I refer to Debasish Roy Chowdhury’s new offering, “ Republic of Ram ” (August 9). Whatever the European definition of secularism may have been, Dr B.R. Ambedkar and others who framed India’s constitution did not envisage it as being against religion, or even being reticent about it. This attempt by leftists to copy and paste that brand of secularism onto the Indian scene has been disastrous. The constitution simply did not want any special privileges to be bestowed upon any religion or community. However, India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his Congress successors treated secularism as a means to deny India’s cultural roots, targeting the majority Hindus for fear of a supposed majoritarianism. They failed to appreciate that Hindus respected all religions, never having had any history of thrusting one’s beliefs onto others. But this was taken advantage of not just to trample upon Hindu rights, but also appease the minorities. This led to massive resentment among Hindus that saw the demise of the Congress and leftist parties. Six years after Narendra Modi came to power and right in the middle of India’s terrible coronavirus numbers , 78 per cent of respondents polled by India Today magazine expressed approval of Prime Minister Modi and his government while opposition candidate Rahul Gandhi garnered just 8 per cent support. Remember that Ambedkar wanted to uphold the cultural ethos of the country, and the Hindu god Ram is venerated by many Indians, and others from Southeast Asia. Plus, it was a Supreme Court verdict that handed the site to Hindus. It was fully in the national interest for the organisers to invite the prime minister and for him to graciously accept the role of laying the foundation stone for the Ram temple. Also, Kashmir’s special status , as enshrined in Article 370 of the constitution, was always meant to be temporary. The opinion poll mentioned credits Modi’s repealing of this special status as his single best achievement till date. Secularism as interpreted by leftists and Marxists is dead . Secularism as it was meant to be in the constitution is alive . Haresh Khushi, Tsim Sha Tsui Kashmir is better off with peace and stability With reference to “ Kashmir still hoping for self-rule ” (August 4), I was amused to read that, after the repeal of Article 370, both the Pakistani army and the militants have become restrained in their terrorism and attacks on the Indian army due to some kind of strategy. It is like criminals telling a tough government that, look, even though you have a lot more police on the streets and your administration seems to be more vigilant, you do not get any credit for it. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, especially in the second term, is determined to stop treating terrorists and infiltrators with kid gloves. There is zero tolerance towards them. But for those who want peace and stability, Kashmir is in a much better situation today. Kashmir and Kashmiris have been integral parts of Indian culture and civilisation for more than 5,000 years. Those in Kashmir who may be hoping for self-rule are misguided. Kashmir was, is and will remain a part of India. Kishore Sambwani, Pok Fu Lam