by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly on the Wall

Why Modi Omitted Morarji Desai

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid floral tributes to all his predecessors while making his last speech in the old Lok Sabha building from Nehru to Dr Manmohan Singh. He chose his words very carefully about each one of them and their contribution in the making of India during the past 75 years. But Modi made no mention of Morarji Desai who held the PM's post between 1977-79 in his long speech. Though Modi paid rich tributes to late Charan Singh who did not even face the floor test in Lok Sabha after becoming the PM, Desai did not figure anywhere in his speech. Morarji was Chief Minister of the joint state of Maharashtra and Gujarat in the early 50s and represented Surat in Lok Sabha. Yet, Modi omitted his name completely as if he was not the PM.

This came as a shock to those listening to him attentively and wondered why he did so. Modi has always been very choosy about his words and has never tripped. Though his dislike for India's first Prime Minister Nehru is too well-known, he praised him in his speech. The omission becomes all the more surprising as Morarji Desai was the first PM from his home state of Gujarat and the saffron party was a partner in his government in 1977. Was it because Morarji Desai ordered firing on those opposing Bombay as the Union Territory in which 105 people were killed? Or was it because he opposed Indira Gandhi whom Modi takes in high esteem? Or because Morarji hated Indira Gandhi so much that he virtually wound up the country's top espionage agency's external operations? The mystery may unfold in the days, months or years to come.

Is Modi an admirer of Indira Gandhi?

Prime Minister Modi has spared none in blasting members of the Nehru-Gandhi family not only during election rallies but even otherwise wherever he gets an opportunity. But he never uttered a word about late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Though there was always a mention of imposition of Emergency in 1975 but Indira's name was never invoked by him. A proof of Modi's admiration for Indira Gandhi emerged when he heaped praises on her not once but twice in the old Lok Sabha when he made his last speech on September 18 there.

He made a special mention of the success of the NAM Summit held in March 1983 in New Delhi during her tenure. Modi said, “when the NAM summit was held, this House had unanimously passed the resolution and the country had appreciated this effort. Today you have also unanimously appreciated the success of the G 20. I believe that you have elevated the pride of the country.” As if this was not enough, Modi went on to praise Indira Gandhi again when he said, “This very House also played a crucial role in supporting the Bangladesh Liberation War and extending its backing under the leadership of Indira Gandhi.”

Political analysts always wondered why Modi goes soft on Indira Gandhi and says that he draws a leaf out of Indira Gandhi's book. Some of his bold decisions like going inside PoK in Balakot in 2019 to destroy terror camps are in sync with what Indira Gandhi did during her tenure. If Indira Gandhi had the country's first Super cop in R N Kao who founded RAW, Modi has an equally tough cop in Ajit Doval as his National Security Adviser.

A RAW Nerve

The Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), country's first external espionage agency was set up by Indira Gandhi in 1968 to expand India's footprints globally after the 1962 debacle. But its focus was shifted to India’s traditional rival, Pakistan's spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). The RAW was involved in many successful covert operations and Islamabad always saw RAW agents working to destabilize Pakistan. It accuses RAW of training and arming separatists in Pakistan’s Balochistan Province along the Afghan border. RAW accused the ISI of the July 2008 bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul. The RAW started with 250 people and about $400,000 and has grown leaps and bounds and its staffing and budget remain secret. The U.S.-based Federation of American Scientists suggested in 2000 that RAW had about eight to ten thousand agents and an unlimited budget. Unlike the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or Britain’s MI6, RAW reports directly to the Prime Minister instead of the Ministry of Defense.

Some of the recent killings of terrorists like Lashkar-e-Taiba's Riyaz Ahmad alias Abu Qasim in early September inside PoK's Rawalkot, raised eyebrows. This was the fourth such killing of a top terrorist commander operating from across the border this year. The killing of a Khalistani terrorist H S Nijjar in Canada and a couple of other places is attributed to RAW though without any proof.

