India is not a banana republic. But certain incidents indicate that the country is rapidly forfeiting the right to be counted among the civilized nations. Take the rape of a Russian girl in Goa. Shanta Ram Naik, a member of the Rajya Sabha, the house which sets tone to public debates, wants a different treatment of the rape cases in which women move around with strangers after midnight. The member expressed no regret for the rape because the Russian girl was outside her place past 12 at night.

Those who are born are bound to die one day. But what people leave behind them in terms of legacy is important. History's verdict on leaders and their doings is the most objective assessment as it purges all estimates of their actions of biases and prejudices by sifting facts from fiction and puts the record straight. December 27, 2009, marks the second death anniversary of slain leader of the PPP and former prime minister Shaheed (martyr) Benazir Bhutto. Given the importance of the day, it is necessary to analyse what Benazir stood for