The conviction and resultant loss of office and face of J Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case has changed the political complexion of Tamil Nadu. No doubt Jayalalithaa will keep the AIADMK and its government led by her proxy O Panneerselvam under her thumb and call the shots from the confines of prison. Still her sway over the party cadres and the people is bound to diminish with time for the simple reason that she will not be physically present.

The welfare schemes launched by her cannot neutralise the cardinal sin of abusing public life for self-enrichment. The emotional reactions are a measure of her charisma and mass appeal. Considering the enduring loyalty she commands, it is early days to write her political obituary. Even in the absence of a second rung leadership the party will not disintegrate as it has taken deep roots in the State. But she is unlikely to recover her pre-eminence in public life unless the verdict of ‘guilty’ is overturned by the appeal court. Her fate has taught us about the transience of power and extreme swings of fortunes in addition to the takeaway that popularity provides no immunity from conviction. It is worth noting that many politicians who have amassed wealth by more blatant abuse of power have got away with it. Similarly, those who have committed heinous crimes have risen to exalted positions by virtue of those crimes. Such leaders must curb their glee at her ‘downfall’. We still feel sympathy for her and revere her for her essential goodness and concern for the poor and needy.

G David Milton

Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu

The severe punishment should sends signals that nobody, however powerful, can go scot free when placed in a similar situation. Many escape due to the absence of clinching evidence. But justice delayed is not always justice denied.

It is an opportune time for national parties such as the BJP and the Congress to build their own bases in Tamil Nadu.

HP Murali

Bangalore

Court matters

This is with reference to the article, “Jaya's conviction underlines need to fast-track cases against politicians” by R Srinivasan (September 30). The corruption cases pertain to Jayalalithaa’s time while discharging duties as a public servant and an elected representative of public. This is the worst case scenario and cannot treated like other corruption-related cases such as those against businessmen, film personalities and others.The conviction pertains to her first term in power. She dragged the case for years with the help of willing lawyers.

The case took its toll on the economic and administrative fronts. Why should government machinery be misused by individuals? Our legal framework should be restructured to try similar cases in a time bound manner. The culprits should have been mandated to reimburse the cost of the court cases dealt with during the last 15 years or so.

RS Raghavan

Bangalore

Errata

b In the edition of cat.a.lyst dated September 26, a picture of an event involving Herbalife was used to illustrate a news item on nutritional supplements. Herbalife has clarified that it is “in the business of trading and marketing of nutritional food products and cosmetics in India since November 1999 after obtaining the necessary Government of India approvals. Herbalife food products are nutritional food products and are governed by the provisions of the Food, Safety & Standards Act, its rules and regulations.”

b With reference to the column, “Broker’s call” on the stocks page (September 25), consulting associate Oindrila Hazra writes to say “Idea Cellular is the third largest and fastest growing mobile operator in India with a revenue market share of 17.1 per cent (Q1FY15. This telecom company operates in all 22 service areas, and provides 2G, 3G, NLD, ILD, value-added services, call conference, as well as customised solutions according to business specific needs for Enterprises. With a customer base of over 140 million (August 2014) Idea now ranks 6{+t}{+h} in the world’s largest mobile operators’ list, for single country operations, as per GSMA Intelligence Report.”

Start talking

This refers to the article, “The RBI needs a course correction” by Pulapre Balakrishnan (September 29). Let us start a debate on our insurance companies investing in the infrastructure bonds issued by banks for seven years and more. This will be the long-term funding which will help the infrastructure sector. The IRDA needs to allow the insurance companies to go ahead with this so that banks can lend to the infrastructure sector without having to worry about CRR and SLR. The IRDA, in not allowing these funds to be invested in long-term bank bonds, is not doing the correct regulatory work it has been trusted to deliver.

CR Arun

Email

Grand show

The Prime Minister’s speech at the UN was measured, driven by a world view not misted by current and transient inter-regional politics. His riposte to Nawaz Sharif’s earlier speech reflected the high level of Indian self-confidence. Modi’s pitch for UN reforms may find little echo. Nevertheless someone had to bring it up and who better than Modi. The grand show in Madison Square was firstly orchestrated to erase any residual bitterness between the two nations as a result an eminently forgettable visa denial episode. Secondly, it set the stage for the demonstrably popular Indian leader to meet the US president subsequently. But Barack Obama is in the last two years of his second term with an unfriendly Congress and perhaps a weakened Senate. If the talks do turn out well, it would be to the personal credit of the two leaders.

R Narayanan

Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh

Though Modi has announced lifelong visas for the Indian diaspora, giving them an opportunity to vote in the elections is a must. Expatriates in West Asia have been pitching for this for a long time.The votes of the expatriates can tilt the political balance in many States in India especially those with a strong NRI community. The NRIs who are pumping a lot of money into the country deserve our attention.

Kiran Jose

Pala, Kerala

Advantage India

To me India is at an advantageous situation now and have to be neutral to the US/China equation (“India and the art of riding two boats” by Stanly Johny, September 29). But at the same time, it must engage with neighbouring countries to check China’s influence in the Saarc region. China needs India for growth given that its economy is slowing down and it is to India’s benefit if it can re-balance its trade with China. India should continue having strong relations with the US and Japan too to attract investments. We cannot afford to take sides now, especially against China knowing it posturing along the border.

Sridhar Narasimhan

Email

Quotas for the poor

Former law minister and governor of Karnataka HR Bhardwaj’s thoughts, in accordance with Jawaharlal Nehru’s, is right that there should be no quota system based on caste and communal lines. The present caste-based reservation is 15 per cent for the scheduled castes, 7.5 per cent for the scheduled tribes, 27 per cent for OBCs and 50.5 per cent for the general class, of course including SC, ST and OBC. Reservation should always be totally based on the financial condition of a person; it should be only for the really poor. Otherwise it is another form of communalism.

Hansraj Bhatt

Mumbai

Doing business in India

This refers to the interview with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (September 29). The positive approach to doing business which keeps Bezos smiling all through is admirable and worth imbibing by any entrepreneur anywhere in the world.

The $2 billion cheque brought in by Amazon is a good omen when Modi is inviting the world not only to do business in India but to ‘Make in India’ and do business with the rest of the world. The World Bank Group (2013) which rated India 179 under the parameter ‘Starting Business’ in a group of 189 countries, should revisit its assessment and see how many of the countries which were positioned above India got an individual single external investment of $2 billion or above in 2014.

The assertion made by Bezos that “Every country in which we do business, there are regulations. Our job is to accommodate those regulations. So, let us use it as an opportunity, instead of just complaining about it” should be an eye-opener for all those who grumble about the business environment in India. This is not to say it is perfect. But the progress made in improving the ‘ease to do business’ by various States and the present efforts by the Central government to make things better need to be taken note of.

MG Warrier

Mumbai

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