Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

The Ayodhya issue

Sir, — Although the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee's call to political parties to stop looking at the Ayodhya issue from the point of view of who would gain and who would lose is laudable, his suggestion that representatives belonging to the Hindu and Muslim community should begin to talk to each other to find a mutually acceptable solution is debatable. I feel that the best way to put an end to this vexed problem is to allow it to die a natural death without anyone referring to it. In fact, it was a dead issue before some fundamentalist outfits raked it up a couple of years ago. Any discussion to resolve it would make the people believe that this controversy is still alive. In this context, I appreciate Sonia Gandhi's statement that the mistakes of history should not be repeated and that if we believe that our predecessors have erred, we must not repeat the mistakes. Are not there vital issues which require the urgent attention of our leaders other than the Ayodhya dispute?

V. Rajesh,

Mumbai

* * *

Sir, — The Prime Minister's statement asking political parties to keep off the Ayodhya issue is welcome. With this the BJP has come a full circle. First it politicised the issue and now it is trying to depoliticise it and extricate itself. It is also heartening that Mr. Vajpayee recalled the age-old values of creating goodwill and mutual trust as a prerequisite for solving the issue.

Bishu Prusty,

Puttaparthy, Andhra Pradesh

* * *

Sir, — Regarding the Prime Minister's statement that political parties should keep away from the Ayodhya issue: I wonder whether his own party, the BJP, would pay heed to his advice. No party will allow issues such as Ayodhya to die, as they keep them afloat. As political parties have to survive, the issues will keep raising their ugly head now and then.

V.S. Jayaraman,

Chennai

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• Ringing in consolidation
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• The task of repackaging the BJP
• Gender justice
• Partners, not rivals
• The Ayodhya issue
• Communal violence
• Nisha's law
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• Praying for rain

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