Opinion Cops on backfoot

Kept away

Anna Hazare’s advisers were very keen that Rahul Gandhi be named chief negotiator for the Lokpal Bill. But Gandhi since his return from the US,has avoided getting involved in the nitty-gritty of the Lokpal discussions. Instead,he toured trouble spots in Maharashtra,UP and Bihar. The Congress brains trust felt that Gandhi at this stage should not be entrusted with a tricky task which could backfire. In case the negotiations are successful,Gandhi will no doubt be given full credit anyway as per the old Congress tradition.

Judge victim of Hazare

Justice Soumitra Sen is a victim of the Hazare campaign against corruption. There were several in the Congress who disagreed with the party decision to back Sen’s impeachment in the Rajya Sabha,but could not assert themselves. Lawyers like Ashwani Kumar and Kapil Sibal made it clear privately that they opposed the impeachment. But considering the prevailing atmosphere in the country,the Congress did not dare to be perceived as a party backing a corrupt judge. Even though there was no whip as it was a quasi judicial issue,none of the dissenters actually voted against the party line. Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha Hamid Ansari is credited for speeding up the procedure for the impeachment in the Upper House.

Who is in charge?

It is a mystery as to who exactly is behind the blow hot,blow cold Congress strategy in the talks with Hazare’s advisers. P Chidambaram and Kapil Sibal were reportedly in the dog house after the Hazare arrest fiasco and Pranab Mukherjee was brought back into the picture. But on Wednesday,the Prime Minister,Chidambaram and A K Antony were together for almost three hours at the Prime Minister’s office in Parliament House. Mukherjee was not invited for the discussion. That same evening,Mukherjee was the official negotiator along with Salman Khurshid. It appears that the Prime Minister is personally monitoring the Lokpal standoff and does not rely on any single individual.

No,told you so

Maharashtra leaders Sharad Pawar and Vilasrao Deshmukh have claimed privately that the situation would not have gone out of control if those who had dealt previously with Hazare in Maharashtra had been consulted by the government. NCP members point out how Pawar managed to shrewdly deflect an argument with the Lokpal crusader. When he questioned the inclusion of Pawar in the committee to draw up a draft bill,Pawar simply withdrew from the committee. The other side,however,claims that the Maharashtra lobby’s assertion is not so convincing. They point out that if leaders from Hazare’s home state were so successful in handling him in the past,how come four state ministers had to resign at some point during the Congress-NCP rule in Maharashtra because of agitations by Hazare.

Opposite views

In Tamil Nadu,the two main political parties have taken opposite views on the inclusion of the PM in the proposed Lokpal Bill. M Karunanidhi,although an ally of the UPA,wants the PM to be included. Karunanidhi cannot hide his bitterness that his daughter Kanimozhi is still behind bars. Jayalalithaa,although not on the Congress side,supports the exclusion of the PM from the Bill. There is no Lokayukta in Tamil Nadu. Incidentally,Mamata Banerjee is one chief minister who has made no comment whatsoever on the Lokpal Bill.

Request turned down

Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan’s request for an officer working in the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to be made her private secretary has been turned down. In a letter,the Chief General Manager of SEBI pointed out that under SEBI regulations,the entire cost of the service of the employee on deputation had to be borne by the borrowing organisation. Jayaraman,the officer whom Natarajan wanted on deputation,is earning more than double the pay and emoluments of a secretary to the government of India.