Fly on the Wall - Why Blame Rahul Gandhi

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Why Blame Rahul!

Why Blame Rahul Gandhi for his usual year-end sojourn in Italy abandoning the Foundation Day function of his party. There is no denial that he pushes off on vacation many times during the year and that has been his routine ever since he stepped into politics since 2004. But why blame him! He doesn't even hold any office in the party. Isn't it? Even Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav left for London with his family. As if this is not enough, another farmer leader and Haryana’s Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala is holidaying in the Rann of Kutch. Want to know where Bihar’s Tejashwi Yadav goes for holidaying? Delhi is his destination and he doesn’t meet anybody here. He is not even seen with the agitating farmers or sending a contingent from Bihar either. Young ministers belonging to the BJP may be sulking as Modi is keeping a close watch on them and a couple of them have paid the price too in the past. But other parties have no such problem.

A Saffron Flag in Srinagar, finally

BJP may have won three Councilors out of the 140 seats in the District Development Council (DDC) polls in the Valley and 72 of the 140 in the Jammu region. Of the three, it won just one in the Srinagar rural DDC. But it is trying hard to capture it by engineering a majority. A couple of Councilors belonging to the National Conference and PDP have already switched sides to the Apni Party of Altaf Bukhari, a local businessman & ex-minister in the PDP-BJP government who floated his own party after the abrogation of Article 370. The BJP is also wooing 4 Independents as the PDP, NC & Apni Party won three seats each. Nobody has a majority. The BJP’s top leadership is working overtime to capture the Srinagar DDC as it will be a great day in the history to have BJP-Apni Party DDC in the heart of the Valley.

The BJP has perfected the art of converting a minority into the majority in many states and this process will now continue in the Valley too. Interestingly, the BJP recently captured the Srinagar Municipal Corporation indirectly by engineering defection of Junaid Azim Mattoo to the Apni Party. Junaid Azim Mattoo was part of Sajad Lone-led People's Conference (PC). Later, he quit the PC in 2013 to join the National Conference and after winning the polls, switched to the Apni Party. Altaf Bukhari and Junaid Mattoo have declared their Endeavour to make Srinagar a world class city. If this alliance works, the saffron flag may fly in Srinagar rural while Srinagar city is already under control of a friendly party of the BJP.

Will Modi Blink ?

In his first term Modi tried to tinker with the Land Acquisition law. But the first Minister for Rural Development, Gopinath Munde, didn’t agree. Even his successor Nitin Gadkari couldn’t deliver what Modi desired. Finally, Modi brought in Chaudhary Birender Singh who too failed. The PM was persuaded to bring back the UPA government’s Land Acquisition law and Modi had to swallow the bitter pill. Now six year into the job, Modi is facing another Waterloo and it is not the creation of the Opposition nor gifted in his lap by Rahul Gandhi. Riding on the massive mandate of 2019, he pushed these Agri reforms. He may still succeed. But the situation looks grim and he doesn’t have too much time in his hand either. Modi's other problem is that he doesn't trust anybody and doesn't share what’s cooking in his mind. Insiders in the government say that he has been advised by certain well meaning people to allow the states to do whatever they want to do with these three Acts. Even the Supreme Court had suggested deferment of these Acts and start negotiations. A negotiated settlement before the Republic Day and Parliament session is a better option in any case. Modi had certainly not bargained for this.

No News is good news

For All India Radio, the agitation of farmers on Delhi borders is no news. Listen to the prime time news bulletins of AIR in the evening slot at 8.30 pm. It seems the agitation doesn’t exist. The entire bulletin is full of government handouts and news sent from states. Why so? The AIR has stopped taking the news service of PTI, UNI, ANI and other agencies. Whatever news is sent by its correspondents from across the world is broadcast.

PDP MPs to face Ethics Committee Music

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

PDP MPs to face Ethics Committee Music 

Face action for tearing Constitution in RS

Harish Gupta

New Delhi, Aug 23

The two PDP MPs who made national headlines by tearing a copy of the Constitution inside the Rajya Sabha chamber earlier this month, to face music now.

Instead of taking action against their behaviour in the House in full view himself, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has decided to send the case to Ethics Committee of Parliament.

Though the House has the power to expel them instantly through a resolution. But it was decided by the Chairman that their conduct be looked into by the Ethics Committee.

Senior BJP leader Dr Vinay Sahastrabuddhe is the Chairman of the Ethics Committee. Highly placed sources said here today that before going on a foreign visit, the Chairman sent the case to the Ethics Committee.

The two PDP MPs, Nazir Ahmad Laway and Mir Mohd Fayaz, tore the pages of the Constitution and their clothes in the Rajya Sabha when Union Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the two bills relating to J&K on August 5. Nazir Ahmad Laway was told not to do so but he did not listen and kept on tearing pages after pages of the constitution. The other MP Fayaz Ahmad Mir tore his Kurta.

Since the Rajya Sabha adjourned two days later, a disciplinary action couldn't be taken then except for that they were suspended immediately from the house until August 7.

In the meanwhile, the PDP MPs were asked by their party chief Mehbooba Mufti to resign in protest against the Centre move on J&K. The two have been staying put in Delhi too, citing travel restrictions to Srinagar. 

However, they have not resigned from Parliament as directed by Mufti as she had been put under house arrest along with several other politicians in the state. Laway and Mir said they had not resigned because they “want to verify” the “veracity of media reports” about Mufti seeking their resignations. One of them also said some other MPs told them that “resignation will not serve any purpose.”

Interestingly, these two MPs did not vote against the Triple Talaq Bill and violated the party whip. But before Mehbooba could act against them, the J&K bills came and utter confusion prevailed.

