Dousing Bush fire

CPI(M) MP P Rajendran is quoted in reports of the event as criticising the ‘‘demeaning and childish behaviour of the MPs’’ and grumbling that ‘‘We still behave like slaves before imperialist forces’’.

Thanks to the Left intransigence, there is little chance of Bush addressing the MPs in Parliament, but the Government has an alternative plan up its sleeve. French President Jacques Chirac has been invited to speak to parliamentarians at Vigyan Bhawan later this month. This could be a rehearsal for a similar function for Bush.

Last word in opulence

When Clinton visited India in 2000 he stayed at the Chandragupta Maurya presidential suite at Delhi’s Maurya Sheraton Hotel. The suite was described as the last word in luxury. No longer. For King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, who recently visited Delhi, the ITC Welcome Group constructed an even bigger presidential suite whose grandeur puts the three existing presidential suites in the shade. Called the Grand Maurya presidential suite, it incorporates 13 hotel rooms and is furnished opulently in a contemporary India style. The flooring is of soft Greek Tasaus white marble and a glittering bathroom wall is studded with mother of pearl.

Hotel officials are secretive about the suite, since they are hoping that the hotel will be selected by the American advance party for George Bush’s stay in Delhi. After Clinton’s visit, the Maurya introduced a Chelsea vegetarian platter and a Clinton non-vegetarian special on its regular menu. If Bush does stay at the Maurya, possibly Texan tandoori chicken could feature on the menu in future.

Minority viewpoint

A new Bill to grant the Minorities Commission constitutional status is likely to be placed before Parliament in the coming session. The Bill is being drafted on the lines recommended by the parliamentary standing committee on social welfare. But it remains to be seen whether the Government will incorporate the committee’s suggestion that the chairman and vice-chairman be from a minority community and that representation from the communities be by rotation.

Of the eight minority commission chairpersons so far, six have been Muslims. The exceptions being the first chairperson, Minoo Masani, who was a Parsi, and the present incumbent, Tarlochan Singh, a Sikh (he retires on February 10). However, the NDA was criticised by some in the UPA for appointing a Sikh since they felt that the Minorities Commission chairman should always be chosen from the largest minority.

Law unto themselves

A sizeable number of beneficiaries of the latest cabinet reshuffle happen to be lawyers. Kapil Sibal has been elevated to cabinet minister status. Pawan Kumar Bansal, Anand Sharma, Ashwini Kumar and A R Antulay have all been inducted as ministers. P Chidambaram’s position within the party has been strengthened, H R Bhardwaj remains unscathed despite, or because of, the unfreezing of the Quattrocchi account.

During the Volcker scandal lawyers were at the forefront in the party’s damage-control exercise. Sibal, Chidambaram and Bansal were frequently summoned to 10 Janpath for advice. Bansal, appointed MoS in the Finance Ministry, had prepared a three-page note for Sonia Gandhi which suggested sending a legal notice to the United Nations Secretary General and asking for an apology for naming the Congress party as a beneficiary. Bansal was one of those who defended the government on Volcker in the Lok Sabha.

Incidentally, A R Antulay also has a Volcker connection of sorts. He was part of the Natwar Singh delegation which visited Iraq during the crucial period. After the Volcker revelations, when journalists questioned him on this, he was not very forthcoming.

Limitation period

Although delimitation of assembly constituencies was completed in Kerala last October and the process is almost complete in West Bengal, there is little hope of changes in the electoral map being implemented before the assembly elections later this year. The Government has been dragging its feet about sending the proclamation for delimitation to the President. It takes a month after the President has signed the order for it to come into effect.

Incidentally, the delimitation of West Bengal’s assembly constituencies will probably benefit the Communists and harm the anti-Left parties. In the new electoral map, Kolkata, traditionally a non-Communist stronghold, will have fewer constituencies. And on the basis of population the border district of 24 Parganas, with migrants from Bangladesh, will get additional representation in the state assembly.

A matter of conveniences

The three women joint secretaries in the Rural Development Ministry have a problem. There is no separate toilet for them in their office at Sardar Patel Bhawan and they are unwilling to use the common women’s toilet on the floor because of the stench and mess. The only solution is to use the attached toilet of the additional secretary in the department. But the problem is that he is located in the Bhawan’s other wing and the women first have to phone him up and find out if the officer is free and could they go to the toilet. All in all, a complicated exercise for such a basic necessity.