Playing safe

Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will address the delegates at Talkatora Stadium.

The Congress’s women’s wing is organising a meeting of its elected representatives from across the country on Wednesday to mark former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s birth anniversary. Both Congress president Sonia Gandhi and second in command Rahul Gandhi will address the delegates at Talkatora Stadium. It is learnt that efforts were made by the Mahila Congress to invite Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as well but the idea was shot down by 10, Janpath on fears that her presence could once again trigger speculation about her entry into politics. Only a few days ago, Priyanka had quashed all such rumours. While its attempt to have a photo-op of the first family would not materialise, the Mahila Congress is nonetheless happy to have ensured the first public event where Sonia and Rahul would be present together after the party’s Lok Sabha defeat.

THE RECEPTION

Home secretary Anil Goswami is hosting his son’s wedding reception at CRPF’s mess in south Delhi Wednesday. The wedding took place two days ago at the same venue where only select guests were invited. Among them was former Congress MP Matang Sinh who has been grilled by CBI in the Saradha chit fund scam. The reception is expected to be attended by many more guests including some from TV industry. Goswami’s son Bhanu Uday and his daughter-in-law are both television actors. While Uday featured in a recent Bollywood movie — Machli Jal ki Raani Hai — too, his wife has acted in a few daily soaps.

TEMPLE TALK

The VHP may have decided to keep the Ram temple out of its agenda for one year to give the Narendra Modi government time to concentrate on development and social welfare, but sadhus who attended its Golden Jubilee celebrations in Mumbai do not seem agreeable to the idea. Some speakers raised this matter at the function where RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat was also present. An octogenarian lamented that he would not be able to see the decades-long demand come to fruition within his lifetime while another wanted the government to start working on the temples in Mathura and Kashi as well. Bhagwat, however, categorically told the sages this was not the right time to trouble the government with the temple issue.

CALLING THE SHOTS

It seems Home Minister Rajnath Singh will have to give in to the PMO again over his choice of an officer, this time for an interlocutor for holding peace talks with Nagaland insurgent groups. Singh’s ministry had recommended the name of Ajit Lal, head of Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) who demitted office on July 31. The file was sent to the PMO but never came back. Meanwhile, reports started surfacing that the PMO had decided to appoint R N Ravi, former special director of Intelligence Bureau and a 1976 batch Kerala cadre officer for the post.

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