Opinion Telling absence

Blowing his cover

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s visit to lay the foundation stone at the International Buddhist University at Sanchi,Madhya Pradesh,was to have been a private trip. But the MEA had to change the plan and make it an official visit after BJP leader Sushma Swaraj,who incidentally has campaigned for the cause of Tamil fishermen allegedly harassed by Sri Lankan authorities,announced publicly that Rajapaksa would be visiting the country. The Indian government had no alternative but to invite Rajapaksa for talks with the President and the Prime Minister,leading to protests in Tamil Nadu.

Slap on face

Narendra Modi’s feisty style is apparent even in his advertising campaign. There is a visual of a Gujarati man getting a resounding slap on his face,which is shown on social networking websites Twitter and Facebook. The slap is meant to symbolise the ‘step-motherly’ way the Central government treats Gujarat. The Centre,the ad says,ploughs back into the state only a very small fraction of what it receives from Gujarat by way of taxes. The Congress has reacted to the campaign by saying that it is totally unsuitable in the land of Gandhi where violence is abhorred. Some civil society groups have even sought legal opinion to see if it can be stopped.

Foot in the mouth

Home Secretary R K Singh,like his predecessor G K Pillai,seems to suffer from the foot-in-the-mouth syndrome. Singh created waves when he claimed that the internet service providers sending out messages to ‘disturb communal harmony’ in Assam were all located in Pakistan. But the PMO downplayed the Home Ministry’s allegation by not raising the issue with Pakistan. Similarly,Singh’s allegation of a terrorist plot in Karnataka masterminded by Pakistan and involving arch enemies Iran and Saudi Arabia, fell flat,with Foreign Minister S M Krishna not referring to the issue during his trip to Pakistan. Singh,incidentally,was missing from the prestigious DGPs’ annual conference.

No flights of fancy

Rahul Gandhi was insistent on flying from Kokrajhar to Guwahati earlier this month,even though the IAF pilot explained that weather conditions and approaching sunset made it dangerous to fly. The pilot’s view eventually prevailed. Nearly 25 years ago,Rahul’s father Rajiv Gandhi had faced a somewhat similar situation when he wanted to return from Chowra Island in the Andamans to INS Godavari but the Sea King helicopter,which was to transport him,was not expected for another two hours. Rajiv insisted on flying back with Sonia Gandhi in a Chetak helicopter parked at the helipad,although the single-engine aircraft is not cleared for VIP flights. After some debate,the admiral in charge of the trip agreed on a compromise formula whereby Sonia and Rajiv would fly back to the ship on separate

Chetak helicopters.

Protocol hitch

Although the DMK insisted on boycotting the lunch thrown by Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah for President Pranab Mukherjee,a delegation from the DMK led by M K Stalin met Mukherjee immediately after the lunch. A member of the DMK group complained that those who did not vote for Mukherjee were invited to the lunch while those who had given their votes to the President,were on the road. An AIADMK functionary,who overheard the conversation,joked that those who gave the votes were present but those who made notes were excluded from the DMK delegation. He was referring to the fact that none of the suspects in the 2G scam were present. The DMK is annoyed that the President did not pay a courtesy call on DMK leader M Karunanidhi,who was among the first to express support for Mukherjee as President. Mukherjee was willing to visit Karunanidhi but he was overruled by his protocol department.