Saturday, October 24, 2015

Centre issues stringent warning to 'lose cannons'

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Gen V K Singh on notice ■ PM to meet hurt writers
 


Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Oct 23 : With the BJP high command issuing a stern warning to what it calls "lose cannons" within the party and government of stern action, erring ministers and leaders are running for a cover. If Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh is offering one apology after the other for his "dog comment" on TV channels, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has vowed that he would never give a press interview.

So upset was BJP president Amit Shah with these developments that he took two days off from the hectic campaigning in Bihar and camped in Delhi. He may have used the occasion to celebrate Dussehra festival and his birthday as well. But he conveyed his annoyance in no uncertain terms to such "motor mouths" that they would be expelled forthwith if they did it again.

The Dadri incident has done the worst damage to the party's prospects in Bihar where it is trying hard to woo the Dalits and Maha-dalits. Since V K Singh was given the Lok Sabha ticket by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh during his tenure as BJP chief, Amit Shah asked him to issue a public warning to the erring minister. V K Singh has embarrassed the party on three previous occasions.

It was only after the strong signal from Shah that Rajnath Singh issued a public warning to V K Singh. Rajnath Singh said on Friday, "Ministers must be careful while making statements. We cannot get away by saying that the statement was misinterpreted or twisted."

Incidentally, most of these 'lose cannons' belong to the Rajput community such as V K Singh or Sangeet Som, or those considered close to BJP's veteran leader L K Advani including Shatrughan Sinha, Yashwant Sinha, Sakshi Maharaj or Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti etc.

It may be mentioned that General VK Singh had said yesterday: "If someone throws stones at a dog, the government is not responsible." The comment was seen as extraordinarily insensitive anas LJP leader Ram Vilas aswan and HAM leader Jitan Ram Manjhi have condemned Singh's statement in strongest terms.

The BJP is now running for a cover and it is likely that when the PM addresses rallies in Bihar during the next three days beginning October 25, he will send a strong signal at his level as well.

The Prime Minister's decision to meet the writers who have returned their Sahitya Academy awards is also a signal that Mr Modi will put a lid on the politics of intolerance. The PM's move has been widely welcomed and cooled tempers. The writers are likely to meet the PM during the next couple of days. Though they held a march in the Capital protesting against the killings of the innocents and hate politics, the PM's move has led to temperature subsiding. 

Meanwhile, a police case has been filed against General Singh at the instance of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes in UP.