Opinion Banking on discretion
A senior secretary to the Government of India in Udyog Bhawan faced acute embarrassment because his overzealous staff did not permit a senior bank employee to meet the burra sahib in his office without an appointment.
A senior secretary to the Government of India in Udyog Bhawan faced acute embarrassment because his overzealous staff did not permit a senior bank employee to meet the burra sahib in his office without an appointment. The bank official kept protesting that he merely wanted to hand the bureaucrat a letter stating that his credit card was about to be cancelled because of non-payment. The reception desk,registry office and the secretarys PA,refused to sign an acknowledgment that they had received the concerned letter from the State Bank of India. The bank employee,who had taken the trouble to deliver the notice rather than send it by courier,lost his cool. He followed standard bank procedure and promptly pasted the notice on the main entrance of Udyog Bhawan last week. The notice,for all to see,announced the cancellation of the secretarys credit card for non-payment of dues amounting to Rs 35,773.50 and noted that the card-holder had not responded to three reminders.
Drop in box,dont tell me
A large black box for complaints has been put in front of V K Shunglus new office at Vigyan Bhavan,headquarters of the inquiry commission for the Commonwealth Games misdeeds. Some days ago,a visitor to the Bhavan noticed that the box was stuffed to the brim with papers. But whether Shunglu will live up to the confidence reposed in him remains to be seen. A central minister who telephoned the former CAG to pass on details of an obvious fiddle where the CWG authorities had okayed the purchase of a particular equipment from a contractor who charged thrice as much as the lowest tender,found Shunglu rather unenthusiastic. Shunglu explained that he was not involved in investigating actual corruption,but in examining the policy framework. Specific cases would be handled by various investigative agencies. He suggested the minister get someone to drop the details in the complaint box.
This year,next year…
For more than six months Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has indicated that a cabinet reshuffle is in the offing. But it seems fairly certain that a rejig of his ministerial team will not take place this year. The official explanation is the PMs very crowded schedule in November and December. President Obamas tour and the winter Parliament session will be followed by visits of the French and Russian presidents and the Chinese Premier. The Congress Working Committee plenary session is also in December. The first 14 days of the next year are considered inauspicious in the Hindu calendar,which means the earliest possible date for a ministerial swearing-in ceremony is January 15. It is learnt that the PM hopes to introduce some major changes in his cabinet,which could upset not just senior Congress leaders,also but key allies like the DMK and the NCP. Actually,the only ministerial prospect who has been sounded so far is Rahul Gandhi. And he has made it clear that he is not interested.
Youth not to the fore
The two youthful chief ministers personally selected by Rahul Gandhi Ashok Chavan and Omar Abdullahhave turned out to be damp squibs. Congress leaders feel that Ashok Chavan must be replaced before the next Parliament session begins on November 9. If he is removed later,it will appear as if the Congress caved in to pressure from the Opposition. The obvious replacement for Chavan is his namesake,Prithviraj Chavan. Prithvirajs biggest handicap is that the Prime Minister does not want to spare his services. The MoS in the PMO takes much of the burden off the Prime Minister. Prithviraj also has an important role as intermediary between Sonia and Manmohan Singh,which is why the 64-year-old junior minister was not elevated to cabinet rank in UPA II. Sharad Pawar will also be wary of Prithviraj as chief minister,even if the two Maratha leaders are said to have patched up.
Post-dated surmise
Years before the Adarsh Housing scandal broke,army circles were intrigued by the curious posting of Major General T K Kaul as Area Commander of the Maharashtra and Goa sub-division. The General was transferred to Mumbai immediately after a stint at the National Defence College. Normally,brigadiers on completion of the NDC course are sent on a field posting. Kauls posting was doubly curious since he was appointed commander of the same area where he had earlier served as deputy commander. Kauls transfer back to Mumbai was thanks to the army chief General N C Vij. It is believed that standard guidelines for army postings were flouted so that Kaul could facilitate clearances for the housing society of which both Vij and he are members.
Share
