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Journalism of Courage
Since the formation of the Group of Ministers GoM on media,Information amp; Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni seems to be coming on her own. She has been calling up ministers urging them to speak on different issues. She called up Minister of State for Food amp; Civil Supplies K V Thomas recently to ask him to hold a press conference in order to clear matters about overflowing government godowns. After the infamous Lakhimpur incident of alleged rape and murder of a minor,she called up Women amp; Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath exhorting her to speak out against the Mayawati government.
War and peace
Temporary Truce
Bhajan Lal may have failed to unite his two sons while he was alive,but his death has made them bond with each other for some time at least. Bhajan Lals widow Jasma Devi,sons Chander Mohan and Kuldeep Bishnoi and their wives have resolved that family faultlines would be kept at bay till the Hisar Lok Sabha by-election,caused by the former chief ministers death,is over. Thereafter,everybody would be free to make his or her choice.
Marked Absent
When Rural Development Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh finally reconstituted the Central Employment Guarantee Council,the monitoring body for the governments flagship National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme,two of the most vocal supporters of the scheme,Aruna Roy and Jean Dreze,could not find a place on the panel because of technical reasons. However,considering that both of them are prominent members of the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council,Deshmukh thought it prudent to name them as special invitees to the council. Curiously though,both Aruna and Dreze were absent from the first meeting of the reconstituted council last week. Roy skipped the meeting despite having attended the main NAC meeting the previous day.
Seeking seat upgrade
As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh prepares for a Cabinet re-jig,Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma is said to be banking on Rahul Gandhis Mission 2012 to get an upgrade. A Cabinet Minister in the United Front government,the influential Kurmi leader from UP has been sulking for being appointed Minister of State Independent charge. A subsequent induction as Permanent Invitee in the Congress Working Committee failed to mollify him. While he has got indications of a possible upgrade in portfolio,Minister of State Srikant Jena,whose case is similar to that of Verma,has been left to ponder over his future. Unlike UP,the Congress does not have any Mission Orissa in mind yet.
