No free lunch
lesson for dusu candidates
Elections to Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) have always been a prestige issue for the Congress party and are blown out of proportion in national politics. The party’s frontal organization, National Students Union of India (NSUI), allots the party symbol to the aspirants for various posts. A General Secretary of the party and member of the Congress Working Committee has been calling the shots during the final stage of ticket distribution ever since he first occupied a powerful post in NSUI in the early 1980s.
In the battle to capture DUSU last year, this leader forced NSUI to allot the party ticket to one of his favourites who, justifying his selection, won the election. Once the euphoria of victory subsided, the winning candidate was shocked to receive a lukewarm response from the General Secretary whenever he went to meet him. Puzzled, he consulted his seniors in NSUI to discuss how to remain in the good books of the General Secretary with an eye on a future in politics.
When the seniors questioned him, they found that he had secured the party ticket for the DUSU elections without any personal investment. Wisdom then prevailed and he presented a new Ambassador car to the General Secretary, who was immensely pleased. The Congress leader is currently looking for aspiring candidates for this year’s elections, who can present him similar gifts.
Jaswant’s day dreams
aspiring to be pm
Lal Krishna Advani, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s almost certain official Prime Ministerial candidate, must learn from the past that there is many a slip between cup and lip. This time, the slip may be the result of the efforts of a foreign Big Brother who wants to crown a leader bereft of any mass or organizational base as king of India. Sources say former Minister of External Affairs Jaswant Singh has qualified in the eyes of this Big Brother.
Jaswant’s lifestyle matches that of many Opposition leaders and he also developed vast international contacts during his tenure in South Block. While he cannot compete with Advani’s organizational skill and mass base, he has been trying to match Advani’s mellow remarks about Mohammed Ali Jinnah by authoring a soon- to- be released book, 1947 – A fractured freedom: Journey of Mohammed Ali Jinnah from an ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity to Quaid-e-Azam of Pakistan.
He has also stated that the decision to release three master terrorists in return for 161 passengers and crew aboard the Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Kandahar was taken at a Cabinet meeting. This statement hits out at Advani, who has claimed ignorance of any such decision. Now, with the backing of the Big Brother, Jaswant is aspiring to enter 7 Race Course Road.
Rahul scans report cards
talent search in full swing
If you can present yourself as a dynamic personality by answering a corporate-style questionnaire via email, it’s a good reason to select you for one of the political posts in the Youth Congress and the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI). At least, this is what Rahul Gandhi believes.
While Sanjay Gandhi picked up his youth brigade from roadside dhabas and shops, Rajiv Gandhi relied on his personal interaction with youth. Now, the times have changed and so have the youth. There are no more walk-in interviews. Rahul has formed an unofficial “talent search committee” to select his own team. The members of the committee are Ashok Gehlot, Oscar Fernandes, Mukul Wasnik, Jitin Prasada, Sachin Pilot and a host of other politicians. The questionnaire is mailed throughout the country and interested candidates answer it. Then the team jointly evaluates the answers, allots marks and submits the marked questionnaires to Rahul, who vets each one.
With this well-intended move by Rahul, the district and state party organizations are fast turning into placement bureaus where artful Congress workers are using every trick in the book to win over the committee members for an A+ report card.
Bottom line: Nothing can change Congress culture unless you start with the report cards of the committee members.
If money be Maya…
…the queen’s no dalit
It is no secret that Mayawati has achieved her rise in politics from zilch. Having seen many political and personal upheavals, she is heading the Uttar Pradesh government with single-party majority amidst a number of corruption cases running in courts. Yet her personal treasure, which owes its existence to that of the party fund, is mind-boggling.
She owns 5,000 silver coins, 10,000 gold coins and 787 diamond crowns. Further, she claims that these are donations from those who are plainly unable to make both ends meet. For the period between 1995 to 2003, she was supposed to pay Rs 90 lakh as income tax. Her account in the Union Bank of India, Delhi has deposits amounting to two crore and 27 lakh rupees. Another account in State Bank of India, Parliament Street has a balance of 23 crore and 45,000 rupees. Various banks in Greater Noida and Bulandshahr have fixed deposits in the names of her brother, father and other relatives worth two crore and 50 lakh rupees.
For reasons best known to her, she files tax returns in Delhi. Owing income tax amounting to 12 crore 50 lakh rupees, she has deposited 14 crore 70 lakh rupees in two instalments.
Appropriately, she is the leader of poor Dalits of UP.
