Opinion Toeing a bad line

The larger attack,of course,is on the Congress-led government. The article claims that its economic policies have only resulted in the rich enjoying the fruits of the labour of the poor and the weak. Liberalisation,it says,has meant that a greater number of Indians have ended up poorer,along with a steep increase in the number of multi-millionaires and billionaires from India. It also alleges that the Planning Commission affidavit was filed with the knowledge and approval of the prime minister,and that the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council never raised objections either.

PC under attack

The lead editorial of Panchjanya,on the other hand,has focused on the 2G issue and the controversy over the damaging finance ministry note that was revealed by an RTI appeal. Contending that Home Minister P. Chidambaram’s days are numbered,it says that he continues in office now because of the protection being given by Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Chidambaram’s tenure as home minister has been a failure,it says,as he has neither been able to tackle the Naxal problem nor jihadi terrorism. Instead,to put a lid on his failures,he has propagated the theory of saffron terror,and had to issue clarifications after wide protests,the editorial claims.

Reservations about Mayawati

Panchajanya has launched a scathing attack on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati’s letter to the prime minister seeking reservations for backward Muslims in jobs and other areas by changing the Constitution if necessary. The move is an opportunistic one,it claims,coming at a time when assembly elections are not far away in the state. The Congress has also not been spared. The article alleges that the UPA government has promptly responded,in a positive manner,when it comes to minority appeasement politics. Refuting Mayawati’s claims of sympathy for Muslims,the article says that the BSP leader had,in fact,overturned a legislation passed by the Rajnath Singh government in 2002 that favoured reservations for the most backward Muslims.

Modi ‘vindicated’

The Organiser has come out with a full-page article lauding Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi,saying that the SC order in the Gulberg Society case now absolves him in the 2002 Gujarat riots. The attempt to build a case against Modi by Ehsan Jafri’s widow and human rights activists,by way of factual contradictions in complaints against him,has fallen flat,it contends. Given that the Gujarat chief minister has always had an uneasy relationship with the RSS,this article could be a sign of a change in their relationship.