Opinion Incredible timing
The three-minute visual was to have been shown in movie theatres,television channels,on YouTube and other social networking sites.
Incredible timing
After hiring advertising gurus from Mumbai and spending several crores,the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting last year produced an Incredible India video for the benefit of foreign tourists. The three-minute visual was to have been shown in movie theatres,television channels,on YouTube and other social networking sites. While the earlier Incredible India theme was the white male traveller,this time the focus was on a white woman tourist visiting India. The video showed the woman travelling solo,riding a motorcycle in Leh,cycling through the deserts of Rajasthan,boating in Kerala,hiking in the snow mountains,travelling in a jeep through game parks,and so on. Just as the film was ready for release,the Delhi gangrape took place in December last year. The ministry realised that the message of the ad film was unlikely to be received well. The whole campaign was scrapped. But someone has uploaded the video on YouTube anyway.
Pragmatic NaMo
People question whether Narendra Modi,as a potential prime minister,can successfully handle a coalition government since in Gujarat he runs an authoritarian one-man show in which party colleagues have almost no role. But as journalist Kingshuk Nag points out in his just-released biography of Modi,The Namo Story,there is also a pragmatic side to the Gujarat Chief Minister. This was displayed when Modi,as national secretary of the BJP,helped P K Dhumal set up a government in Himachal Pradesh with the backing of Sukh Ram against whom the CBI had registered cases. When questioned how the BJP,which claimed to be the party with a difference,could align with the tainted Sukh Ram,Modi was quick to take recourse to mythology. His answer: In order to usher in Ram Rajya,sometimes you have to take the help of Vibhishana. In the Ramayana,even Ram had to attack Bali from behind. He added that since the voter had not given a majority to any party,the message from the people was to form a coalition government.
Courteous for a reason?
On the BJPs foundation day on April 6,party president Rajnath Singh gave special importance to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. When the BJP Delhi office enquired whether Singh wanted to be the final speaker at the Ahmedabad function,since the seniormost speaker is usually the last to address the gathering,Rajnath did not make it an ego issue and agreed that he would speak before Modi. Though Singh has gone out of his way to accommodate Modi,not all are convinced his motives are entirely above board. They feel Singh is working on the assumption that the early bird does not necessarily catch the worm in politics. If Modis chances as a prime ministerial candidate get scuttled due to in-fighting,Singhs own chances could brighten. Vijay Goels recent remark that the BJP would face the challenge of the coming polls under the leadership of L K Advani is seen as part of a game plan to de-rail Modi.
Gender insensitive
Human rights activists are upset over the proposal to appoint former Supreme Court judge Cyriac Joseph as a member of the National Human Rights Commission. Their point is that Josephs track record in dealing with gender issues does not inspire confidence. The judge had earned a reputation for making allegedly derogatory remarks against women lawyers during court hearings. Besides,the Kozhikode Bar Association had passed a resolution,criticising him for his visit to the forensic science lab in Bangalore that had conducted the narco analysis tests of the accused in the Sister Abhaya murder case. Earlier,Josephs candidature for the post of chairperson of the Telecom Dispute Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) ran into trouble because of his allegedly tardy record in delivering verdicts. During his 1,300 days as a Supreme Court judge,he had delivered just a handful of judgments.
Unhealthy environment
Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan has written to FICCI,criticising it for sending an all-party delegation of MPs to Sri Lanka to conduct bilateral talks. Stating that she was writing in her personal capacity,Natarajan wanted FICCI to cancel the trip in solidarity with the suffering of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and to respect the feelings of the people of Tamil Nadu. She felt that by engaging in Track 2 dialogue with their Sri Lankan counterparts,her parliamentary colleagues were sending the message that it was business as usual. Despite the ministers letter,the team,including Sandeep Dikshit (Congress),Prakash Javadekar (BJP),Anurag Thakur (BJP),Madhu Goud Yaskhi (Congress),Dhananjay Singh (BSP) and Saugata Roy (TMC) left for Sri Lanka.
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