Modi-f(r)ying Media

Visitors to the headquarters of the Gujarat government have to fill out numerous forms before being permitted entry. The Chief Minister has made it clear to both ministers and officials alike that they are in danger of losing their jobs if they grant interviews to the media. Which explains why few agree to sign an entry slip for a journalist.

Modi particularly wants to get even with the two leading Gujarati newspapers, the Gujarat Samachar and Sandesh, which have turned hostile. He has invited the fast growing Dainik Bhaskar chain of Hindi newspapers to set up a Gujarati edition in his home state. The old rival newspapers are united for the first time in the face of the threat from a common enemy.

Dreaming Vegetarian

They may be politically far apart, but Laloo Prasad Yadav and Maneka Gandhi now share a common belief in vegetarianism. This column wrongly reported last week that Laloo, an avid non-vegetarian, had been converted by a living pundit.

Actually his new spiritual mentor, a baba, appeared to him in his dreams. A year back while Laloo was sleeping in jail surrounded by pictures of deities, he had a dream at 4 am about a Shiv Lingam and a baba. The baba urged him to give up meat and fish and told him he was getting fat. Laloo took a vow to turn vegetarian. Three days later, he was freed from prison which reinforced his belief. In fact, he has persuaded his wife Rabri and most of his brood of nine to follow his example.

The once fish-loving Laloo has turned so totally vegetarian that he has even stopped eating eggs. The last time he was served an egg curry at a dak bungalow in UP while on a campaign tour, he says he felt as if he was eating pus. After his change in diet, Laloo feels lighter and healthier than at any time in recent years. The only snag is that he hasn’t as yet lost his paunch as the baba ordered!

Waiting Period Over

Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TC) has finally been allotted a government bungalow on Mahadev Road. For four-and-a-half years the TC has been operating from temporary quarters in different house or offices.

The blame for the delay rests partly with the TC itself which had originally been offered two rooms in Vithalbhai Patel house by the CPWD but Mamata firmly declined for she did not want to be a neighbour of her bete noire, the CPI(M), and said she feared the Leftists would bash up her party workers.

Considering the delay in securing a permanent party office in Delhi, how long will it take for Mamata to finally get back into the Cabinet?

Actually Mamata’s long wait may soon be over. A Cabinet reshuffle for the NDA allies is slotted either during the break in Parliament’s budget session this month, or at the latest by the end of the session.

One man who dreads the impending reshuffle is Rural Development Minister Shanta Kumar who could well be axed. Though he had won a reprieve the last time for his indiscreet remarks against Narendra Modi after he apologised, it is unlikely that Kumar can save his neck this time.

It is not just party president Venkaiah Naidu and Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, but also Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee who are fuming over Kumar’s out-of turn comments against his rival Prem Kumar Dhumal.

Advani’s Write Choice

Deputy PM L.K. Advani was not particularly interested in most of the celebrities who attended the India Today conclave last week, but his eyes lit up at the prospect of a meeting with Alvin Toffler.

The writer of Future Shock is Advani’s favourite author along with Jeffrey Archer and the DPM, a voracious reader, was happy to take time off from Parliament to meet the American futurologist.

Untimely Decision

Traditionally, on Budget Day the Finance Minister engages in a debate with two former finance ministers on Doordarashan. Jaswant Singh agreed to appear on the show this year with the proviso that the programme should be earlier in the day since the 7.15 pm timing specified was unsuitable as he wanted to go to bed by 8 pm after his tiring schedule.

Prasar Bharati, however, didn’t want to change the timing because it had lined up a lot of advertising for the 7 pm to 8 pm slot. DD blew up what should have been its USP, and got Commerce Minister Arun Jaitley instead to field questions from Manmohan Singh and P. Chidambaram, which is hardly the same thing.