Securing Sahyadri

During the proceedings of a suo motu PIL initiated by the Bombay High Court against the pathetic condition of city roads,lawyer V P Patil,who had intervened in the case,passionately described the plight of Mumbaikars. “The BMC’s plan only looks good on paper. In reality,no work is done. I have already spent Rs 75,000 on fixing two tyres of my car that were punctured because of potholes that remain unfilled. They should be called heritage potholes now,” Patil said angrily,leaving the courtroom in splits.

Not so filmy

It is no secret that Bollywood has hardly been kind with its portrayal of politicians. A Cabinet minister had a first-hand experience when his wife refused to accompany him to a film based on recent political developments in the country. With the trailers explicitly stating the director’s view on who is to be blamed for the mess in the country,the minister had a tough time requesting his wife to accompany him to watch the film. “She was saying that she did not want to be seen with a politician by people who would watch the film. This is how films portray us. Even our family members are not keen on being associated with us,” the minister said.

All in the game

Since he took charge a year ago,the subordinates of a Deputy Commissioner of the Mumbai Police Crime Branch dread being summoned into his cabin every day. Recently,the DCP was explaining to an inspector the need to personally meet a senior Crime Branch officer to sort out an issue,instead of sending a junior to do so. Instead of simply stating his instructions clearly,the DCP chose to demonstrate his point over the next ten minutes over a game of Chinese Whispers,with five other officers also present in his cabin. Even as the inspector looked on with increasing exasperation,the DCP looked like he was enjoying himself.

Moving South

Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray has directed party leaders to start operating from Shivalaya at Nariman Point to divert the crowd from Shiv Sena Bhawan at Dadar. Thackeray,who regularly visits Sena Bhawan,noticed that the place was getting overcrowded as all the party leaders operate from the same head office. To decongest the Sena Bhawan and ensure more accessibility to people from different walks of life,including the media,he has asked senior leaders to spend two days at Shivalaya. The Nariman Point office of Sena,although completely revamped,has been lying deserted for the past two months.