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Journalism of Courage
Netaji on a Rath Yatra?
After late Devi Lal and L K Advani, it is now Mulayam Singh Yadav who has resorted to rath yatra to mobilise his supporters. The former chief minister plans to undertake a month-long rath yatra in the state ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. All this, in order to avoid Netaji8217;s usual whistle-stop tour in a helicopter during the election campaign. During the last 16 months, poaching by Mayawati and internal battles, particularly in eastern Uttar Pradesh, have created a dent in his party8217;s base. The rath yatra is being planned in such a way that Yadav gets an overnight stay in major constituencies and big cities.nbsp;During these extended halts, the party boss will have a one-to-one talk with the local leaders to thrash out their differences and motivate them to work as a team.
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The issue of terrorism and SIMI is turning out be a double-edged sword for Samajwadi Party. The growing schism between the Muslims and Hindus over the recent spate of terror attacks and its links with Azamgarh have made things difficult for the party. The Muslims in Azamgarh believe the arrested men are victims of a frame-up, while the Hindus have no doubt about the police version. Now, to bridge this gap the party is contemplating to field Shabana Azami, daughter of Kaifi Azami 8212; renowned poet from Azamgarh. The million-dollar question is whether Shabana is going to accede to the party8217;s plea.
Roadwash! No dust please for Maya
Is Mayawati allergic to dust? Now, this could be very much possible. Last week, minutes before her cavalcade passed the Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg, water sprinklers were being used to wash the dust-ridden roads. The rationale behind this, as the officials put it is, that there was too much dust on the road because of the ongoing construction of a memorial. If the chief minister can find this inconvenient, even while moving in her AC car, what about the thousands of people who use the road every day? The road wash reminds one of the remarks that Mayawati had made when Rahul Gandhi visited the house of a Dalit in Amethi. She said that the Congress Yuvraj took a bath with a special soap after every such visit. What does she think of the road wash that precedes her cavalcade?
Maya8217;s 8216;transparency8217; transfer policy
The Mayawati government may soon change the definition of 8220;transperancy8221;. Responding to Governor T V Rajeswar Rao8217;s criticism of frequent transfers, Chief Minister Mayawati stated that all transfers were being made by a designated board and the system was transparent. But in the last couple of months, IAS officer Harminder Raj Singh has been shifted five times. From an important department like Housing, Singh was sent to the Board of Revenue, which is normally considered a punishment posting. Within days, he was back to the Housing department. Before long, he was out of Housing and sent to National Integration, which has practically no work to do. From National Integration, he has just been sent to an important department like Irrigation.nbsp;Singh8217;s bureaucrat friends wonder why he is made to swing like a pendulum.nbsp;Transparency perhaps!
Being a martyr8217;s family member
Martyr Abdul Hamid sacrificed his life in the 1965 India-Pakistan war. In recognition of his sacrifice, the government allotted the family anbsp;petrol pump and gave jobs to some family members. A park in Ghazipur was named after Abdul Hamid. But it seems that the third generation of Hamid is trying to extract whatever benefits they can get in the name of their brave grandfather. They push Hamid8217;s aged widow to meet political leaders and demand benefits for them. Last year, after her interaction with Lalu Prasad Yadav, one of the grandsons got a job in the railways. Last week, the grandsons hovered around as Rasoolanbi met the President. She urged the President for renovation of the park named after her husbandnbsp;and medical help for herself, which was all very well. At the same time, the grandsons pushed their own charter of demands, which included specialnbsp;reservation in government jobs for them. Asked about it, one of the grandsons, Shahbuddin, said, 8220;Whatever government has done so far is just not enough to feed the entire family. But there are still many financial problems which needs a solution.8221;
Robber8217;s golden opportunity
Chain snatching remains a regular feature of the city8217;s daily crime bulletin, in spite ofnbsp;police8217;s claims of having busted several gangs. Last Friday, for the first time, a police officer8217;s wife was the target of a chain snatcher. Saroj Rai, wife of Anil Kumar Rai, Superintendent of Police Protocol, had just stepped out of her Sector-3, Vikas Nagar residence to buy vegetables when two men, riding on a motorcycle, drove past her, taking away her gold chain. Asked about the incident, Anil Kumar Rai said, 8220;The miscreants were not aware that they were robbing a policeman8217;s wife.8221; So, the miscreants committed the crime in all innocence! By now, 8220;the miscreants8221; must have known that their victim was a policeman8217;s wife.
