State of Parliament
The monsoon session of Parliament has come a cropper but the Government and the Opposition are at each other’s throats (Page 1, “‘Outsiders brought inside House to manhandle MPs’,” August 13). However, the common man is nonplussed as he/she expected that at least in these trying times our lawmakers would behave more responsibly and not boorishly. Both sides have been striving to outdo each other by way of stalling Parliament. There is also a new emerging trend that may be ascribed to the proliferation of social media — political leaders taking to social media to air their homilies and hitting out at adversaries. The rest is left to their spokespersons and spin doctors to shout at each other in TV debates. These sordid episodes further lowers the stature of our hallowed Parliament which is now being relegated to acts of theatrics and not for transacting serious business.
Deepak Singhal,
Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Afghanistan imploding
With a number of cities in Afghanistan coming under Taliban control, it is doubtful if the olive branch being extended by Kabul on sharing of power with the resurgent Taliban would have any takers or is even workable in the longer run (Page 1, “Kabul offers to share power”, August 13). Despite the presence of the mighty U.S., the Taliban have been ruthless in the pursuit of achieving their objective of bringing Afghanistan under their complete fold. It looks certain that they are very close to the goal. It would be naive to expect them to share power with someone when they are calling the shots, and Afghanistan’s defence is in a shambles. Sharing of power with moderates would mean making a compromise on pushing through some of Taliban’s hardcore principles, which may not be acceptable to them. The negotiating countries, viz. the United States, Russia and Pakistan aiming for a compromise, have muddied the situation in the past with strategies that never worked, and are just going through the motions. It may be a face-saving exercise to counter any blame that Afghanistan was left high and dry by them, with false hopes of bringing stability and peace in the region. The distraught Afghan leadership is in such dire straits, unable to make out whom they can trust and bank on to wriggle out of the crisis.
India is finding to its utter dismay that all its efforts towards developing Afghanistan into a self-reliant state, through assistance in the areas of infrastructural development, education and health, are now disappearing under the pressure being exerted by the militant group. If the Taliban ultimately take control of Afghanistan, the already troubled Indian subcontinent would be in for a longer period of uncertainty. There is every possibility of some of our hostile neighbours exploiting the situation to settle scores with India.
V. Subramanian,
Chennai
The complete lack of any kind of resistance to the advance of the Taliban is curious. At this rate, the fall of Kabul is imminent. Or perhaps the forces have recognised the futility of trying to beat them off. The Ashraf Ghani government may not also be as popular as we have been led to believe. Under the tutelage and patronage of China, the Taliban could destabilise the borders of the nations that are its immediate neighbours. India would do well to further strengthen its border vigil.
Anthony Henriques,
Mumbai
