"Voicebox"

"They will write in the comfort of air-conditioned rooms using the power we generate. Let them feel what it feels like without power for two days."
SHEIKH HASINA
prime minister
about the critics who wrote newspaper articles questioning the need to generate power by subsidising the sector.

"Why don't we officially accept English as a second language– after all, we are already using it as a second language."
PROF KAISER HAQ
poet, essayist and teacher at the University of Liberal Arts
about the use of English that meet international standards.

"We suspended the operations for five months in the interest of peace. It was also mentioned in the Trinamool Congress manifesto. But after eight to 10 killings, we felt we are bound to ensure security to the people and I cannot deny my constitutional responsibilities."
MAMATA BANERJEE
West Bengal chief minister
about her decision to step joint force operations in Maoist-hit 'junglemahal'

"It is now obvious that there are a different set of rules for Pakistanis and other countries, especially India, and I think our board needs to take a lesson from this."
IQBAL QASIM
former Pakistani spinner
about International Cricket Council (ICC) president Sharad Pawar and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for their refusal to investigate claims by former Indian player Vinod Kambli that the 1996 World Cup semifinal against Sri Lanka may have been fixed.

"If a country like India has no respect for the word it has given, then what happens to small nations?"
KULDIP NAYAR
Indian journalist
about India's signing of a deal to construct the Tipaimukh dam without informing Bangladesh.