Modi as an RSS Pracharak must have disliked what Morarji Desai did as PM by winding up RAW's external operations in 1977. Even I K Gujral as Prime Minister did the same in 1997 what Morarji Desai did earlier. His name found no mention in Modi's speech either. RAW's  claim to fame are several foreign policy successes including the creation of Bangladesh in 1971; growing influence in Afghanistan; the North East state of Sikkim’s accession to India in 1975; security of India’s nuclear program and the African liberation movements during the Cold War.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly on the Wall

Bitter chapter begins in NCP

Gone are the days when there was some shambles of bonhomie after estranged nephew Ajit Pawar walked away with 40-odd MLAs leaving NCP supremo Sharad Pawar high & dry. The NCP workers were utterly confused as Supriya Sule, Lok Sabha MP and daughter of Sharad Pawar made a statement that there is no split and it's all one family. Even senior Pawar sent some conciliatory gestures in public domain. Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar maintained a low profile and went along with the public posturing. But the days of niceties are over and it's clear that split in the NCP is a hard reality. Sharad Pawar will have to work hard to retain his legacy. Ajit Pawar is gearing up to take on his uncle and there is no going back. The days of bonhomie between the senior Pawar and PM Modi seem to be a thing of the past as was seen in the Central Hall of Parliament when Modi and Pawar came face to face on Tuesday last. Sharad Pawar may get a taste of his own medicine unless something drastic happens as split proceedings are bound to take place on October 6. Both the NCP factions are claiming to be the real party before the Election Commission and want to retain the symbol. Sharad Pawar has been an astute politician and became the youngest Chief Minister of Maharashtra by walking out with 40 MLAs in 1978 by forming a coalition of six parties including the saffron party. Ajit Pawar split the NCP headed by his uncle with the same number of MLAs and joined hands with the BJP 44 years later to become Deputy Chief Minister.

INDIA in search of a Dalit leader

INDIA may have cobbled together 28 parties to give the BJP a be-fitting lesson in 2024 Lok Sabha polls. It has a battery of prominent leaders like Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Akhilesh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee, M K Stalin, Arvind Kejriwal, Sharad Pawar and others. But it is in desperate search of a Dalit leader who is worth a salt. Since BSP's Mayawati has been kept out of INDIA, the alliance is looking for a Dalit leader who can sway those voters in UP and a couple of other states. More than Akhilesh Yadav, it's the Congress Party which is keen to get those Dalit voters who went away 30 years ago to BSP. There is a move to project Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge as the party's Dalit face and field him for the Lok Sabha seat in UP.

With BSP chief Mayawati's charisma on the wane, the Congress is eyeing to fill the gap. Kharge can contest from both Karnataka and UP. Talks with the SP and other parties are also on in this regard as the Congress is contemplating to field Kharge from Etawah. It may help SP candidates in nearby constituencies too. There are prospects that Rahul Gandhi or Priyanka may contest from Amethi seat.

Wheels with wheel

Even as INDIA is crawling to emerge as a force to take on the mighty BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, four parties have formed a ginger group within the alliance. It transpires that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Samajwadi leader Akhilesh Yadav and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar have formed a group of their own.

It transpires that this ginger group has been successful in torpedoing Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's dream of becoming a convener of the INDIA alliance. It was Nitish Kumar who had taken the lead a few months ago to bring the 28 parties together on one platform with the help and consent of the Congress. However, the Congress is now not pushing Nitish Kumar's case of making him the convener either. Perhaps, the Congress may take up all these contentious issues after the Assembly polls in five states. Nitish Kumar, lately has also taken a backseat and is sitting pretty in Patna.

