Darkness at noon

Yogendra Yadav has aptly said that leaders are spending time doing odd jobs (' This is poor quality political theatre', Cover, September 15), which is very distressing. Our babus also mostly dance to the tunes of their political bosses, while corruption runs riot everywhere. Now the electorate has to suffer inflation and other problems while our leaders are greatly privileged as detailed in the article 'Going through the motions'. Why have the amenities of MPs and MLAs not been reduced if they are not performing? We bear the costs don't we? There is a clear lack of good leadership. And such faulty democracy is, I feel, pushing my country towards dark days that lie ahead.
G S Bhatia, via email

All things must pass

This refers to 'A vale of a tale' (Comment, September 15) about Lt Gen Patankar's interactions with Verghese Kurien, the man credited with bringing about India's 'white revolution'. The article merely gave a peep into the towering personality of Verghese Kurien. While it did bring into focus the social and humanitarian work the Indian army does in Kashmir, but from a newspaper of the stature of Crest, however, a wider coverage of the Amul man was expected, especially at a time when he had just said his final goodbye to us. Don't you think the man who revolutionised so many lives, not just in Gujarat but all over the country, deserved more than just a passing reference?
Manju Pant, via email

Melancholic maybe?

Regarding Shrivathsa Sridhar's article about Cristiano Ronaldo (Sport, September 15), the writer is clearly biased and some of his writing borders on the ridiculous. The writer claims that since Ronaldo has all the riches, cars and a supermodel girlfriend, he has no right to be sad. Ronaldo has worked hard to earn most of these things and the rigours of top-flight club football have been reduced to 'kicking a ball around for few hours'. I am amazed by such presumption. The writer mentions Spain's rising unemployment as another reason why Ronaldo's sadness is uncalled for. Am I the only one missing the connection between the two here?
Ranajeet Soman, via email