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Journalism of Courage
The Left saw another side to the usually soft-spoken Manmohan Singh when it made an issue over the joint Indo-US air force exercise in Kalaikunda, West Bengal, last November.
West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya insisted that the Centre cancel the exercises and warned that he could not guarantee law and order in the state since outrage over the American presence could lead to major protests and agitations. The CPIM fully expected Singh to back down.
Thanks to the PM8217;s tough talk Bhattacharya backed down. The joint exercises went ahead without a hitch, except for some 8216;8216;anti-imperialist8217;8217; protests.
The Centre has now sent another stern message to the West Bengal government by leaking plans of a proposal to upgrade an air base in Punjab for use as an alternative venue for war games in future because of the unfavourable environment in Bengal.
Delayed reaction
A day before P V Narasimha Rao8217;s first death anniversary on December 23, his family received a fresh notice from the Directorate of Estates asking them to vacate 9, Motilal Nehru Marg, where the former prime minister had lived during his last years. It was made clear last year that the bungalow could not be converted into a memorial and the Andhra government has granted land for a commemorative building in Hyderabad instead. But Rao8217;s son, Prabhakar Rao, is unwilling to leave the premises, even though the family does not live in Delhi.
As a result, Election Commissioner Navin Chawla is the sufferer. He was allotted the bungalow back in May, but he has perforce to continue at his old residence. When Chawla8217;s daughter got married last November, the Raos only permitted him the use of the Motilal Nehru Marg garden for a single day for the wedding reception.
Chawla8217;s neighbours in the private residential colony of East Nizamuddin are meanwhile anxiously awaiting his departure. Ever since he took over as election commissioner his security staff has occupied the neighbourhood park in makeshift tents and their washing line and other household paraphernalia are out in the open, lowering the tone of the colony.
Who has upper hand?
Brajesh Mishra, former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee8217;s principal secretary, is being tipped for a seat in the Rajya Sabha in March. Normally Mishra8217;s entry into the Upper House should be a sure thing. After all Vajpayee will back Mishra8217;s candidature to the hilt and the BJP can win four RS seats from MP thanks to its strength in the Assembly. But these are uncertain times in the party. RSS chief Sudershan has never hidden his dislike of the man who was once the unquestioned boss in the PMO. Some in the party are irked by Mishra8217;s comment that his commitment is to Vajpayee and not the BJP. Besides, there are a large number of BJP heavyweights whose Rajya Sabha terms come up for renewal this March, including Kalraj Mishra, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.
Eminently club class
It takes around a quarter century after one has applied for membership to Delhi8217;s elite Gymkhana Club to be invited for an interview. But there are ways to jump the queue. Officers in the armed forces and the upper echelons of the Central Government services have a special quota for fast-track entry. In addition, there is an eminent persons8217; category which ensures immediate admission. V P Singh, L K Advani, the Crown Prince of Bhutan and R K Dhawan were among those admitted under this head.
This year, the eminent persons selected by the club include Murli Deora, an MP and an influential official of the Red Cross, Prithviraj Chauhan, MoS in the Prime Minister8217;s Office, and Rahul Gandhi. While some might wonder what makes Rahul an eminent person apart from his name, no club member has any problem with his admission. After all Gandhi satisfies all the club8217;s criteria, since he comes from a distinguished family, is well-mannered and well-spoken and has been playing squash as a guest at the club for the last two years. Deora, as a regular at the club8217;s bridge table, is also a welcome addition. The dispute in the managing committee is about admitting ministers in the eminent persons8217; category since once you let in one it is difficult to say 8216;no8217; to another, and this can open the floodgates. The only safeguard left to the club is to stipulate that membership is linked to a person8217;s ministerial tenure.
No common links
The poor vibes between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party were on display at a recent farmhouse party thrown by a prominent Delhi journalist who likes to assemble the city8217;s power elite at his dos. Sonia Gandhi8217;s political secretary Ahmed Patel had just alighted from his car when he saw Amar Singh arriving, accompanied by his security guards. Patel promptly turned back and drove away without even greeting his host.
