Meanwhile

Sure enough, his resignation was accepted the same day. Obviously, Nitish struck where it hurts. But his uncharacteristic below-the-belt dig at Vajpayee underline the tensions that have crept into the Samata-BJP relationship of late.

Return of the royal

No one is quite sure where Madhavrao Scindia stands in Sonia Gandhi8217;s inner circle. But in the run-up to the elections, the Gwalior royal has certainly emerged as a key negotiator for the Congress. He sewed up the merger of Shankersinh Vaghela8217;s RJP in Gujarat, thealliance with Ramakant Khalap8217;s MGP in Goa and is now hard at work with Laloo on Bihar and with the rebellious Jat Mahasabha in Rajasthan.

Of course, his main achievement has been to keep the Pawar-hit unit in Maharashtra reasonably intact and in fighting form. And together with Suresh Kalmadi, he can boast of having organised a successful rally for Sonia Gandhi in Pawar8217;s fortress of Pune district. Only the results will tell how successful his tactics have been but Scindia is working like a beaver.However, his increasing clout in national politics may have cost him his fiefdom in Madhya Pradesh. Scindia has had no time for his home state of late. No wonder Chief Minister Digvijay Singh is smiling these days.

Back in air

Armed with a clean chit from the Supreme Court in the petrol pump scam case, Rajiv8217;s old pilot chum, Satish Sharma, is back in the reckoning for a Congress ticket from the Gandhi family belt. Considering that 10 Janpath has reserved for itself the right to choose the candidatesfor Amethi, Rae Bareli and Sultanpur, Congress circles are speculating which of three seats he will bag.

Amethi is out of bounds, now that Sonia has announced her intention to contest. But his hyper-active role in trying to bring Shiv Sena henchman, Pawan Pandey, better known for his part in the demolition of the Babri Masjid, into the Congress fold seems to suggest that Sharma has set his sights on Sultanpur.

The former pilot has a strong case. The lakhs he was forced to deposit with the Court as surety will now be his again. So he won8217;t need party funds for his election campaign.

Cyber Chief Minister

What would a hi-tech Chief Minister like Chandrababu Naidu do if he couldn8217;t be somewhere in person? Why, he would send himself on CD, of course. And that8217;s exactly what he did at the World Telegu Conference in Cincinnati, USA, last month which he couldn8217;t attend because of September8217;s do-or-die polls.

NRI Andhrites were tickled pink as they watched Babu on a giant computer screen amidst floridcyber gimmickry. Considering that the other invitee, P.V. Narasimha Rao, stuck to yesterday8217;s technology and sent his speech on an audio cassette while the third guest, BJP8217;s Venkaiah Naidu, did the old-fashioned thing of being present, Babu certainly lived up to his reputation of being the leader for the next millennium.

And his appreciative audience responded with glowing e-mails, like the one from a California-based Andhrite who promised to return to India if Babu made Hyderabad into another California. If NRI Andhrites were voters, Babu would fly.

Roaming candidate

It8217;s not only the Congress that has stateless, rootless wonders. Even the BJP has its share. Bangaru Laxman has deserted his home state of Andhra Pradesh to contest from Jalore in Rajasthan. Now what will a Telegu-speaking man do in northern desert country? Probably pretty much the same as he did when he stood for the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat ride on the saffron appeal of the lotus.

On again, off again

Ajit Singh hasbecome a bone of contention between Congress Jat leaders in western UP and the High Command. Despite the former8217;s objections, the central leadership is trying hard for a tie-up in Jatland with Charan Singh8217;s heir.

The obstacle is the number of seats Singh wants. He has demanded 14 while the Congress is ready to give him only seven. The party probably would have raised the number but Singh8217;s self-destructive tendency has blunted his bargaining power. By attending the NCP-Samajwadi Party sponsored rally in Jaipur recently, the Jat leader ruffled Congress feathers. And gave the party8217;s local unit another stick to use against him. Now the Congress is playing hard to get but with 10 Janpath keen for an alliance, Singh8217;s sin may be forgiven.