Fly on the wall
How Amit Shah's Pep Talk did wonders
It is unbelievable but true, say BJP insiders. An extremely upset Union Home Minister Amit Shah virtually summoned Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan. Chirag, president of the Lok Janshakti Party (RV) along with his party Mps at his 6 Krishna Menon Marg residence. Apparently, Shah took the step in the wake of internal discussions in the core group. The BJP leadership was upset with Chirag over some of his public statements. Chirag Paswan publicly opposed the Waqf Bill and demanded the same be sent to the committee. He also sought rolling back of Lateral Entry route for recruitments in the government and threw his weight behind Caste Census. He supported a Bharat Bandh against the Supreme Court’s decision to allow sub-classification in reservation for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes – the only party in the ruling alliance to do so. As if this was not enough, he desired to contest the Jharkhand Assembly elections on its own if there was no consensus over seat sharing in the NDA.
The BJP leadership had already sent a message to Chirag Paswan when Amit Shah met his estranged uncle Pashupati Paras on August 26. The BJP had dumped Pashupati Paras in the Lok Sabha polls and decided to go with Chirag Paswan and he won five seats. On August 30, Chirag Paswan reached Amit Shah's residence along with his three other Lok Sabha Mps. The Mps sat outside while Chirag was called in. It was a different kind of experience for Chirag where he got a virtual dressing down. The sum and substance of pep talk was that he is free to quit the NDA but must remember that none of his Mps will go with him. What Chirag told the PTI later in an exclusive interview the same day was complete somersault. He went to the extent of saying that he was willing to contest the upcoming Bihar assembly polls as an NDA partner "if the BJP so desires."
Rahul's googly Stumped party men
It is a do or die battle for the Congress leadership in Haryana as they have been cooling their heels in the Opposition for the past ten years as BJP formed the government for two consecutive terms. The Congress leadership is upbeat this time and the BJP is facing huge anti-incumbency, virtual revolt and unable to even put its own house in order. When the issue of distribution of tickets came to the core committee, Rahul Gandhi indicated that a few seats out of 90 should be set aside for the AAP and the Samajwadi Party. Even senior leaders of the party were shocked as none of them had any pockets of influence. They said giving Kurukshetra Lok Sabha seat to the AAP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls did not yield any positive result and the BJP won. The Congress won five Lok Sabha seats rejuvenating the cadre and wanting to go for the kill in the Assembly polls.
But Rahul Gandhi had other plans. He said, “I am not the Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha. I am the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) and representing the entire Opposition including those in the INDIA Bloc or outside. We have to accommodate them if we want to defeat the BJP in the country.” Though the alliance with the AAP has not succeeded so far, the SP may still be in the fray with some understanding. But Rahul Gandhi certainly earned browny points with friendly parties and stumped his own party men.
Secret abode of Sheikh Hasina !
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to fly out of her country last month amid massive protests and mounting deaths in the violence. She made an unscheduled landing in India for a short while along with her sister. But it has now turned out to be a long haul as her plans to stay in the United Kingdom have run into rough weather.
Now pressure is mounting from the new Bangladesh government to send her back to face criminal cases against her. India and Bangladesh have an extradition treaty. The new Prime Minister of Bangladesh has asked her to stop talking if she wants to live in peace.
The last time a troubled Hasina sought refuge in India was after the massacre of her family, including her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in 1975. Hasina took refuge in India along with her husband, children, and sister. They lived in Delhi's Pandara Road under an assumed identity for six years, from 1975 to 1981. But this time, she was holed up initially at the Ghaziabad's Hindon air base guest house. No one has a clue as of now where she is residing in Delhi. The little bird learns that she is not living in any government bungalow this time but in a private bungalow in the Lutyens' Delhi. Strict secrecy is maintained due to threat to her life under the changed circumstances.
RSS affiliates air grievances
Even as the RSS and BJP are sorting out their coordination issues, its many affiliates also flagged their grievances to BJP Chief J P Nadda who is Union Health Minister and Leader in Rajya Sabha. Nadda attended the three-day meet of the RSS at Palakkad in Kerala last month end. These affiliates met Nadda separately and complained that they are not given appointments in time by the ministries though things have improved lately. These affiliates work in various fields and need active support of the government to serve the people in far flung and remote areas too. It must be to the credit of Nadda that he listened to each one of them with patience and promised to revert back to them and solve their problems.
