Opinion Fatal diversion

Taking a dig at the Congress’s austerity programme,a DMK minister in a public speech pointed out that for Rahul Gandhi’s three-day visit to Tamil Nadu,the SPG had flown down 12 bulletproof cars from Delhi in the cargo of an Air Force plane. Rahul’s busy programme meant visiting several towns in a chopper and for his road travel in each town he had to have the cars ready in advance. The minister wondered why the SPG could not have commandeered bulletproof vehicles from the state.

Silent coup

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s election as president of the Gujarat Cricket Association caught the outgoing GCA president and Congress leader Narhari Amin totally off guard. Amin was in control of the association for 16 years and had built up a corpus of some Rs 48 crore. The former deputy chief minister assumed that Modi,a former RSS pracharak,would not be interested in cricket. The RSS generally frowns upon all sports introduced by the British,preferring instead indigenous games like kabbadi and kho-kho.

Two years ago,Modi was co-opted to the Central Board of Cricket Ahmedabad (CBCA) but he did not display interest in its activities. However,at election time,Gujarat Home Minister Amit Shah showed his hand,ensuring that all school and colleges affiliated to the CBCA cast their votes for Modi. Once the Ahmedabad board fell in line,other cricket boards followed suit. Congresspersons suspect Modi’s newfound interest in cricket may be aimed at matching Rahul’s appeal to the youth. They believe he is looking for recognition outside Gujarat and heading an important state cricket association could be a launching pad for wider ambitions.

Golf handicap

Some members of the Delhi Golf Club grumble that they are handicapped by Vice-President Hamid Ansari’s occasional visits to the club. The Vice President prefers to play early morning,which happens to be the peak playing time for most members. Ansari is accompanied by a large contingent of security personnel and the mandatory ambulance in tow. Besides,being a slow player,Ansari holds up those behind him in the queue. The starters are too deferential to advise the VP to speed up his game. Members wonder why Ansari does not simply use the nine-hole golf course at Rashtrapati Bhavan instead.

Allies de-linked

The DMK is miffed because Rahul Gandhi at his press conference in Chennai observed that he was opposed to the interlinking of rivers,a long-standing demand of the regional party. The DMK sent a circular to its cadres pointing out that interlinking of rivers is part of the UPA’s common minimum programme and asked sarcastically if the Congress had changed its position. For the DMK,interlinking is key to Tamil Nadu’s claim over the Cauvery waters. Gandhi explained at the conference that it was his personal view and not that of the party. But the DMK wants to know who made him change his view.

Holy cows and cattle class

RJD chief Lalu Yadav may have taken potshots at the Congress in the past but he had always treated the Gandhis as holy cows. But last week he took a swipe at the Congress president and her son by mocking the party’s austerity campaign at a public meeting. If they wanted to set a truly Gandhian example,he suggested the two should travel in unreserved third-class compartments,the real cattle class.

Lalu is furious with the Congress ever since the party made it clear that it was not planning to join forces with the RJD in Jharkhand. The Congress feels that to ally with the RJD in Jharkhand would leave a window open for Bihar,where the Congress is determined to go it alone. At the Prime Minister’s Iftaar party on Friday,Laloo was busy expounding on his Assembly by-poll victories in Bihar to Sonia Gandhi,who simply kept nodding her head.