Ends

Fly on the Wall : Bitter feud bring CBI to a grinding halt

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Fly on the Wall : 

Bitter feud bring CBI to a grinding halt

CBI director Alok Verma may have just four months to go before he demit office on December 1. But not a day passes when he is not involved in a bitter battle with his own deputy Rakesh Asthana. The latest saga began when Verma ordered on the file that statements of all the persons named in the diaries be recorded. In a written note issued to the Special Unit in the CBI, Verma directed that the diaries recovered from the premises of the promoters of Gujrat-based Sterling Biotech company offices be recorded without further delay. Several top politicians, bureaucrats and police officers have been named in the diaries recovered by the Income-tax department in 2011 which have now been handed over to the CBI for criminal investigation. The diaries had names and monies paid to those named. But Verma's target seems to be Asthana who was Police Commissioner of Surat whose name figured in the diaries as well. It is an irony that Verma was brought as CBI chief by the Modi dispensation in December 2016 while Asthana, a Gujarat-cadre IPS officer, is believed to be close to the PM and BJP president Amit Shah. No case has been registered against Asthana, the CBI director wants to formally record his statement in connection with the probe. This annoyed Asthana so much that he knocked at the door of the PMO alleging vindictive attitude of his superior. Verma also crossed swords with the Chief Vigilance Commissioner K V Chaudhary saying that Asthana had no mandate to represent the agency in his absence and should not be "consulted for inducting officers into the agency. Obviously, Verma was peeved that his plans to bring two officers of his choice in the CBI were thwarted by CVC. Verma wanted to bring Rajiv Krishna and R P Upadhyay into the CBI as additional directors. Both are considered close to Verma. But Asthana torpedoed Verma's plans. The last word on Verma-Asthana feud is yet to be written.

Adhia shows who is the Boss !

If CBI Chief Alok Verma is fighting with his Number 2 in the agency, Enforcement Director Karnal Singh has chosen to lock horns with Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, Finance Secretary. While the government was keen that he send Rajeshwar Singh, an ED officer packing, Karnal Singh defied and retained him. But in a bizarre situation Adhia showed who is the real boss. Karnal Singh has lost the latest round with Adhia on the continuation of controversial officer who was handling sensitive cases. Adhia decided to take the command in his own hands and issued a written order sending Rajeshwar Singh on forced leave. The argument goes that Karnal Singh is not the administrative head when it comes to handling of the officers of the ACC level. Rajeshwar Singh investigated many key cases including Aircel-Maxis and others and the government found that all is not well. But Karnal Singh who was hand-picked by the Modi dispensation took a different line. With Karnal Singh due to retire in October, the government will now have the opportunity to anoint a trusted officer of its choice. It is heard in the corridors of powers that he will have the ears of the Almighty.

The games TDP,  PDP play

Two key allies of the BJP may have quit the Modi government and singing a different tune. In the case of Jammu & Kashmir, it was the BJP which deserted the Mufti government one fine morning and Governor’s rule was imposed. But neither the BJP speaking against the PDP and nor the PDP speaking personally against Modi. If insiders are to be believed, the divorce took place as both were losing their respective vote bank and decided to call it a day. May be after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, they may do business again. The National Conference led by Dr Farooq Abdullah has also sent clear signals that he is not averse to do business with Modi. It was largely because of this very reason that the PDP is abstaining in the Rajya Sabha whenever voting takes place. Same is the case with Andhra Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu who felt that he is losing ground to YSR-Congress for his failure to get “special status” for his state from the NDA. In the competitive politics of Andhra Pradesh, the TDP is left with no option but to part company with the BJP.  The BJP had also developed a feeling that it is not growing in the state. But the BJP is not poaching on the TDP MLAs in Andhra. The BJP is targeting the “corrupt Congress and YSR-Congress leadership”. The whisper in the corridors of power is that TDP will do business again with the BJP after the 2019 polls.  After all, Chandrababu Naidu wants “special status” for Andhra and has no Delhi Dreams like many other chief ministers.

As Sonia frail, Priyanka gives the helping hand

As the health of Sonia Gandhi not in good shape and Congress president Rahul Gandhi trying to cope with the massive pressure of work, young party managers are a worried lot. Though Rahul’s unofficial political secretary and former IAS K Raju is the key man in the system, things have yet to take shape. The loss of weight forced Sonia Gandhi even to abandon her planned trip to Red Fort on the Independence Day. The doctors advised against her visiting the hot & humid weather conditions as she is now weighted around 45 kg only. Though she did walk an extra mile to raise slogans along with the MP s in Parliament on August 10 morning on the Rafale issue, she was looking so frail and weak, the SPG commandoes had a tough time to handle the situation. She went there as Rahul Gandhi had left for Jaipur early morning leaving Sonia Gandhi to cheer up the party MP s. This has given room for intense speculation in the party for a greater role for Priyanka Gandhi. In any case, this being the election year and with Rahul Gandhi travelling all over the country, Priyanka has to focus on UP where the party is pitted against formidable BJP. Priyanka may not have held a position in the party but her writ runs, say insiders. Her official entry into direct political role is just a matter of time as she attended the funeral of M Karunanidhi. In an unprecedented move she also decided to address ladies of an  Entrepreneur's Organization in Mumbai which was a closed-door affair. But she stole the thunder with her highly emotional speech and ladies were seen weeping. It was first time the mighty club of Mumbai realized the oratory skills of Priyanka. In case the party decides to give her a direct role and she herself chooses to emerge from the shadows, prospects of Congress will certainly brighten.