MyVoice: Views of our readers 9th June 2025
The deadly comeback of Covid
India's active Covid case tally has crossed the 6,000 mark with 769 new infections being reported in the last 48 hours, according to the Union health ministry data released on Sunday, 8 June.Kerala continues to be the most affected state, followed by Gujarat, West Bengal and Delhi. Due to the rising Covid cases, the Centre has instructed all states to ensure availability of oxygen, isolation beds, ventilators, and essential medicines.There are 6,133 active Covid cases in India, and six more deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours, the ministry said..Since January 2025, 65 deaths have been reported in the country. There were a total of 257 active patients in the country on 22 May. With this the killer disease COVID has returned to India which is warning to everybody to take care of themselves rather than depending on the government.
Bhagwan Thadani, Mumbai
New Hamas strategy sparks raw
Hamas have adopted a new strategy to deter Israel's ongoing ground offensive, Operation Gideon's Chariots, by directly appealing to Israeli civilians. Their leader has warned them to pressure their government to halt its attacks on Gaza or face dire consequences: the execution of the remaining 55 hostages held by Hamas, who would be returned in coffins. This ultimatum has triggered widespread chaos and unrest in Israel, with citizens staging mass protests. Demonstrators, carrying placards with images of the hostages, are demanding their immediate release. In response, Israel should consider offering Hamas a defined window during a ceasefire to facilitate the safe release of the hostages, providing a crucial opportunity for de-escalation. Should Hamas fail to comply, the United Nations must step in, working alongside Israeli forces to ensure the hostages' safe extradition. Global intervention may be essential to break the deadlock and save innocent lives.
RS Narula, Patiala
Fight to the finish
Donald Trump and Elon Musk's friendship is well-known. Both are influential people in the world. One is a powerful politician and the other is the richest person. However, differences have started between the two. It is turning into a war of words. US President Donald Trump has announced a reduction in contracts with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk's companies. Musk has threatened to stop the service of the 'Dragon Capsule', which is used to transport astronauts and other materials to the International Space Station, on social media. After the failure of the US government's Boeing Company's Starliner spacecraft, Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams was safely returned to Earth by the Dragon Capsule. Musk's Dragon Capsule has become a backbone in NASA's space missions. Also, NASA has taken help from SpaceX in many military missions.Elon Musk's Government Efficiency Account (DOSE) was created primarily to reduce government spending. Musk believes that Trump's policy undermines the original purpose of this account. He described Trump's bill as 'disgusting.' Trump initially took a tough stance on imposing import tariffs on China. Musk's Tesla company was to directly benefit from it. Because Chinese electric cars have eroded Tesla's position in other major markets. After all, Elon Musk helped Trump in the election with a business perspective or goal in mind. But Trump's new bill will be a problem for Musk's Tesla company. That's why Elon Musk has left the government.
Dattaprasad Shirodkar, Mumbai
Stampede and our attitude
What followed the stampede that claimed 11 lives at Chinnaswami Stadium, Bangalore when fans celebrated Royal Challengers Bangalore winning the IPL 2025 title on Wednesday was clearly along expected lines; call for a 'thorough investigation', words expressing 'shock and profound grief' from the responsible, blame game and audacious inaction. These will be followed by the usual forgetfulness, which will help the responsible get away scot-free. The country will continue to be on the back foot at crowd control much to her shame. There have been umpteen incidents of stampedes at various places in the country, that something needs to be done urgently.
Dr George Jacob, Kochi
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Bangladesh anti-Sheikh Hasina student protester Newton Das found to be Bengal voter
A man allegedly linked to the 2024 students' protests in Bangladesh was found to be a voter in West Bengal's Kakdwip Assembly constituency, The Hindu reported on Sunday. Several images of the man, identified as Newton Das, participating in the agitation in the neighbouring country were widely shared on social media. Das has claimed that he was an Indian citizen but acknowledged that he had actively participated in the protests in Bangladesh, The Hindu reported. 'I went to Bangladesh in 2024 for issues related to an ancestral property and got caught in the revolution,' The Hindu quoted Newton Das as saying in a video. 'I have been a voter in Kakdwip since 2014 but lost my voter card in 2017.' Newton Das said that he had received a fresh voter card in 2018 with the help of Trinamool Congress MLA Manturam Pakhira. He also claimed that he had voted for Pakhira, who represents Kakdwip, in the 2016 Assembly polls, The Hindu reported. The constituency is in South 24 Parganas district. 'This is a conspiracy against me by a particular community,' India Today quoted Newton Das as saying in the video. He did not specify whether he was currently in India or Bangladesh. His cousin Tapan Das, who resides in Kakdwip, claimed that Newton Das was born in Bangladesh and had exercised voting rights in both countries, The Hindu reported. Tapan Das claimed that his cousin had gone to Bangladesh after the Covid-19 pandemic to sell land and had not returned. 'Since he was born in Bangladesh, he is a voter of Bangladesh too,' The Hindu quoted Tapan Das as saying. 'It is his fault that he is registered as a voter in both the countries.' Kakdwip is close to the Sundarbans and India's border with Bangladesh. Political row The incident sparked a political row in the state. The Bharatiya Janata Party's West Bengal unit on Sunday criticised West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress claiming that a ' Bangladeshi protester ' was voting in both countries. 'Let that sink in,' the Hindutva party said on social media. 'This isn't an accident. This is the TMC blueprint – flood Bengal's voter rolls with illegal infiltrators and secure elections with ghost votes.' West Bengal 'isn't just lawless – it's compromised from within', the BJP claimed. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari claimed that lakhs of Bangladesh citizens were registered as voters in the state, The Hindu reported. The Opposition leader claimed that an alleged member of Bangladeshi militant group Ansarullah Bangla was also enlisted as a voter in Murshidabad. West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar on Saturday described the incident as an example of the 'so-called Egiye [progressive] Bangla Model'. 'The same Newton who was seen wielding a stick during Bangladesh's quota reform movement is now a registered voter in Kakdwip,' the BJP leader said on social media. 'Thousands of Bangladeshi 'Newtons' voting in Bengal – courtesy of [Chief Minister] Mamata Banerjee's infiltration theory and appeasement politics,' he alleged. 'With illegal voters and these lathi-wielders miscreants as her support base, she's not running West Bengal… she's scripting a blueprint for Greater Bangladesh.' The Trinamool Congress rejected the BJP's allegations and said that the responsibility for border security was with the Border Security Force, India Today reported. The Border Security Force reports to the Union home ministry. 'Whether these people come from land, water or air, the BSF and Union government are responsible,' The Hindu quoted Trinamool leader Kunal Ghosh as saying. 'The state administration will do its role for sure.' The state's ruling party also claimed that the Election Commission was complicit in voter list tampering. In February, Banerjee had accused the BJP of allegedly attempting to add residents of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana to West Bengal's voter lists. The chief minister had also accused the BJP of adding fake voters to electoral lists to win the Assembly elections in Delhi and Maharashtra. In 2024, weeks of widespread student-led protests in Bangladesh against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League government had led to her resignation and her fleeing to India on August 5. In August, weeks of student-led protests in Bangladesh against a controversial quota scheme for government jobs snowballed into a broader agitation against the Sheikh Hasina government.
