Letters: Selective silence

Ajai Shukla's review of Anubha Bhonsle's book, Mother, Where's My Country, titled, "Manipur, in the heart of darkness" (January 20), is disturbing. Even more disturbing is the selective silence of the news and social media and the Opposition even as they are agitated by the tragic suicide of a student in Hyderabad. There is hardly any public discourse on the alleged excesses in the Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir by the police, paramilitary and military forces; of the midnight knocks on the door; the rapes; the illegal arrests; detention; the unexplained disappearances; the "encounters" - fake, staged or real - and the continued enforcement of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act.

No one moved the Supreme Court on such matters even though it had time to act on cases regarding cruelty towards bulls during the Jallikattu festival. The Congress and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party are silent, but what about the Left parties, Arvind Kejriwal or Anna Hazare? There are no voices.

P Datta Kolkata

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