verma likes working at home
The Steel Ministry office in Udyog Bhawan wears a deserted look nowadays. Minister Beni Prasad Verma prefers to run the Ministry from his home on Kushak Road and officials are seen shuttling between his Kushak Road office and Udyog Bhawan. The house at Kushak Road is not large enough to accommodate a large number of officials all at once. The drawing room is not to large and it becomes difficult to hold official meetings.
On top of that, Benibabu starts his day late, usually after lunch, and keeps summoning officials, including PSU chiefs, even after office hours. The officials are none too happy but do not dare to talk about it. Perhaps Benibabu still thinks he is running a small Ministry in Darul Safa, Lucknow, and is unable to comprehend the gigantic size and stature of a technical Ministry.
Pranabbabu’s largesse for party
donors sent to congress coffers
Pranab Mukherjee has travelled a long distance in politics and headed several Ministries. On the way, he has helped many people, perhaps a few thousands, and, of course, it would be naïve to think of him as bathed in milk. Yet, today, the elderly Bengali babu simply smiles benignly at people who, in return for having benefited from him, want to shower him with costly gifts or large sums of cash.
Pranabbabu tells them, “How much money do you think I need at the ripe age of 75? Ma Kali has bestowed so much on me that I do not need any money to take care of me.” However, he does not turn them away outright but directs them to party treasurer Moti Lal Vora. The latter is amused at the steady flow of funds from anonymous sources. Pranabbabu is probably thinking big and making these small sacrifices in the interim.
Rahul’s democracy thrust
money power makes polls a sham
Rahul Gandhi is the second leader after the legendary Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna to rejuvenate and reinvent the party cadre, especially the youth. As a result, democracy has become the buzz word in the party and the days of nominated leaders are numbered. The Delhi, Haryana and UP Youth Congress units are set for a dose of democracy. Their office-bearers are being elected from block to Parliamentary constituency level. Rahul has made it clear that elected members will be given preference during distribution of tickets for any major election.
So Congress workers have to wage war at two levels. First to fight the intra-party election and then to fight the election after securing a ticket. The ground reality is that those enriched by sale of property, business and such like are calling the shots by spending huge sums on membership drives and vote-buying. Thus the democracy process has turned out to be a farce and will lead to dominance of rich brats at the cost of sensible, diligent party workers. In a corruption-ridden scenario that makes the party’s future uncertain, this “democratic process” is working as a deterrent for party workers.
‘Yes and no’ Chavan
Laidback style upsets congressmen
The clean image of Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan is no longer a USP for the State Congress. His laidback style of functioning and putting decisions on hold have begun to unnerve partymen. As he filed his nomination for the May 4 by-elections to the Legislative Council, hardly anyone mentioned that not a single criminal case is registered against him nor any case pending in a court. What they did talk about was the election affidavit which states his net financial value as Rs 6.81 crore.
They are most irked by his noncommittal attitude towards key policy decisions. In the just-concluded Budget session of the State legislature, Congressmen were up in arms over the Bill seeking to regulate water allocation. They were furious over the NCP-controlled Irrigation Ministry trying to favour industry over agriculture and the common man. One angry Congressman remarked, “These days, when you stand before the Chief Minister, it looks as if you are standing before a mirror. The mirror reflects what is before it. The CM sounds as if he is supporting your viewpoint. But we want to know his viewpoint.”
