'Should Nepal be secular?' by Prakash A Raj (#158) tried to give a factual presentation of the pros and cons of the concept of secularism. I agree that secularism is not an issue for Nepal today. The country survived without secularism and there is no reason why it cannot do without it in the future. The political and other forces which have started speaking in favour of secularism should turn their attention to the larger issues that the country faces, like threats to its security in political and economic terms. If the nation faces this challenge, the issue of secularism becomes null and void.

Hari Bansh Jha,
Lalitpur