The two-day debate
The debate in Parliament on the Constitution went exactly as expected. The Opposition criticised the ruling party for its actions, while the ruling party repeated its accusations about the Emergency. It would have been unrealistic to expect this debate to result in any real solutions (Page 1, December 15). Instead of committing to working together to improve the Constitution, both sides across the political aisle seem to have dug in their heels even more. We can celebrate the Constitution’s 75th anniversary all we want, but it will not mean much unless we truly live by its values. As someone who has lived through 70 years of Indian politics, I have come to believe that leaders who are known for dishonesty and corruption have no right to speak about the Constitution’s values. Democracy depends on open-mindedness and constructive dialogue, but it seems like we are seeing less and less of this of late.
V. Nagarajan,
Chennai
It is astonishing that the Prime Minister spent most of the time in Parliament castigating the Congress Party and its leaders. Development by any government is a continuous process, depending on what they feel is a priority, the needs of the people and the revenue available to fulfil these needs.
A lot of emphasis was given to the Emergency of 1975. Aren’t we being subjected now to what is termed as an ‘undeclared Emergency’?
The Opposition‘s motion of their ‘no confidence’ against the Chairman of the Upper House is an indicator of the abyss that our system has fallen into.
Hemachandra Basappa,
Bengaluru
Published – December 16, 2024 12:24 am IST
