Himachal confidential

Proxy power control
In the 2007 Assembly elections,parties did not trust many women candidates,but the byelections for Rohru and Jawali seats can see two women emerging as strong candidates. Pratibha Singh,former Lok Sabha member and wife of Union Minister for Steel Virbhadra Singh (Congress),and Suhdha Sushant,wife of MP Rajan Sushant (BJP),are geared up to stake claim for Rohru and Jawali tickets,respectively,vacated by their husbands. The talk of the town is that this might set a new example of proxy power control where husbands hold the real power and manage it with a remote control. Earlier,this phenomenon was visible in Panchayati Raj Institutions where more women have come forward due to reservation but the actual power rests with their husbands.

The next Sidhu?
The famous ‘Sidhuisms’ can now see some competition from a Himachal leader. Major Vijai Singh Mankotia has started coming up with one-liners that remind many of Navjot Singh Sidhu. In one of his latest media interactions,he said: “The previous Congress and the current BJP Governments have no karam (deeds),dharam (principles) and sharam (shame). They are like Santa Singh and Banta Singh,one and the same thing.” He also termed Virbhadra Singh as Fanne Khan,a colloquial term for a person who considers himself the ‘ultimate power’. “He considers himself as Fanne Khan,by sending out defamation notices to the media,politicians and even senior cops,” said Mankotia. This awaits a befitting reply from Virbhadra Singh,who is known for his choice of words during a verbal duel.

Balnatah’s last chance
Khusi Ram Balnatah,who has been unsuccessfully contesting against former chief minister Virbhadra Singh from Rohru for the last one and a half decade,has this time decided to opt for the technique that was adopted by Lok Sabha member from Shimla Virender Kashyap. The latter registered a historic win this year after losing all 11 elections that he had contested earlier,including six Lok Sabha polls.

It is learnt that Balnatah is preparing to send out an emotional plea to all the voters,saying this is the last time that he is seeking votes from them. The seat will be reserved henceforth according to the new delimitation guidelines,which leaves Balnatah with last chance to show his worth in his area.

Stopped short of blunder
Delivering a speech during the Y S Parmar Memorial Golf Tournament at Naldehra near Shimla,Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal stopped just short of making an announcement,even as the model code of conduct is in force before the byelection to Rohru and Jawali. Later,he was heard telling one of his friends that he was about to make an announcement when he spotted Manisha Nanda sitting close by — she was the chief electoral officer during the last Assembly elections and is now heading the tourism department — which reminded him of the code of conduct.