Snapshots

Open Pact Akali Dal8217;s criticism of the anti-graft drive launched by Congress has often prompted scribes to ask senior Akali leaders and...

Open Pact

Akali Dal8217;s criticism of the anti-graft drive launched by Congress has often prompted scribes to ask senior Akali leaders and MLAs whether they have any plans to disclose their assets in order to beat Congress8217; allegations of corruption. But every time the question is put, the top Akali leadership squirm at the queries. The reason: Not many MLAs or other leaders are prepared to put their assets in black and white .

Not surprisingly, when Parkash Singh Badal was asked the same question on Saturday, he dodged it thrice but finally said, 8216;8216;The Congress accuses me of having amassed Rs 3500 crore of property. You tell me, can anyone amass Rs 3500 crore?8217;8217;

While the scribes were busy trying to work that out, he thundered, 8216;8216;Let the Congress MLAs first declare their own assets as they promised.8217;8217; The pehle aap game is benefiting to both sides, and it is going to be a while before anyone comes clean!

Do You Buy This?

If ad man Sam Balsara is saying it, it must be true 8212; he claims television is losing its effectiveness as an advertising medium. Balsara, the chairman and managing director of Mudra Communications, insists that television is losing its edge as far as convincing consumers is concerned. 8216;8216;It is all because of the proliferation of channels and a fragmentation of viewership, he said. Maybe, advertisers should look for other options then!

Farmana8217;s Hero

Amir Singh, star spiker of the Indian volleyball team, might have been lost in the galaxy of sports stars assembled in the Capital for the Arjuna Awards, but back home at Farmana village in Haryana he is a celebrity. Besides the Arjuna, Singh was recently honoured by his state with yet another award named after another Pandava brothers 8212; the Bhim Award. And Farmana went into an overdrive. A reception party consisting of nearly 50 tractors and an equal number of trucks welcomed Amir from almost 30 kms outside the village.

On the occasion of Singh8217;s Arjuna Award, the 8216;tractor-cade8217; doubled and the welcome reception covered the entire meham chowbisi a cluster of 24 villages! Singh was also accompanied by 100 Farmanites on his trip to the Capital. Of course, all were not allowed entry into Rashtrapati Bhavan. 8216;8216;They love me so much. If they had their way they would get all tractors outside Rashtrapati Bhavan,8217;8217; said Singh with a smile.

A United Front

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Did his holiness Dalai Lama play any role in the formation of the Ladakh Front? It fielded Sonam Wanchuk Narboo as its candidate, the first winner in the J038;K Assembly polls because he was the only candidate from Norba constituency in Ladakh region. Dalai Lama visited Leh-Ladakh a few days ago and there are many who think he had a 8216;8216;role8217;8217; in the united face of the Front. Only time will tell.

Message of Love

It was a peace mission Sadbhavna Yatra to the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir, led by actor Sunil Dutt, to convey the message of love and harmony among people. Dutt visited the camps of Kashmiri migrants and was distressed by the appalling conditions there. And at the end of his survey, he had only one message for the people, 8216;8216;Ho sake to pyaar se rehna sikhiye, agar ham yeh kar sake to bahut kuchh badal jayega.8217;8217;

Contributed by Sandeep Dwivedi in New Delhi, Preeti Raghunath in Pune, S P Singh in Chandigarh and Rakesh Rocky in Jammu