Fly on the wall
Why S Jaishankar Is Flying High
It may sound strange, but it is true. Ever since Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister, the Ministry of External Affairs has occupied a somewhat higher pedestal than most other ministries. Modi has routinely held high-level review meetings with ministers and secretaries of various ministries, grilling them on performance, targets and timelines. The MEA, however, has largely remained outside this collective review arena.
This is not because foreign policy is any less important. Quite the contrary. It reflects the Prime Minister’s preference for maintaining a more direct and closely held oversight of external affairs.
Foreign policy is executed on a day-to-day basis by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and career diplomats, including Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. But Modi himself keeps a close watch through formal mechanisms as well as direct communication.
Those familiar with the functioning of the government say Modi and Jaishankar remain in frequent touch, often speaking several times a day on matters of immediate concern. The Foreign Secretary is also regularly brought into the loop.
The MEA does, of course, come under sharper scrutiny when issues involving infrastructure, connectivity and national security arise. Take Chabahar Port. While the Ports and Shipping Ministry handles the operational side, negotiations and strategic engagement with Iran inevitably bring the MEA into the picture.
Secondly, the MEA is a crucial component of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), chaired by Modi, which deals with major strategic, foreign-policy and national-security issues.
Jaishankar’s importance, therefore, goes beyond the conventional role of an External Affairs Minister. He is virtually a 24x7 minister, with one foot in Delhi and the other constantly on foreign soil.
A former diplomat, Jaishankar is tough, straight-talking and distinctly no-nonsense. He may have come from the diplomatic establishment, but he is hardly restrained when plain speaking is required. That combination of professional expertise, political confidence and the Prime Minister’s evident trust explains why S Jaishankar continues to fly high.
Amit Shah’s Big-Bang Return
Just
a few weeks ago, the political chatter was all about one question:
Where was Amit Shah? The Home Minister’s visible political activity
had seemingly gone quiet. If he was busy pulling strings behind the
scenes, few outside the inner circle appeared to know. But suddenly,
the shutters are up and Shah is everywhere — Delhi, Noida, UP,
Maharashtra, Punjab and all over the country. And he is not merely
attending routine government functions. Shah is increasingly
occupying the central political space.
His big-bang return came with his two-day Maharashtra visit last month, followed by a relentless round of public engagements. After Modi’s birthday celebrations in Vadnagar on September 17, Shah’s political footprint has only grown.
In Delhi, he inaugurated projects worth over ₹1,900 crore, including the Barapullah Road project linking eastern and southern Delhi with Noida. The Delhi government advertisement was quite revealing too. A few photographs showed Shah walking onto the newly opened road, waved to the crowds and soaked up the moment.
Noida followed. Shah inaugurated the Uttar Pradesh International Trade Show, praised Yogi Adityanath and confidently spoke of victory in the next election. This was particularly notable after weeks of speculation about Shah’s rumoured distance from UP and reports of friction with the Chief Minister.
Then came Punjab. On September 30, Shah landed in Jalandhar for a major BJP rally, with the party claiming a turnout of one lakh people. The Lovely Professional University controversy took some shine off the event, but Shah’s presence itself carried a message. Modi had visited the region only days earlier. Shah visited multiple states including Meghalaya, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh and the itinerary is full for the month.
Insiders say that the journey has just begun. Shah is not just back on the political stage but occupying the centre stage. Shah's hectic programs show that he is filling the void as the new BJP chief Nitin Nabin is unable to make an impact and the party is lagging behind.
Why is Gyanesh smiling !
A comprehensive but "confidential dossier" about Chief Election Commissioner Gynanesh Kumar suddenly appeared from nowhere before the Congress top brass meeting in the Capital. It gave details of how the Kerala cadre IAS bureaucrat was involved in corrupt deals in the state and how he rode to the top post of the CEC. The irony was the state was ruled either by the Congress or the Left parties. But to the surprise of many, the state Chief Minister V D Satheesan came prepared at the Congress Working Committee with a note on the stint of Gyanesh Kumar in the state. Satheesan reeled out a list of Kumar’s questionable actions. He also gave details of his activities when he was District Magistrate of his district Ernakulam 20 years ago. Eyebrows were raised with many wondering silently why the Congress governments in the state didn't act against him.
But who could have named A K Antony who was the unquestioned king of the state in Congress. Gyanesh Kumar was brought as Joint Secretary, handling areas like Naval Systems and defense production to the Centre between 2007 to 2012. Antony was Defence Minister and it is said that he brought Gyanesh Kumar at the Centre when he was facing rough weather in the state. Now Keralam Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala has ordered a vigilance department probe against Gyanesh Kumar over a road project in which the state had suffered a loss and a Malaysian contractor committed suicide in 2006. Why the state woke up after 20 years? Congress needs to answer and more so Rahul Gandhi's political Guru – A K Antony whose son is in the BJP now.
RBI's “Politically Exposed Person”
Politicians may command crowds, win elections and wield considerable influence. But when they walk into a bank, the Reserve Bank of India has a rather different lens: “Politically Exposed Person” (PEP).
The RBI says being politically exposed does not mean being financially suspect. But they cannot simply wave them through. Banks must take reasonable steps to establish their source of funds and wealth, obtain senior management approval before opening an account and subject it to enhanced, continuous monitoring. There is an interesting twist. If an ordinary customer suddenly becomes a PEP, the bank cannot pretend nothing has changed. And the rules do not stop at politicians themselves. Family members and close associates of PEPs are also covered under this provision.
Yet RBI has drawn a clear line: PEP classification is a risk-assessment tool, not a badge of suspicion. Enhanced due diligence is mandatory, but discrimination is not. The message to banks is simple: keep an extra eye on political power—but don’t treat power itself as a crime. Does this definition help contain mounting NPAs of banks!
Congress' UP Gamble
After nearly 20 years, the Congress is back to playing the same gamble; appointing a woman as its UP unit president after Rita Bahuguna Joshi's experiment miserably failed. Ms Bahuguna headed the UP unit between 2007-2012 and later joined the BJP after a brief stint with the SP. The Congress had also experimented with Sheila Dikshit briefly to woo Brahmins and women. The party is back with Aradhana Mishra Mona to woo the same constituency.
But those watching the developments in UP say that the move could make seat-sharing negotiations with the Samajwadi Party comparatively easier now. As long as Ajay Rai remained in charge, this appeared difficult. Rai is a street leader and had given Prime Minister Narendra Modi a tough fight in the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat in 2024.
Aradhana Mishra has been picked up as she is the daughter of senior party leader Pramod Tiwari and may make alliance with SP smoother. Even Rita Bahuguna Joshi was the daughter of late Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna and Sheila Dixit was the daughter-in-law of late Uma Shankar Dixit. Interestingly, Anuradha had met Akhilesh Yadav on August 26 along with her father before her being appointed as PCC Chief.
