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Journalism of Courage
Cane dept in a fix
The suspension of 15 officers for Noida hotel plot allotment scam during the Mulayam Singh Yadav regime has shaken the bureaucracy. It is being argued that the decision to allot the plots was taken at the highest level and the officers only implemented the directives. Also,if the officers had really done anything wrong,then why some others involved in the process have not been touched? The government action has put officers of the Cane department in a quandary. The department is in the middle of disinvesting of 24 cooperative and 11 public sector sugar mills. In the case of cooperative mills,the process is at an advanced stage. The valuers have submitted their reports and the consultants have examined them. Now,the department,along with officials of the federation of cooperative sugar factories,has to submit a report on the reserve price of each mill. It will be placed before the Cabinet for its approval. The financial bids for the cooperative mills are to be opened on August 30. The officers are under pressure to keep the reserve price at the lowest possible. But they are wary of reducing it below the valuers assessment. Argued one officer: If the government can penalise Noida officers after three years allegedly for causing a loss of over Rs 4,000 crore to the exchequer,what is the guarantee that the next government will not haul us up for undervaluation of sugar mills?
SP in Congress corner
The SPs predicament these days reminds one of a film title Sleeping with the Enemy. For months,SP leaders had been lashing out at the Congress. At the partys Agra convention,general secretary Amar Singh,speaking by video-conferencing from Singapore,likened the Congress to a drone or a submarine which remains undetected until it delivers a deadly punch,taking its victim by surprise. Yet,the SP decided to defer a decision on withdrawal of support to the Congress-led UPA government by six months. But the Congress hasnt so much as said thank you. In fact,it hasnt even taken note of SPs benign gesture. In fact,Congress leaders point out that they had never asked for SP support after the Lok Sabha elections. Yes,the party wanted SP support for the trust vote after the Leftists withdrew support to the Manmohan Singh government in July 2008. But in the bargain,the SP wanted a right to dictate to the government and the Congress. Since then,much water flown down the Gomti barrage,they say.
The results of the recent Assembly byelections have punctured the Congress balloon. After its good show in the Lok Sabha elections,the party had assumed that it had found its way back into the peoples hearts in UP. Many partymen even sounded arrogant. For the last two months,they have been talking of short-term plans for winning the byelections and long-term plans for 2012 polls. On the eve of the bypolls,they claimed that they would win at least two of the four seats Moradabad and Malihabad. The election results showed that this was tall talk. Party chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi has claimed that the party may have lost,but its vote share has increased. But if the partys short-term plans have gone kaput,it had better take a hard look at its long-term plan for Mission 2012 as well.
BJPs consolation prize
For the BJP,it seems there is no end to bad news. In Shimla,the meeting of the BJP top brass that was supposed to chart out a path for the partys resurrection,got derailed by the controversy over Jaswant Singhs book and expulsion. In UP,the party not only failed to retain the Moradabad seat in the byelections,but made no impact in the other constituencies. As ususal,the party spokesman blamed its defeat on the misuse of official machinery by the Mayawati government. Another leader said,Look at the positive side. Our ally Rashtriya Lok Dal has won one seat. Some consolation!
In Syeds memory
As a local court convicted the murderer of Syed Modi after 21 years last week,old-timers recalled the eight-time national badminton champion whose bright career was brutally cut short at a young age. Honorary secretary of UP Badminton Association Vijai Sinha said: If anybody could fill in the gap which existed between Prakash Padukone and Pullela Gopichand eras,it was Syed Modi. He was such a humble person,and was always ready to help younger players.
The UPBA organises the Syed Modi Memorial International Tournament in his memory. This year,the tournament has got a grand prix status. The association plans to put up a huge portrait of Modi at the newly-constructed UPBA hall at Gomti Nagar.
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