Sir — This refers to the editorial, “Patience running out” (August 26). Through the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, ‘tolerance’ became a by-word for ‘submission’. That tolerance was one-sided, and the Hindu community paid a heavy price for it.
One can argue that it was of strategic value then. It kept the lid on the two-nation theory leaders of the Muslim league until the very end; it saved millions of lives by keeping the focus on the fight against the British. It is unfortunate that ‘tolerance’ was exploited in independent India later to create vote-banks.
It took a leader like Mr Narendra Modi to point out that ‘tolerance’ is not the same as ‘submission’. His frank, forceful and truthful talk upset the UPA apple-cart. This is now unsettling the powers in Pakistan.