation, hinder progress and innovation, erode the confidence of entrepreneurs and investors, heighten insecurity, suspicion, fear and resentment among citizens.
The restoration of communal harmony is an important and urgent task, they said, expressing trust that the government headed by Bommai will not wish to go down in history as the one that precipitated a “steep downturn” in the reputation and fortunes of our state through inaction.
It is high time the Bommai Government took actions against those violation peace and harmony in the state.
Jagdish Deshpande
Mangalore
Karnataka
Work Tirelessly To Sustain Freedom, Liberty & Democracy: CJI Ramana
It is all about how a legal luminary asserts the need to work for sustaining freedom, liberty and democracy. After visiting the Independence Hall in Philadelphia, USA, Chief Justice of India NV Ramana spoke about the necessity of citizens working tirelessly to sustain and further the liberty, freedom and democracy which their forefathers fought for.
In 1776, the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence at the Independence Hall. Eleven years later, in the same room, delegates to the Constitutional Convention created and signed the United States Constitution. Although known today as Independence Hall, the building was constructed to be the Pennsylvania State House. It once housed all three branches of Pennsylvania’s colonial government.
The CJI also visited the first Supreme Court of the USA which functioned for over a decade from Philadelphia with six Judges. The CJI had also visited the Columbia University in New York and paid rich tributes to one of its distinguished alumnus Dr. B R Ambedkar.
Ehtesham Khan
New Delhi
The Afghans Need Help
A deadly earthquake has killed 1,150 people and injured 1,500 in a rural, mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan. Most of the deaths were from eastern Paktika where 255 people were killed. The disaster has created a headache for Afghanistan’s Taliban government, which seized power nearly 10 months ago after the US and its NATO allies left. The country doesn’t have any international aid agencies to take over the situation. The supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzadah has called for “the international community and all humanitarian organisations to help the Afghan people”.
Children on the streets are crying after losing their families. The heart-wrenching visuals are very disturbing. The country is already facing a crisis with increasing hunger, poverty and human rights violations. It is ruled by people who may be too slow to respond to such a crisis.
The UN and other countries must give attention and help the Afghan people in this situation.
Akankhya Rout
Dhenkanal
Odisha