Unjust Criticism, (The Assam Tribune),Letters to the Editor

Dear Sir,
This refers to the letter, "Bathless for 72 hours"(AT, August 3) by DK Baruah, where he has criticised the politicians, particularly the Rajya Sabha MP of the Samajwadi Party, Jaya Bachchan for her indifference towards the mass-people who were under the havoc of flood.
The news item had appeared in one of the national newspapers.It was mentioned at the end of the news that the Rajya Sabha MP of Samajwadi Party was in Delhi when Mumbai went under water. It is natural for a woman to worry about her family at a time when the family is in distress at a time when she is away from her family. I don't see anything wrong in her comment.Moreover her comment does not imply that she is totally indifferent about the Mumbai masses as the report did not mention anything about her views on flood victms. The report gave priority only to the Bachchans who were also under the influence of the flood as is evident from the news item.
We have the right to criticise the government for its wrong actions but some people criticise only for the sake of criticism.
Yours etc,.
Monalisa Biswas
Guwahati

EVE- TEASING;Letters to the editor; The Assam Tribune,

Sir,
Eve-teasing has posed a serious threat to to the women of our society. There is hardly any girl or woman who has never been the target of eve-teasers.\
Bus-stops, auto-rickshaw stands,etc., are the favourite haunts of the eve-teasers who seem to have no other business than passing lewd remarks on women who happen to pass by them. Eve-teasing is a crime and to put an end to it, women themselves must take the initiative.But women generally ignore the eve-teasers as they fear the evil consequences which might befall them in future.
It is this baseless fear of the women-folk which gives the eve-teasers the courage to pass objectionable comments on them as they know that women are too meek and timid to confront them.
Women are human beings too and have equal rights to move freely in society like their male counterparts and if anybody happens to harm her dignity, she might fight against them.
Women should shed their fear and confront the eve-teasers boldly.This is the only way to teach a lesson to such culprits so that they will not dare to tease another woman in future and think a thousand times before passing lewd remarks on women.
Yours etc.,
Monalisa Biswas,
Odalbakra, Guwahati

How Safe are Women in the City? The Assam Tribune, Sunday Reading, 7th August,200

Though we talk about women's liberation and equality of sexes in the society, the truth is that, in this male-dominated society of ours, safety of women is a far cry.Life has become a threat for the women folk as women in the city are not safe even in broad daylight. Every moment, one or the other women is teased, molested , abducted, raped or murdered. In such circumstances, we can't say that women are safe in the city. Women are not safe as they are sexually harassed or abused, either verbally or physically, almost everywhere, including their workplace and even at home by their kith and kin. Most of the women tolerate such harassment as they fear that protesting would bring a bad name to them and their family.
Our legal system, to someme extent is also responsible for this miserable plight of women.It has been seen in many cases that even when a rapist is caught redhanded, the courts take a very long time to award punishment to the culprit. The culprits found guilty of rape, molestation, etc., should be immediately punished by the courts of law.Moreover to be safe and secure, women themselves must stay alert. They should learn the art of self defence and should never step back in raising their voice against anybody who tends to harm their dignity.

Monalisa Biswas,
Guwahati

NATIONAL PROPERTY; Letters to the Editor; The Assam Tribune;

National Property
Sir,
The Uttar Pradesh Central Waqf Board has recently declared the Taj Mahal as their property.The Taj Mahal which is one of the seven wonders of the world is our narional property and no community can claim the ownership of any national property.
The historic Taj mahal was declared as a national property in the year 1920 and since then the Archaeological Survey of India has been its care-taker.After more than eight decades, how can any community claim its ownership all of a sudden? It has been said that in Shahjahan's biography Badshahnama, the taj had been mentioned as the property of the Sunnis.If this is the case, then various other monuments built by Shahjahan, viz. Moti Masjid, Red Fort, Jama Masjid, etc., also belong to the Sunni community and they would go on claimoing the ownership of one monument after the other.
Such claim is totally illegal and should never be accepted as such illegal demands would give rise to many more controversies in future. India is world famous for its beautiful monuments and palaces which are being looked after by the ASI. If any community is claiming the Taj Mahal today, it is quite possible that tomorrow some other religious group or community or some descendents of some rulers from another country might claim the ownership of other historic monuments of our country.
Union Law Minister H R Bharadwaj has rightly called the controversy a 'self-created one'.
The government should not give cognizance to such claims.Whether the Taj Mahal is a Sunni or a Shia property does not matter. What matters is that the Taj Mahal is our national property and the pride of our country.By no means we should give it away to anyone. Its custody should only remain with The Archaeological Survey of India or else the day is not far when tourists from all over the world come to see the ruins of the historic monument, not the Taj Mahal.

Yours Etc.,
Monalisa Biswas,
Odalbakra, Guwahati