Odd man out

NCP leader Tariq Anwar was the only one among the 22 ministers sworn in on Sunday who did not take oath in the name of God

Odd man out

NCP leader Tariq Anwar was the only one among the 22 ministers sworn in on Sunday who did not take oath in the name of God. The Minister of State for Agriculture solemnly affirmed that he would bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution. All other ministers took oath in the name of God,while K Rahman Khan took oath in the name of Allah.

1977 LINK

THE year 1977 happens to be significant for both Sachin Pilot,Minister of State who has been given independent charge of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs,and the Secretary of his ministry,Naved Masood. While Pilot was born in 1977,Masood cleared his IAS exam in that year.

PUTTING IN A WORD

ON Saturday,a day after S M Krishna stepped down as the External Affairs Minister,one of the IFS officers called on him. Basant Kumar Gupta,Additional Secretary in-charge of passports section,had worked very closely with Krishna and was the man who ensured the roll-out of the Passport Seva project,an initiative that was very dear to Krishna. Krishna had recommended Gupta for the post of Indias envoy to Canada but the decision was overruled by the PMO. Krishna told Gupta that he had informed the PM about the tremendous improvement in the passport delivery system.

SHIFTING AGENDA

THEN,it was an IPL team for Kerala. This time,it is about bringing an IIT to his home state. Shashi Tharoor,who has been reinstated in the Union Council of Ministers after a long gap,lost no time in promising the big dream for his home state. The newly-inducted MoS in the HRD Ministry is still to be informed about his work allocation.

Focus on paid news

RAVI Dhariwal,the CEO of Bennett,Coleman amp; Co Ltd,found himself at the receiving end of some of his peers ire at a seminar organised by CII in New Delhi. In his address,Dhariwal gushed about BCCLs newspapers The Times of India and The Economic Times and said they were among the greatest brands in the country. Amit Khanna,who has been leading Anil Ambanis media and entertainment business,wasnt amused. He told Dhariwal that he once approached one of his newspapers to cover a film festival but was asked to contact BCCLs Medianet team,which asked for money for coverage. A few others in the audience also asked Dhariwal about the paid pull-outs of his newspapers. Dhariwal wasnt rattled. He said in a matter of fact tone that people seeking publicity in his newspapers must pay for the coverage. The editors of his newspapers,he said,were free and picked news that were in public interest.