Delhi Confidential: Prakash Javadekar is on a mission to ‘break the untouchability’

Senior BJP leader Prakash Javadekar,, who makes frequent visits to Kerala, has been contacting celebrities belonging to Muslim and Christian communities asking for a meeting.

Prakash Javadekar

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Reaching out: With the BJP adopting a three-pronged strategy to expand its foothold in Kerala, former Union minister and senior party leader Prakash Javadekar has been on a new mission. Leaders from both the party and its ideological parent RSS have been making it a point to show up at every possible platform of the Christians and Muslims to what they say “break the untouchability”.

Javadekar, who makes frequent visits to the southern state, has been contacting celebrities belonging to Muslim and Christian communities asking for a meeting. The party feels even the pictures of a BJP leader meeting them at their residences or offices would not only help to break the ice with the minorities but also could make the majority Hindus feel that they are making genuine efforts to take everyone along. However, not everyone appears to be enthusiastic about the meetings.

Court chat: The hearing on the Centre versus Delhi dispute witnessed some interesting exchanges between the judges and counsel about the advantages of going paperless and the nostalgia of writing. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta jovially said it was Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud who was behind him going paperless. The CJI, who was heading the bench, responded it was Covid which made all follow such a path.

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Senior Advocate A M Singhvi said the feeling of writing with big-nib pens is special. Both Singhvi and Tushar are connoisseurs of fountain pens. As the discussion veered to the ink in the pens, the CJI said there was a learned counsel in Mumbai who used Burgundy colour ink by mixing black and red.

Joining in the discussion, Justice M R Shah remarked that he had said at a conference that so far as use of technology is concerned, CJI Chandrachud is his mentor. “First of all he forced me. Then he taught me,” said Justice Shah.

The CJI replied, “But he (Jusice Shah) had an open mind.” The discussion concluded with Justice Shah saying that the use of technology was one of the positives of the pandemic. Mehta said that nowadays most senior counsel have started doing conferences virtually.

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