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Delhi Confidential | Of mergers, takeovers & mysterious smiles: Brittas lightens all-party meet
A remark from CPI(M) MP John Brittas brought some laughter to the room.
John Brittas
Amid the ongoing political realignments, the atmosphere at the all-party meeting ahead of the Monsoon Session on Sunday was more sombre than usual. But a remark from CPI(M) MP John Brittas brought some laughter to the room. During his intervention, he took a swipe at the ruling dispensation, saying that even a “highly democratic” leader like Rajnath Singh was watching how corporate terms such as ‘acquisition’, ‘merger’ and ‘takeover’ have crept into the political discourse. Cautioning TDP’s Lavu Krishna and JDU’s Sanjay Singh, he said, “You must be vocal supporters of this government, but what BJP is doing is reducing your relevance… see the smile on Naddaji’s face.” As everyone laughed, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said that Nadda always carries a smile on his face. There was laughter all around when Brittas responded with another pointed one: “He has a special smile, but you have a mysterious smile always.”
Wardrobe Scramble
A day before his appointment as Delhi Police Commissioner was made public, 1994‑batch IPS officer Anurag Kumar, who had been with the IB on deputation since 2007, didn’t have a police uniform. Kumar rushed to a tailor famed for stitching uniforms for senior Delhi Police officers. The tailor delivered the uniform around 6 am, just hours before Kumar was to join the new office.
Formations For Parties
The use of the word “formations” by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju at Sunday’s all-party meeting was a topic of discussion among Opposition leaders. Rijiju is learnt to have told the gathering that 51 “political formations” were present at the meeting. While no one pointed it out at the meet, some Opposition MPs found it ‘unprecedented’. The best guess was that the presence of rebel TMC MPs who claimed to have “merged” with NCPI, which is registered but not a recognised political party, could be the reason behind the coining of the new term.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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