The Detractor

Haryana Congress on Sunday organised one of the biggest-ever political rallies at Gohana in Sonepat,with the party claiming that it crossed a million mark.

The Detractor

The Haryana Congress on Sunday organised one of the biggest-ever political rallies at Gohana in Sonepat,with the party claiming that it crossed a million mark. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hoodas effort to turn it into a show of unity,however,failed as Union minister Kumari Selja apart from Choudhury Birendra Singh and rebel MP Rao Inderjit Singh,of course chose to stay away. She stayed put at her Delhi residence and left for Hissar in the afternoon,around the time Hooda was addressing the rally at Gohana. A known detractor of Hooda and chief ministerial aspirant,Selja has,of late,turned on the heat on the CM,shooting off a letter to him regarding increasing Dalit atrocities in the state and earlier complaining about lack of development in her constituency. Congressmen attribute the renewed vigour in her attack to the fact that Congress president Sonia Gandhi had held her for support when she had stumbled while coming out of Parliament on her way to the hospital during the last session.

She had also accompanied Sonia to the hospital.

Too hot to handle

The Central Bureau of Investigation CBI,which is celebrating its 50th anniversary from Monday,will have to wait for the release of their 20-minute documentary that showcases the agencys success in high-profile cases. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,who will inaugurate the event,has indicated his unwillingness to release the documentary during the inaugural session. The reason is said to be the nature of political and sensitive cases showcased in the documentary involving prominent figures like Mayawati,Mulayam Singh Yadav,A Raja,Pawan Bansal and others. The official reason being cited for the PMs reluctance is the paucity of time. The documentary,which was made with a budget of Rs 1.50 crore,was completed in six months and was given voice over by superstar Amitabh Bachchan and Kabir Bedi. The agency is learnt to have postponed its screening to a later session.

Taking a dig

Mamata Banerjee has taken a swipe at Union Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily for his suggestion to use public transport at least one day a week to conserve fuel and also his much-publicised act of taking a bus to office once a week. In her Facebook post,the West Bengal chief minister has said that if it was the governments solution to rising fuel prices,then people would be much better off using bus no 11,which in popular Bengali jokes is referred to the act of walking.

Back with a bang

Union Tribal Affairs and Panchayati Raj Minister V Kishore Chandra Deo,who was forced to slow down for a substantive part of the year first due to a fractured arm and then because of a personal tragedy,has swung into action with general elections round the corner. He has been holding Panchayati Raj consultations across states like Punjab,Haryana,Bihar and Jharkhand. The consultations,which have been made more political with participation from state ministers and sarpanches,seem to have generated some political interest. Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government is learnt to have expressed its desire to the ministers office to hold a consultation of stakeholders in the state. For once,the TMC seems to be looking beyond the Bengal package that has largely dominated its agenda vis-a-vis the Centre.