Inside Track

Three academicians who have written works extolling Laloo Yadav and his regime have been suitably rewarded. Shankar Prasad has been made chairman of the state Sangeet Natak Academy, Amar Kumar Singh appointed director of the Bihar Hindi Granth Academy and Brahmdeo Anand who penned the sycophantic Machchar Chalisa was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. Shortly after Atal Behari Vajpayee became Prime Minister, television personality Rajat Sharma announced that he was writing Vajpayee8217;s official biography. Because of the busy schedule of both men, the project may not have made muchheadway, but the resultant proximity has been to Sharma8217;s advantage.

Shadow leader

Sharad Pawar may be the leader of the Opposition and Shiv Shankar deputy leader of the Congress party in Parliament, but it is Congress spokesperson Ajit Jogi and chief whip P.J. Kurien who always seem more clued up as to what the official line of 10 Janpath is. Pawar arranged a meeting with other Opposition leaders to discuss a joint strategy on the Bihar motion in the Lok Sabha, but then failed to show up himself at the start of the discussion in the House. It seems Pawar was told that he had over-stepped his brief and Sonia Gandhi did not want to create a situation whereby the BJP could actually be defeated in the Lok Sabha. Since then a chastened Pawar is hesitant about giving advice to MPs. On the other hand, Jogi confidently gives cues to his party colleagues in the House.

Suitable boy

Both are nubile, from the same caste and with fathers in the same profession. She is a doctor, he is an engineer. Itseems like an eminently suitable match. But the most talked about matrimonial alliance in political circles is actually only a figment of the media8217;s imagination. Mulayam Singh Yadav8217;s son Akhilesh is not getting married to Laloo Yadav8217;s daughter Misa.

The rumour gained credence three months back after the joint SP and RJD rally in Lucknow when Laloo visited Mulayam8217;s house with his entire brood of a dozen in tow. Actually Mulayam was only reciprocating the hospitality accorded to him by the Chief Minister8217;s family when he had visited Patna. Some political observers felt that the new-found bonhomie of the two rival Yadav chieftains who have been feuding for years over the same vote bank, could only have come about because of a matrimonial bond. But even if this is an alliance which will certainly gladden the hearts of the two fathers, kids these days don8217;t want necessarily do their parents bidding.

Mayawati8217;s truce

Sonia Gandhi is the exception who is in the fortunate position of being able tointeract with the media on her own terms. Almost every important journalist in Delhi has put in a request for an interview with the enigmatic Congress czarina, but the last time Sonia talked at length to a journalist was more than a decade back when she opened up to a Dharamyug correspondent in a non-political interview about how she had adjusted as a housewife in New Delhi. While declining all requests for interviews, 10 Janpath is always ready to inform whenever there is a photo opportunity with Sonia.

Other politicians have been less successful in cold shouldering the press. Jayalalitha, for instance, earlier refused to confide in the media and earned a reputation for being difficult and demanding. Now that she airs her opinions regularly, Jayalalitha is projected as eminently reasonable and gracious. The BSP8217;s Mayawati also had a press phobia, which got accentuated after some journalists were physically thrown out of her Humayun Road house some years back. But last week Mayawati, whose name hadpractically vanished from the newspapers, had a change of heart. She summoned a large number of journalists to her house for a truce. Instead of calling a press conference, she invited the correspondents one by one for individual briefings.

Kursi for chair

Najma Hepatullah has been a popular deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha since 1988 and has seen eight prime ministers 8212; an unusually long spell in Indian politics where career graphs go up and down like a game of snakes and ladders. One reason for Najma8217;s longeivity as deputy chairperson is perhaps because of the medallion she wears around her neck called the the ayat al kursi8217; with writings from the Koran in Arabic. When the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi inquired about the medallion she explained that this is 8220;my kursi to preserve my kursi8221;. Gandhi was so amused he repeated the explanation to the Arabic-speaking former UN Secretary General Boutros Bourtros Ghali, who roared with laughter. Recently Hepatullah has started wearingan attractive armband with the wordings from the Koran for additional protection.