Letters to The Editor — August 23, 2025

Bill blocking

The founding fathers of the Constitution may have never imagined that constitutional functionaries would resort to dilatory tactics to circumvent the prescriptions of law and keep matters pending for months without taking a decision. The actions of constitutional functionaries sitting on Bills/issues cannot be considered as ‘aberrations’, as aberrations are expected to be rare as well as short-lived. Even if those actions are considered an ‘aberration’, the Supreme Court is expected to resolve the issues in accordance with constitutional principles.

Kosaraju Chandramouli,

Hyderabad

Time-tested ties

The irony is that in trying to unjustly ‘penalise’ India, the self-styled global policeman, the U.S. President, is categorically proving that the U.S.’s relations with India are as unpredictable as the weather. Mr. Trump is simply reinforcing the fact that India-Russia relations are more steadfast and time-tested than India-U.S. ties. The reality is that the U.S. is habituated to playing Big Brother to friendly, smaller nations and reducing them to becoming its client states such as Pakistan. Another irritant for Uncle Sam is that during Operation Sindoor, India successfully thwarted attacks from Pakistan by using a Russian-made defence system. It is time New Delhi overlooks the U.S’.s blow-hot-blow-cold relationship and looks elsewhere for its exports.

Nalini Vijayaraghavan,

Thiruvananthapuram

Madras Day, the MMC

The history of Madras would be incomplete without mentioning the Madras Medical College (MMC) and Government General Hospital. It was established as the first medical college in India along with the Calcutta Medical College on February 2, 1835. But due to administrative reasons, Calcutta was opened on January 28, 1835. Government General Hospital — renamed in 2011 as Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital — is as old as Madras. The MMC has numerous firsts to its credit such as the first woman doctor in the English-speaking world, the first woman doctor of independent India and the first woman doctor of Sri Lanka who graduated from this college. The first X-ray machine in SE Asia (soon after its discovery in 1895) was installed in 1900. I have strong bonds with the MMC — as an alumnus (1975) and having retired from service on superannuation.

Dr. V.K. Ramadesikan,

Chennai