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AICC media cell in charge,Janardhan Dwivedi,was sitting in Parliament’s Central Hall with Congress political secretary Ahmed Patel and M.L. Fotedar when he discovered his cellphone was missing. Dwivedi raised an alarm. Parliament’s watch and ward staff was alerted and a search launched since Dwivedi feared he might have left the phone behind in the Rajya Sabha. He even asked some of his party colleagues whether they had picked up his phone by mistake. Dwivedi was particularly concerned that Sonia Gandhi might telephone him and her call would go unanswered. Finally a journalist suggested that the three senior Congresspersons get up from the bench where they were sitting and look there. Sure enough,the phone,which was on silent mode,was found stuck between the bench and the carpet.

Match point of order

In the match between Parliamentarians XI and Journalists XI last Saturday,some believe that the difference between a draw and a defeat was brought about by BJP MP and fielder Dushyant Singh,who acted instinctively as a parliamentarian and not a cricketer. The two teams were tied at 164 when cameraman Chirag hit the last ball and started to run. Dushyant,son of Vasundhara Raje Scindia,raised his hand in appeal to the umpire to claim LBW. If he had instead concentrated on catching the ball and hitting the wicket,the batsmen might well have been out. But it is practically a reflex act of most MPs to first appeal to the Chair.

Gadkari outweighs Advani

If the timing of Nitin Gadkari’s takeover as BJP President was inauspicious,with the party losing ground in the local elections in Gadkari’s home district of Nagpur,Rajnath Singh’s departure time was equally inauspicious. The BJP lost badly in Jharkhand,a state which Singh had taken personal charge of. As with Haryana earlier,disassociating with a reliable friend,former party leader Babulal Marandi,cost the party dearly and made the difference between defeat and victory. Still,Singh feels his term as president was successful with the number of states ruled by the BJP increasing from four to eight. Singh believes his image was tarnished by the English language media out to mock a simple Hindi speaking politician from rural India,at the behest of his sophisticated detractors within the BJP. Making clear on which side he is on in the party’s internecine warfare,Singh said that Gadkari was far more powerful than Advani.

Home truths

Home Minister P. Chidambaram was invited to participate in a peace march in the Naxalite affected district of Dandtewada in Chhattisgarh,organised by an NGO Vikas Chetna manch. But Chhattisgarh governor E A S Narasimhan had serious reservations,which he conveyed to the PM in a letter. The Governor felt the minister’s participation would harden positions on both sides and make peace talks difficult. The Prime Minister has forwarded the letter to the Home Minister and advised him to stay away.

Waning clout

Amar Singh’s doctor cautioned him to take complete rest after his kidney transplant operation in Singapore but Singh says he is forced to run around because of his heavy workload. His critics in the Samajwadi Party say the general secretary is hyperactive simply because of self-imposed work as he fears for his political survival. Singh’s clout in Bollywood also seems to be waning. The starry line up at industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s function to felicitate cricketer Sachin Tendulkar recently included representatives from all Bollywood’s major film families. The Bachchans,one of the few who remain loyal to the Amar Singh-Anil Ambani camp,were conspicuous by their absence.