The Hindu : Petrol and patronage

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 09, 2002

Opinion

Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Petrol and patronage

Sir, — Your Editorial, `Petrol and patronage', and the article by Harish Khare, `The death of innocence' (Aug. 7), expose the sad state of affairs of the country since the days of Gandhi and Nehru. The cancellation of allotments of petrol pumps does not cancel a scandal as you have rightly pointed out. The mere washing of his hands does not give the Prime Minister the credibility of good governance. The damage control exercise has given rise to more irreparable damage. The least the PM can do to retrieve the situation is to follow your sincere advice, which is not only practical but also ethical. Here is an opportunity for our new President, Abdul Kalam, to advise the PM, before the issue of corruption assumes gigantic proportions.

V. Sundaresan,

Khairatabad, A.P.

* * *

Sir, — When the Congress raised the issue of irregularities in petrol bunk permits, I thought it was a big scam. But now it has come to light that it was the Congress which had started this when it was in power. The former Congress Chief Minister, Motilal Vora, who was himself involved in a scam, has stated that there is nothing wrong in recommending persons for issue of permits. Then why is Congress creating such a great hullabaloo in Parliament? Whom does it want to cheat? The voters or itself?

P.N. Sankararaman,

Srirangam, T.N.

* * *

Sir, — The unveiling of the petrol pumps scandal will not put an end to corruption. The solution lies not in unearthing such unconscionable scandals but in obliterating them permanently from our society. Corruption is pervasive due to the moral degradation of today's individual who is narcissistic, mean and materialistic. His quest for wealth has made him vulnerable to corruption. To eradicate this evil, we need moral and spiritual upliftment of the individual. This can be achieved by introducing moral and spiritual training along with academics in our education system.

Rahul Jain,

Dehra Dun, Uttaranchal

* * *

Sir, — Your Editorial, `Petrol and patronage': the "party with a difference" has indulged in this mother of all scams also in a different manner. It has institutionalised corruption by using a selection committee for malafide allotments to its cronies. Now, it wants to claim that cancellation of all the allotments in one stroke on the order of the Prime Minister is the first in the history of India. As you have demanded, an inquiry commission should be set up to go into the issue and the Minister concerned should be sacked.

Haja Mohideen,

Kowloon, Hong Kong

* * *

Sir, — The petrol pump scandal has again put a blot on the NDA's escutcheon. There seems to be an element of perversity in defending the allotments by saying that it is perfectly legal. The Prime Minister's decision to cancel the allotments is a right move to prevent further chaos. Once again, the issue of credibility has been added to the NDA's problems.

Rohit Nagpal,

Ambala cantonment, Haryana

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