Opinion Inside Track: On the Mat
On the International Yoga Day, there was no shortage of yoga enthusiasts. However, a shortage of mats was the problem.
The number of participants for the yoga display at Rajpath last Sunday should normally have been rounded off to 40,000 instead of the figure of 37,500.
The number of participants for the yoga display at Rajpath last Sunday should normally have been rounded off to 40,000 instead of the figure of 37,500. There was no shortage of yoga enthusiasts. However, a shortage of mats was the problem. The cap was fixed at 37,500 because that was the number of mats procured in Delhi. Most of the mats were made in China, thinner than normal and of such poor quality that they did not fit the standard size of 6 by 3 foot. Thus, some of the more portly yoga practitioners were spilling out of the mats. Incidentally, the women who were performing yoga around Narendra Modi were all from the police force and provided a security cover to the PM.
Weak Foundation
A month back, the Home Ministry passed orders against the Ford Foundation, India, for violating government regulations. The foundation, it was discovered, is not incorporated under any act in India. The foundation has also been booked for disbursing funds to 35 Indian NGOs who have not complied with the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. The foundation has thus been prohibited from drawing funds from its headquarters in the US. Its existing bank account funds will permit payment to its employees only for the next two months. The Home Ministry has pointed out that the foundation came to India in the Fifties under an MoU signed with ministries of agriculture and finance to sponsor schemes concerning rural upliftment. Subsequently, it did not register itself as a company either under the Societies Act or the India Trusts Act. When FERA came into effect in 1973, it did not seek permission to open a liaison office in India. It did not comply with FCRA 1976, FERA 1999, FCRA 2010. It provided no details for the Know Your Customer form on its Indian bank accounts. The foundation and the US ambassador have petitioned Indian officials and ministers hoping that their clout is sufficient to surmount their predicament. However, as yet an appointment with the Prime Minister has not materialised.
Rahul’s new avatar
Since Rahul Gandhi is sweating it out on tours in far-flung parts of India, some of his pampered party colleagues find it embarrassing to leave for their summer vacation abroad. Close observers have noticed some minor changes in Rahul’s behaviour in his new avatar. He no longer rolls up his sleeves. He refrains from addressing everybody as bhaiya and is delivering his speeches at a slower pace than before .
Thanking Gadkari
Nitin Gadkari, who is not part of Modi’s camp, met Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje early this week. Raje reportedly complained that the Centre had not fully backed her over charges of abetting Lalit Modi. In contrast, the Modi government had gone out of its way to bail out Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu who is accused of trying to bribe legislators in the Telangana Assembly in the MLC elections. Raje wanted the Centre to set up an SIT to investigate the Lalit Modi allegations against her. An SIT would presumably buy time and divert attention. Within a day of Gadkari’s visit, the Supreme Court-appointed SIT on black money asked the Enforcement Directorate for details of the Modi probe. The Rajasthan Cabinet passed a resolution thanking Gadkari, ostensibly for providing funds for the expansion of the road network in the state. Modi realises that any step against Sushma Swaraj or Raje would mean that his rivals led by Rajnath Singh would gang up against him.
Cabinet wrangle
There are differences between the Home and I&B ministries over the decision to cancel security clearances to 33 channels of the Sun TV network belonging to the DMK’s Kalanidhi Maran and his brother Dayanidhi. The cancellation order by Rajnath Singh’s ministry is on the grounds that the channel promoter was involved in the 2G scam and the channel’s funding from abroad is dubious. In 2002, the Home Ministry took a similar view when Jaya TV’s license was cancelled as one of its directors had economic offences case registered against her. But the I&B Ministry headed by Arun Jaitley took a contrary view after getting the legal opinion of Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi. The AG’s view was that money laundering does not concern national security. Eventually, the PM will take a call on whether to cancel the channel’s licenses. The fact that the AIADMK is getting close to the NDA might influence the outcome.
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