Fly on the wall

But this did not deter the IT department. They had the full backing of the outgoing CBDT chairman Ravi Kant, a Sinha loyalist. But they found nothing incriminating. Later, the excuse was given that that raid was part of raids on the Ansals. Since Jatia had struck a real estate deal with the Ansals sometime ago, it had to be probed.

Kesri cares
Don8217;t write off Sitaram Kesri. There may be crowd outside the 9 Motilal Nehru Road residence of former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. But the deserted Kesri was the first one to tip off Sonia Gandhi about the rebellion brewing in the party against her. He told her that at least six CWC members were planning to dislodge her from the post of the party president. When she brushed them aside, he reminded her that he was also in the make-believe world that an elected president cannot be removed by the CWC.

Kesri said he would die for her as she was the daughter-in-law of the Gandhi family. Kesri named the six CWC members who cannot be trusted. Pranab Mukherjee topped the list.

Away from the crowds
If the absence of V. George, private secretary to the Congress president, during the entire election campaign was baffling, equally intriguing was the fact that Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka were also missing from the scene. Sonia Gandhi campaigned in all the four states without the aid of her two children. George may be sulking for being holed up inside his cubicle at 10 Janpath all the time. But the Gandhi children opted out.

Lecture time
Iamp;B Minister Arun Jaitely is perhaps the first minister in recent years to be invited by Oxford and Harvard for a lecture. Jaitley went to Oxford early this month without fanfare. He is slated to go to the US in April.