Fly on the wall

The result: The Sports channel alone will make a profit of Rs 80 crore a year for the next five years. This will also cover the cost of the 24-hour News channel also.

When Mahajan bid for the cricket rights for Rs 230 crore, the bureaucracy cried there was no money. Jaitley sold the marketing rights for Rs 650 crore. There’s a message for the Disinvestment Minister: Don’t disinvest Prasar Bharati.

Waiting, waiting
R.C. Jain, who was earlier tipped for the post of Election Commissioner, will be sent to the Law Ministry as legislative secretary. Jain is upset over missing the six-year posting. But the government told him that his services are required in the government as the general elections are almost 5 years away. Also, a vacancy will come up after M.S. Gill retires next year. Jain is now a secretary in the Law Commission.

Hall of shame
The CBI sent a special team to Hong Kong to arrest Amir Bhai, the hawala kingpin. The Hong Kong court dismissed the CBI’s plea saying since he had come from Dubai, he would be sent back there. If the CBI wanted him, it should approach the UAE authorities. When the CBI’s last hawala case was dismissed by courts for insufficient corroborative evidence, Amri Bhai landed in India. The CVC sent a directive to the CBI to nail Amri Bhai. The CBI refused it doesn’t want to open a Pandora’s box once again.

Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate stepped in as its cases against some of those named in the Jain diary have not been closed yet. Amir Bhai is now in ED’s custody.

Birthday diplomacy
Ever since his birthday bash last month, Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh is in high spirits. Sonia Gandhi was not present as he did not invite her. But all her loyalists including Natwar Singh, Manmohan Singh, Ajit Jogi and Ahmad Patel were at the party. Home Minister L.K. Advani also made it a point to attend it. The Prime Minister too did not forget the man who stopped Sonia’s march to the PM’s post last year. He was represented by his foster family. But Amar Singh is upset with the BJP for lending support to the BSP in Kannauj Lok Sabha byelection where Mulayam Singh’s son, Akhilesh, is pitted against Akbar Ahmad Dumpy.

Lobbying time
Confusion prevails in the Central Board of Direct Taxes as the successor of its chairman Ravi Kant has not been announced for almost a month. Kant is tipped to be member Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. A powerful business house is said to be lobbying for its favourite who is much junior in the hierarchy and not even a member of the board. The ostensible reason for ignoring the senior-most officer S.K. Nigam is that she has only four months left for retirement.