And now Mr CK Lal thinks aspiring Nepali beauty pageant contestants should idolise the late Maharani of Gwalior rather than Diana because of the former's alleged role as a "friend of Nepal" (by the way, I am not in favour of idolising Diana either). But Mr Lal is very miserly when it comes to the specificities of the Maharani's behind-the-scene manoeuvres in her capacity as a friend of Nepal. I suspect that the reason might be that there was not much to write home about on that front. His caustic witticism aside, what Mr Lal so conveniently glosses over is the fact that the ideology of the late Maharani's beloved Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) borders on fascism, envisaging as it does a state-sponsored cultural hegemony, Hindu theocracy and discipline enforced by vigilante gangs of religious thugs. In fact, the Maharani was so dogmatic in her politico-religious beliefs that she never forgave her only son for joining the Congress Party. And then, on the immediate aftermath of her death, her own son's secretary was hinting, no doubt in bad taste, that she might have had a physical relationship with her "Rasputin-like" secretary, who allegedly talked her out of bequeathing her vast fortunes to her only son. Bravo, Mr Lal, you have certainly come up with an interesting role model for our aspiring beauty pageant contestants.

Ram Limbu
Sydney