bjp leader went to lanka
A very important BJP leader was missing during Narendra Modi’s upvaas in Ahmedabad. In case anyone thinks that Murli Manohar Joshi was indulging in divisive politics, they should know he is above such things. He was in Colombo, delivering a lecture at the Maha Bodhi Society of Sri Lanka’s celebrations of the 147th birth anniversary of Maha Bodhi a contemporary of Vivekananda.
The organizers initially invited Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj. She accepted but it was found that Tamil leaders opposed her addressing the Maha Bodhi Society in Sri Lanka. As she is a candidate for the prime ministership, she is cautious and cancelled the visit. Joshi was then approached. Though hesitant, he agreed when his advisers spoke of the importance of a Sri Lanka visit after the LTTE wipeout.
When Joshi landed in Colombo, he was overwhelmed at the welcome. He met the Prime Minister, the foreign minister and LTTE leaders also. The Maha Bodhi Society leaders were also impressed with his Sanskritised oratory.
PC as Enemy No 1
diggy raja leaps to defence
Home Minister P Chidambaram suddenly became public enemy No 1 for the Opposition as well as a section of the Congress. Former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha kept demanding, on TV channel after channel, a fresh and transparent probe into the 2G affair and PC’s role in it.
The sudden attack was intriguing. Though there was already fuel in the fire, one thinks twice before attacking the Home Minister. The Congress was vertically divided on the issue and Chidambaram was quite taken aback when the first salvo in his defence came from none other than party General Secretary Digvijay Singh. The latter took on Sinha, saying the government should reinvestigate the UTI 64 scam. This ensured Sinha’s disappearance from the scene.
Digvijay appears to have differences with PC, but this act to save party and government could only come from a maverick politician like him.
Uttarakhand tug-o’-war
vora-birendra tussle
An intra-party crisis is plaguing the Congress in Uttarakhand, which goes to the polls in just months. The party is somewhat favourably placed – because of the BJP’s blunders, which the new Chief Minister, BC Khanduri, cannot rectify so soon.
A poll campaign strategy is being planned but two senior leaders, Birendra Singh, General Secretary in charge of the State, and Motilal Vora, treasurer, cannot agree on which newspapers will be included in the campaign. Vora, who began life as a journalist, wants to take the decision on releasing advertisements in major papers but Birendra, as in-charge of the State, is in no mood to allow this. Vora realises that the matter involves a huge sum of money, but Birendra has a grasp of the hill State’s affairs. Other leaders feel the two will come to an amicable solution in time and without third party intervention.
Let napping MPs lie
meira must accept siestas
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar greatly respects the Members of Parliament. But she is fully justified in expecting discipline in the House. So, on occasion, she is forced to remind them of the basics of Parliamentary norms. Recently, Lalu Prasad Yadav was caught napping in the House when the Lok Sabha was debating the Jharkhand coal mines issue and she had him woken up.
The MP from Bihar was no aberration; senior leaders in almost every party are prone to siesta. Former PM HD Deve Gowda’s dozing off amidst meetings is no secret. Atal Bihari Vajpayee has always enjoyed a siesta, even as Prime Minister. Sharad Yadav can’t resist a catnap after lunch. Pranab Mukherjee is known for his forty winks in the afternoon. It is common knowledge that Mulayam Singh Yadav takes off from work after lunch.
Many business houses routinely book five-star hotel rooms and organise lunch for some Ministers and MPs when Parliament is in session. The moment the House adjourns for lunch, these “five-star” politicos are seen rushing out.
The excuse bandied about is that MPs go to bed very late and start work very early in the morning. So Madam Speaker should be accommodating so long as one does not snore and disturb others!
Gentle Trivedi and didi
mamata rules over rail
Now here’s a simple question, with a million-dollar answer. Who is the Railways Minister of India? If you say Dinesh Trivedi, you are dead wrong. Trivedi is only the de jure head, the de facto head is still Mamata Banerjee. (Though Mr Trivedi will deny it.)
The CM of West Bengal is so fond of her erstwhile Ministry that she does not want to lose her grip on its affairs. The lone officer that Trivedi managed to bring with him from the Health Ministry is his OSD there, Manmeet Kaur Nanda (IAS, WB, 2001) as his PS now. The ED Minister for Railways, JK Saha, adviser Amitabh Dutta, M Ghosal, consultant Tapan Roy, and special officer N Hariharan are continuing in their posts.
When Ram Vilas Paswan was Railways Minister, he had a retinue of PAs and PSes. Trivedi can also appoint a few but, being a gentleman politician, does not wish to ruffle any feathers.
