by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Big promotion for Fadnavis in offing
The search is quietly going on for a new member of BJP’s Parliamentary Board after M Venkiah Naidu was promoted as Vice President of India. The Chief Ministers of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh - Vasudhara Raje Scindia and Raman Singh are eyeing the post due to their seniority. But both are not in the list of favourites of Modi. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal who is also party treasurer, is also a contender for the coveted seat to rub shoulders with the big guys in the Board. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s name is also being mentioned. But getting a seat at the party’s Parliamentary Board is no joke. Even Manohar Parrikar grumbled for not being promoted though he was Goa CM several times and brought to Delhi as Defence Minister. The buzz word in the party is that Maharashtra Chief Minister Fadnavis may make it to the top slot. He is liked by the RSS, Modi and Amit Shah and rated high among the 13 CMs of the BJP. He is the only one to impress all by his non-controversial three years record in power.
"Mr Indispensable" Ajit Doval
All eyes are on S Jaishankar who is retiring as Foreign Secretary (FS) after three years in January next. There is a popular perception that its not Sushma Swaraj but Jaishankar who runs the show in the ministry. Jaishankar was made FS on the last day of his retirement in January 2015 after Modi fired serving FS Sujatha Singh unceremoniously. Jaishankar was given another extension for one year which will now end in January 2018. If the grapevine has it, senior IFS officer Vijay Gokhle will take over the reins as FS. The question is where will Jaishankar go after he demits office. Though he would love to be the National Security Adviser to the PM. But he knows that Ajit Doval is the real Mr Indispensable. Modi may get rid of anybody in the government but not Doval. It became clear recently when the search for Defence Minister began. Arun jaitley had suggested to the PM that Ajit Doval be appointed as Defence Minister. But the PM brushed aside the suggestion saying, “I cannot spare him.” It is not yet clear what role he will get after his retirement. May be, NITI Aayog which doesn’t have a diplomat.
Modi writing 2019 War script
PM Modi may be finding new ways to have “Congress Mukt Bharat” and accusing the Gandhis for the mess. But he is following every page of the script that Indira Gandhi wrote in the 70s. She fought for the poor and so is Modi as he claims. She even named the TATAs and Birlas for amassing wealth at the cost of the poor. Modi says the same but with a caveat; “It is my resolve to pull money out of the pocket of the rich and distribute amongst the poor.” This sentence of his speech at the national executive went unreported. He did not name who these rich people are. But he is desperately trying to associate with the poor and the down-trodden. He wants to change the BJP’s image that it’s the party of traders and middle-class. His raid-raj against the corrupt is aimed at sending the same signal. His slogan for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls is: Ye Imandari aur Beimani Ke beech ki Ladai Hai. Ye Garib aur Ameer Ki Ladai Hai. Ek Taraf Akela Modi Hai aur Doosri Taraf Saare Beimaan. Faisla Aapko Karna Hai…” The scrip is already written by Modi. He has simply drawn a leaf out of Indira Gandhi’s war against the syndicate and the Opposition parties who were perceived to be identified with the rich in 1971. Indira Gandhi won 352 seats. And how many seats Modi wants for BJP in 2019? 350 to be precise.
Gurumurthy finally declares war against Govt.
Finally, S Gurumurthy, RSS ideologue and Swadeshi Jagran Manch Chief has declared war against the Modi government. For the past couple of years it was blow hot and blow cold between him and the government. But Gurumurthy has come out in the open against the Modi government’s policies including post-demonetization actions, falling economic growthetc. While some say that his attack is directed against Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, others say that it’s a signal of growing gulf between the RSS and Modi. It was the same Gurumurthy who raised the banner of revolt against the Vajpayee government’s policy of disinvestment of PSUs which enriched big industrial houses. Finally, the RSS distanced from Vajpayee. The same is happening under Modi, say Swadesh Jagran Manch leaders. The first public spat will be in October at Ramlil grounds. You wait !
Guinness Book & Hooda
Steel Minister Birender Singh was heard saying: Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s name should be written in the Guinness Book of World Record. Why ? asked a camp follower. Pat came the reply: He is the only leader in the country who came out with full two pages advertisements in all leading Hindi newspapers in North India on the occasion of his 71st birthday. Hooda never did it when he was CM, Haryana for ten years. Birender Singh says Hooda deserves a place in the Guinness Book for this unique political adventure. Birender Singh was having a dig at Hooda who showed his might while Birender Singh is Man of Steel.
