G.N. Saibaba’s death has resulted due to a number of health complications which had aggravated during his decade-long incarceration. After his release a few months ago, he had spoken as how inhumanely he was treated in jail despite being a polio-affected paralytic patient.
He was not granted bail even to see his ailing mother who died later. In contrast, the likes of Ram Rahim who were convicted under heinous crimes are being released on parole. It is high time, the draconian UAPA is amended and the justice delivery mechanism is revamped.
Syed Sultan Mohiddin
Kadapa, A.P.
The Elderly Deserve Better
Making a 70-year-old woman crawl for 2 km to get her old-age pension is no doubt inhuman and that has happened in the state of Odisha. It is a poignant pointer to the manner in which the needs and problems of the elderly are considered and taken care of.
The officials who forced this senior citizen to struggle on the road for her meagre pension, should immediately face action for they are supposed to serve society with special focus on the poor and the deprived.
Have we lost all our humanity in the mad pursuit of wealth and power and turned blind to the needs of the less fortunate in society? Everyone grows old someday and there is an urgent need to adopt a compassionate approach towards their issues.
Shahrukh Aslam
Bengaluru, Karnataka
‘Digital Arrest’ Fraud
On October 13, the Indian Express reported a ‘digital arrest’ fraud, in which a retired AMU professor was allegedly duped of more than Rs 75 lakhs by fraudsters posing as Enforcement Directorate (ED) and putting her under ‘digital arrest’ for ‘more than 10 days’ during which the accused pressurisedthe victim to pay money to avoid arrest.
Professor Qamar Jahan got an FIR registered on October 11, following which the police issued an alert to the concerned banks, and with the police intervention transactions worth Rs 13 lakh could be blocked.
The IE report informs that ‘digital arrest’ is a new cyber fraud, where the accused poses as law enforcement agency officials, like CBI or customs officials or ED, and threatens people of arrest by making video calls in the name of fake international parcels of banned drugs or money laundering cases, etc.
This is the natural corollary of lopsided growth and advancement of science and technology, forgetting the ultimate accountability before God in the Day of Judgement.
Tahir Shaikh
Mira Road, Mumbai
Israeli media says Iran missile attack caused $53M in damage in Israel
According to an Anadolu report citing Israeli media on October 13, an Iranian missile attack on Israel has caused extensive damage worth around $53 million.The Oct. 1 attack has caused estimated damage between 150 to 200 million shekels ($40 to $53 million), said Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, citing property tax data.“This was the largest damage caused by a single missile attack on Israel since the outbreak of the (Gaza) war on Oct. 7, 2023,” it added.
It was but natural for the Israeli newspaper to access the damage caused by a missile attack on Israel. But the world wonders why Israeli newspapers do not take pains to access the damaged caused by Israeli war machinery on Gaza in Palestine and civilian pockets in Lebanon. Israeli war machinery has killed over 42,000 innocent Palestinians in Gaza alone, including large numbers of women and children. This double-dealing will not work. Tel Aviv should rethink its war policy and vacate the occupied lands sooner than later.
Waqas Zafar
Hyderabad, Telangana