When Priyanka helped Sukhu

It has been more than three weeks since the President, Droupadi Murmu hosted a dinner for G-20 leaders. But it continues to remain in the news for one reason or the other. Seven Chief Ministers including Pinari Vijayan (Kerala-CPM), K Chandrashekhar Rao (Telangana-BRS), Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Singh Mann (AAP), Naveen Patnaik (Odisha, BJD) Bhupesh Baghel, Ashok Gehlot and Siddhramaiah (All Congress) did not attend the dinner. However, Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu of the Congress decided to travel to Delhi and attended the dinner. The other Congress Chief Ministers explained their own reasons for not attending the dinner. But Sukhu defied and this raised eyebrows in the high command. Was Sukhu cozying up to the BJP as he had heaped praises on BJP president J.P. Nadda and other Central ministers for their help to the state during the recent floods earlier. However, Sukhu told the Central leadership that he needed the Centre's massive help to rebuild Himachal after massive destruction during the floods and a boycott of official dinner would not be in the interest of the state. It is learnt that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra helped Sukhu to clear the confusion.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Countdown begins for new ED Chief 

Praveen Kumar may get temporary charge 

Countdown has begun for the appointment of new Enforcement Director as the stretched term of Sanjay Kumar Mishra, is coming to an end on September 15. He is an officer of IRS-Income-Tax cadre of 1984 batch and stayed in the post for almost five years, a record of sorts.

The power corridors are flooded with speculations and wild guesses as the Centre had committed to follow a timeline to pick Mishra’s successor. Informed sources say that two names have been short-listed by the government from a short-listed panel of 10 officers. They include Pravin Kumar (IRS IT: 1987), Member CBDT and Seemanchal Dash (IRS IT: 1988), formerly Principal Special Director in ED and Adviser to ED & IMF.

Other names heard in the corridors of power are Pankaj Kumar Mishra (IRS IT: 1989), Rashmi Shukla (IPS: 1988: MH) and Rahul Navin, Special Director in ED are also in the reckoning. It is learnt that the government wants to re-brand ED during the election year and would like a low-profile officer as the Opposition parties have been harping on ED's misuse. 

But the government is also keen that the new chief should be familiar with the working of taxation and related domain areas. A section vouches for the IRS officer as the next ED chief. as they have better knowledge of transaction trails and vast exposure to the PMLA framework. Though officers from other services like IAS, IPS have held this position in the past. Apparently, the New Delhi dispensation may surprise yet again on the name of Mishra’s successor.

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly on the Wall

Sunak drew a leaf out of Modi's Book

It seems Prime Minister Modi has finally got a match in England, if not in India. Guess who ! Its none other than the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who is proud to be a “practicing Hindu”, visits temples barefoot in simple attire leaving his security cover far behind and claims an Indian legacy by saying he is the son-in-law of India. Interestingly, he took his oath as a British MP in the name of Bhagwat Gita in 2015 and there is no controversy in England about his being a Hindu. Among the large galaxy of world leaders during the G20 Summit, the British PM was way ahead of all of them in terms of leaving his footprints behind. If Modi stole the thunder when he visited the UK for the first time as PM, his counterpart Sunak also earned laurels and left behind his own legacy.

A glance at the social media will show what a huge mark he has made. Though he did not address any gathering or seminar, he mingled with people at various places in Delhi during his stay. The couple's simplicity was remarkable. Sunak won the hearts of millions of environmentalists in India when he announced the largest chunk of $2 billion for the climate fund, more than what India and US had committed. The dinner for world leaders hosted by President Droupadi Murmu led to more photo worthy moments. Their visit to the Akshardham Temple in East Delhi on a rain drenched morning under a red umbrella and barefoot won the hearts and performing "aarti" together was all that PM Modi is known to be doing. The couple represented “a great middle-class success story in UK” and Sunak became the first PM of Indian heritage to visit the country which was a former British colony. Modi was looking for a trade deal with UP during his bilateral meeting with Sunak. But that may be later now.

