Letters to the Editor: Spotlight on cheerful exchange between PM Modi and Giorgia Meloni

Catch the ‘Melodi’

Sir — Interactions between political leaders used to be the domain of body-language experts. But with the advent of social media, internet users, too, have become pundits in deducing the cues from politicians. Take, for instance, the distinctly cheerful exchange between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, during the G20 Summit which has taken the internet by storm, leading to a flurry of reels ‘shipping’ the two as ‘Melodi’ or depicting a love triangle involving the leaders, Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden, accompanied with melancholic music. While political satires are always welcome, perhaps reel-makers should also ponder whether the right-wing politics of the two leaders makes ‘Melodi’ click.

Aastha Parekh, New Delhi

Idle pursuit

Sir — The Central government’s decision to slash prices of LPG cylinders should be considered the first positive impact of the Opposition parties joining ranks under the banner of INDIA. It is evident that the formidability of the INDIA bloc, which constitutes almost 60% of the voter base, has made the Centre push the panic button. The bid to rename India as Bharat is an example (“Renaming roulette”, Sept 12). The Centre should understand that the renaming of government institutions, schemes, currency notes and official letterheads would create unnecessary expenditure of public resources.

Our Constitution rightly prioritises India over Bharat by mentioning, “India, that is Bharat.” In fact, several countries, such as Japan, Germany and China, prefer their respective international names over their local names to maintain global prominence. This is a wise decision.

Sujit De, Calcutta

Big failures

Sir — Citing the examples of the administrative misfiring in strife-torn Manipur, the recent militant attack in Anantnag, a dip in export rates last month and the general slowdown of the economy in spite of the several rounds of multilateral talks, the Congress Working Committee cornered the Bharatiya Janata Party dispensation over its monumental failures during its nearly 10-year stint (“Crises that BJP want to dodge”, Sept 17). These highlight the prime minister’s apathy to the worsening crises and his government’s devious ploy to deflect attention from them by promoting violence and fear.

With the general elections drawing close, it is important for the electorate to confront the saffron regime on its misgovernance. The Constitution vests voters with the ultimate power. They should exercise their franchise appropriately.

Aayman Anwar Ali, Calcutta

Strained ties

Sir — The ties between India and Canada have come under strain over the past few months owing to the upsurge of pro-Khalistani activities in the North American country. First, the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, faced an unprecedented delay of 36 hours from his scheduled departure from the G20 Summit due to a technical snag. That is not all. During the Summit, while recognising the presence of Khalistani extremism on Canadian soil, Trudeau mentioned that Canada would always defend freedom of speech (“PM takes up Khalistani threat with Trudeau”, Sept 11). There have been cases of vandalism against Indian embassies in San Francisco and London. However, New Delhi has not responded to these incidents with as much severity as it has shown towards Canada.

Canada has also announced that it would postpone the October trade mission to India. New Delhi should prevent a breakdown of the relationship.

Jang Bahadur Singh, Jamshedpur

Good strategy

Sir — It is heartening that the Indian cricket stalwart, Sourav Ganguly, seems to have finally cleared the air about his political leaning (“Sourav lines up Salboni steel plant”, Sept 16). Ganguly, while visiting Spain as part of the entourage of the chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, announced his decision to invest Rs 2,500 crore to set up a steel plant in Salboni in West Midnapore. His proactive involvement with the development of the state is welcome.

K. Nehru Patnaik, Visakhapatnam

Sir — The manner in which Sourav Ganguly announced his investment in a steel plant in Bengal on foreign soil was strategic. Ganguly has been an astute administrator and the declaration was his attempt to keep the political leadership of West Bengal in good humour. This also comes ahead of the general elections. It would thus not be wrong to speculate that his decision can lead to new turns in the state’s political landscape.

Jayanta Datta, Hooghly

Sir — Although Sourav Ganguly’s announcement of investment in the Salboni steel plant in the presence of Mamata Banerjee in Spain was a mere spectacle, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bengal seems to be shooting itself in the foot by mocking him. This will harm the party’s already dwindling prospects in the state.

As for Ganguly, it is best that he keeps his distance from the murky world of politics in order to sustain the adoration that people have for him.

Amit Brahmo, Calcutta

Decisive win

Sir — The Indian men’s cricket team should be congratulated for clinching their eighth Asia Cup by knocking off the defending champions, Sri Lanka, with 10 wickets to spare (“Dress rehearsal for the big prize”, Sept 18). Mohammed Siraj played a stellar role in the victory, recording his career-best figures of 6-21. Opting to bat first, Sri Lanka crumbled in just 15.2 overs. This will boost the morale of the Men in Blue as they prepare to host the World Cup next month.

Khokan Das, Calcutta