| Published on 29-10-2008 In General |
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Written by
Insider |
Irritating Bridges
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Congress president Sonia Gandhi has received a communication from All India Muslim Personal Law Board Maulana Rabey Nadwi expressing concern over growing anxiety among the Muslim community following Jamia Nagar encounter. The apolitical head of apex body of Muslims in India has urged Sonia to ensure that all those involved in heinous crime like terror are punished severely but at the same time, protect innocents from getting caught in the web. Sonia's emissary reportedly placed a request for a meeting as Nadwi hails from her parliamentary constituency Rai Bareli. Even as these communications were taking place, Mulayam Singh Yadav and his deputy Amar Singh got wind of it. The duo quickly called on Nadwi promising to address all issues that the AIMPLB chief wanted to take it up with Sonia and Manmohan Singh regime. Last heard nobody in the Congress was happy to see SP's eagerness to lessen Sonia's burden on an issue that is directly related to minorities.
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No free—lunches on mobiles!
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Telemarketing companies have found another way to beat the barrier on unwanted calls. They have begun offering free SMS and information alert which comes laced with the commercial advertisement. Recently a message from a union minister of state holding charge of two portfolios extending pre-Diwali meal invite for scribes had an add-on. It expounded the virtues of motivational coaching classes. The minister said to have availed company's services as it promised to extend his invite free of charge.
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Keep him away, please!
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Congress leaders from six election-ruled states of Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Mizoram have one request to Sonia Gandhi. They do not want country's home minister campaigning for the party. The "Do not Send Shivraj Patil for Campaigning" message is doing hectic rounds in Congress circles. While Patil is tight-lipped about it, his close associates feel it is part of a well-orchestrated campaign against the otherwise sober and well-dressed home minister.
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Lalu's puzzling action
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Did union railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav shoot down a plan to hold Railways Recruitment Board examinations outside Mumbai? In Rail Bhawan, otherwise tightlipped officials are indicating that twice proposals were sent but on both occasions, it was shot down by the minister. The question is then why did Lalu insist on many north Indian boys traveling all the way to Mumbai when examinations could be spread all over the country?
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Raj divides Govt. too
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Raj Thackeray's "freedom" has sharply divided Congress leaders and its allies. In union cabinet, Sharad Pawar, Shivraj Patil and others feel Raj has been given larger-than-life image which will prove costly for the democratic alliance in next year's assembly polls. In Mumbai too, chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh is facing a revolt of sorts. Many of his colleagues have broken all norms of collective government responsibility. For instance, state public works minister Chhagan Bhujbal is said to have asked Deshmukh to bring up with the union railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav the issue of recruitment ads not being printed in Marathi newspapers. This is exactly what Thackeray has been saying and though there is evidence that the ads did appear in the local media, the claim has become a kind of truism. Deshmukh's baiter Narayan Rane was heard arguing that Thackeray was fighting for the right cause and this was not the time to bring about a law which would make destroyers of public property pay for their actions.
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Prasar Bharti's haven
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A number of senior Prasar Bharti officials hail from Madhya Pradesh including its chairman Arun Bhatnagar and member Dr. Sunil Kapoor. Some top level posts in Doordarshan and All India Radio are being eyed by bureaucrats from the state. Moreover, some of these functionaries spend long spells in Bhopal. This has led to a suggestion if it would be better idea to shift Prasar Bharti to Bhopal so that those at the helm of affairs get more time to attend to work?
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"Divine interventions"
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Uma Bharti insists that she is a changed person but those in the know refuse to believe that firebrand Sadhvi has mended her ways. They are citing the latest example of how Uma has scant regard for rules and norms that should be on top of priority for a public figure interested in holding high offices. The Chennai bound Tamil Nadu Express had an unscheduled halt at Vidisha railway station in Madhya Pradesh due to chain pulling as the station is not a scheduled stoppage. Hundreds of passengers saw Uma getting off the train with scores of security-men in tow. Uma's supporters insist that it was a mere "coincidence" that chain-pulling took place at a place where Uma was scheduled to hold a rally two hours later. The coincidence saved the Sadhvi from traveling another forty kilometers to Bhopal and then returning back to Vidisha by road. We say it was one of the many divine interventions that are part of life of a person who claims to have taken sanyas.
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Untimely exuberance
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Anand hi Anand (happiness all over). Union minister of state for external affairs Anand Sharma is a happy man these days. The deputy foreign minister is happy with the smooth passage of n-deal and Manmohan Singh's subsequent move to grant him temporary charge of information and broadcasting ministry portfolio in place of an ailing Priyaranjan Dasmunshi is an add-on. The minister is busy hosting pre-Diwali meal and telling everyone how external affairs and I & B can effectively project the good work that Manmohan regime is doing to boost Congress prospects in the coming assembly polls. But a section of the party is tad disappointed pointing at Dasmunshi's critical health. The old-fashioned school feels the minister should have waited a more appropriate time and even avoided calling up scribes informing them about his "new" portfolio in view of the prevailing circumstances.
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Jogi setting inconvenient precedents
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Ajit Jogi is keen to contest assembly polls from Marwahi, Chattisgarh but other bigwigs ranging from Motilal Vora, Vidya Charan Shukla, Charandas Mahant and Mahendra Karma are dead opposed to it. They argue that if Jogi contests, the issue of chief minister will be deemed to be settled leaving them nowhere. Congress president Sonia Gandhi is puzzled why a party leader's desire to go to 'peoples' court' is being opposed? But she should look at Madhya Pradesh to get an answer. Almost all of them who matter and aspire to become next chief minister namely Digvijay Singh, Kamal Nath, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Suresh Pachauri, are unwilling to contest unless they are named as chief ministerial candidate. Jogi, it seems is creating a wrong precedence.
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Fag-gy affair this!
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Heard in Nirman Bhawan which houses the union health ministry in the national capital: Is union health minister Anbumani Ramadoss pro-fags or anti fags? He is for legalizing homosexuality but against smoking so how does one describe minister Ramadoss, ask officials in the ministry. |
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