Cong’s reel politicking

Apparently, many of the stars gave the committee short shrift, making it clear that they were too busy to get involved in political mind games. But Reddy and gang remain hopeful. They’ve assured the High Command of success ‘‘very soon’’.

Oberoi scores a hat-trick

While the Congress is straining every possible resource to net film stars, the BJP is weaving clever illusions, courtesy Suresh Oberoi, now better known as actor Vivek Oberoi’s father. He joined the party for the third time this week. The first time was in 1995 when he was presented at the national plenary session in Mumbai as a great catch. Oberoi sat on the dais along with Advani and other BJP bigwigs.

Then, in 1999, at election time, he was suddenly produced at the party headquarters in Delhi with an announcement that he had ‘‘joined’’ the BJP. It’s election time again and Oberoi has been welcomed into the party once more. No-one can quite understand why he’s being made to join the BJP again and again, unless it’s to rattle the Congress.

A taste of the common

Sonia Gandhi had a taste of Delhi’s terrible traffic conditions when she went for the much talked about lunch at the farmhouse of the editor of a national weekly magazine last week. The SPG had been instructed not to inform the Home Ministry or the police about the invitation. Consequently, there were no security arrangements along the route. She is entitled to a pilot car and right of way so that there are no security mishaps.

That afternoon, she drove like the Capital’s hapless ordinary citizens. She stopped at red lights and her car had to weave its way past cows, cycles and two-wheelers in congested areas and narrow lanes along the way. It took her much longer than anticipated to reach the lunch venue.

The only explanation for this unusual behaviour from someone who’s otherwise anxious about her threat perception is that she didn’t want word to leak to the BJP about her outing that day. Her aides were worried that using the excuse of security, the Government would have got the police to stop her from attending what the Congress saw as a major media coup.

Meanwhile, the editor himself is kicked that he’s the only journalist in recent history to whose house a Gandhi has stooped to go.

Ticket for the other half

One family outfit Sonia Gandhi didn’t mention in her recent outburst defending the Congress party’s dynastic ethos was former union minister Ram Vilas Paswan’s Jana Shakti. In his negotiations with both the BJP and the Congress, he’s not only been bargaining for seats for himself and his brother in Bihar, he’s apparently demanded one for his wife, Reena, as well.

Things didn’t work out with the BJP but the Congress is believed to be toying with the idea of leaving the Ambala seat in Haryana for the lady. She hopes to fight as a Jan Shakti nominee supported by the Congress. Another wife is set to make her entry into politics.

Godman’s taxing problems

Controversial godman Chandraswami has surfaced after a long hibernation, now that he’s been acquitted in the Lakhubhai Pathak cheating case along with Narasimha Rao. He’s apparently doing the rounds to get his passport released from the Home Ministry, which had impounded on the court’s orders in the Lakhubhai case. He even paid a secret nocturnal visit to the residence of a senior BJP leader, pleading to be told what the RSS and the party had against him.

The problem is that although technically, he can make out a strong case to get his passport back after his acquittal, there are several income tax inquiries pending against him still. The Government will have to figure this one out.