Modi's session googly

The Modi government's decision to summon a special session of Parliament beginning September 18 has stumped INDIA, an alliance of 20-odd parties. Top leaders of INDIA are completely clueless about the agenda and launched a bitter attack on PM Modi for his autocratic style of functioning. Initially, they harped on Modi pushing the country into the “One Nation One Poll” by bringing a constitution amendment. They harped on the government forming a high-level committee under the chairmanship of former President Ramnath Kovind to give its recommendations. Interestingly, the committee has not held a single sitting so far and it became clear that this may not be on the plate for the September special session.

Then, the Opposition hit upon the idea of Modi's design of changing the name of the country from India to Bharat as the President Draupadi Murmu invited G20 guests over dinner as President of “Bharat.” But there was silence at the grave when several legal luminaries told the party leaders that using “Bharat” is perfectly legal if the invite is in Hindi. There is an explicit provision to use India or Bharat in the Constitution. They told the party that it should not fall into the trap of the BJP on the issue unless the government officially proposes to remove India completely from the Constitution. Since it will require a 2/3 majority in both houses of parliament, the government may not go in for such an amendment at all. PM Modi had other ideas in mind when the special session was conceived as there may be several resolutions on plate including that of successful completion of G20 and Modi emergence on the globe as “Vishwa Mitra” and the second resolution could be on the successful Moon mission Chandrayan-3. Having burnt their fingers, the Congress leaders declared that they wouldn't allow "Modi Chalisa" during the special session and may even boycott the proceedings.

Extending Term ?

Prime Minister Modi is against premature dissolution of either Lok Sabha or any state assembly. But he seems to be toying with the idea of extending the tenure of five state assemblies extending by another six months to May 2024 to coincide with the Lok Sabha polls. These states are Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram and Telangana. The states of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal and Sikkim are going to the polls in April 2024. This means nine states along with Lok Sabha may be held together. There is also a view that the two BJP-ruled states of Maharashtra and Haryana may be brought forward taking the tally to 11 states. For Jharkhand. The Assembly polls are due in October-2024 and the state is already facing tough times and can fall any day. But to extend the tenure of five state assemblies, PM Modi may have to invoke a political emergency in these states and doing so will be a tough political call. Will Modi buy the bait? unlikely. 

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Knives are out in BJP after Ghosi loss

Hugh command to send special team

Knives are out in the BJP over the humiliating defeat of party's candidate Dara Singh Chauhan from the Ghosi Assembly seat in UP in a bitter byelection last week. The party high command has decided to send a special team to Ghosi to find out reasons for the defeat by a margin of more than 42000 votes. Chauhan had quit the Samajwadi Party and Assembly seat which he had won by a margin of more than 22000 votes in 2022 and had had a one-to-one meeting with the Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

It has emerged that the BJP's local unit was against fielding Chauhan on the ground that he has been a party hopper; beginning his career with the Congress to BSP to SP and now the BJP. But the high command felt that a Ghosi win would pave the way for the disintegration of the SP before the Lok Sabha polls. The BSP had not fielded a candidate and the high command had also entered into an alliance with the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) leader Om Prakash Rajbhar hoping that Chauhan would get OBC votes.

Besides Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary, State BJP president, Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak and over 20 BJP ministers chipped in for campaigning. But nothing worked and now BJP leaders admit that Chauhan’s image of frequently changing parties and also being an “outsider” had hurt the party. Some of the senior ministers privately blamed Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who did not put his heart and soul into the campaign. But this was immediately countered by saying that the campaign strategy was monitored by the BJP organisational leadership and the CM did whatever he was told to do. 

In Lucknow, it is being dubbed as an indirect battle between Union home minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. The BJP candidate, Dara Singh Chauhan was personally picked up by the Union Home minister. Chauhan had even attacked Yogi Adityanath for not understanding the problems of backward classes when he left the BJP to join the Samajwadi Party before the 2022 Assembly polls. The high-level team is now being sent by the BJP leadership to assess the reasons and take preventive steps for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.