A changed manBJP president Khimi Ram has started to show signs of big change in his attitude ever since he was re-elected for the second term to lead the party in the state. The leader who remained inaccessible throughout his last term not only responds to all calls and makes prompt reactions over any new development these days,but also makes it a point to call back in case he misses any call on his mobile phone. Many in the party feel that this is a sea change. During uneasy situations for the party earlier,the leader would switch off his phone and disconnect from everyone,they claim. Doctor courageousWhen two leopards escaped from the rescue centre at Tutikandi in Shimla,veterinary doctor Sandeep Rattan showed exemplary courage in facing one of the animals to prevent itfrom creating dangerous situation in the nearby Bal Ashram for underprivileged children. He was severely injured,along with four other employees of the wildlife department. When people rushed to hospital to meet him,they found him standing outside the casualty section,as if nothing had happened. As doctors dressed his wounds,Dr Rattan said: When I rushed out of the house on getting a call that two leopards had escaped,I had a hunch of something bizarre in the offing. I pulled out a thick quilted jacket from the piles of winter clothes already stacked away for the next season. And the jacket saved damage to my vital organs. Going soft on rivalsAs the Congress prepares to take on the BJP during the Vidhan Sabha Session over the issue of CD exposé,the stand taken by the party has attracted criticism from many corners. Earlier,the Congress had said if the BJP government failed to take the CD case to a conclusive end through an inquiry,it would stage fierce agitation. Now,the party has switched to a softer stand. It says (as said by party president Kaul Singh recently) if the cases registered against the Congress workers for burning effigies of Virender Kashyap,who figures in a video CD that purportedly showing him accepting money for certain work,are not taken back,the party will launch a statewide stir. In the same breath,the Congress has ridiculed the BJP government for diluting the CID inquiry by not going into the substance of the CDs (audio and video) but only trying to find out whether they are fabricated or not.
