Today in politics: Manipur video heat felt in Gujarat tribal belt; BJP seeks to keep the Bengal panchayat poll pot boiling

The Congress Saturday said it would be supporting the protest, after tribal bodies reached out to it. Blaming the BJP government for the situation in Manipur, Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said the bandh “will be effective in the entire tribal belt, from Ambaji in the north to Umergoan in the south”.

In last year’s Assembly elections, the BJP had sprung a surprise by sweeping the 14-district tribal belt in Gujarat, where the Congress had done very well in 2017. In many crucial seats, the Congress had finished behind AAP, as reported by Aditi Raja in her analysis of the results.

Amit Shah push for Chhattisgarh polls

Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Raipur on Saturday evening for meetings to “fine-tune” the BJP’s preparations for the coming Chhattisgarh elections, in his fourth visit to the state this year. Sources said Shah held a closed-door meeting soon after arrival with state BJP chief Arun Sao, former CM Raman Singh, Chhattisgarh BJP in-charge Om Mathur, co-in charge Nitin Nabin and Leader of the Opposition Narayan Chandel.

The talks are expected to continue on Sunday morning, before Shah’s departure for Delhi.

The Congress, which scored one of its biggest poll victories in recent times in Chhattisgarh in 2018, is confident of returning to power in the coming elections, as Jayprakash S Naidu has been reporting.

The BJP has started its counter-offensive, and since the Manipur video surfaced, has been raising alleged instances of sexual assault in Chhattisgarh.

The Gurbani question

Just before the SGPC’s contract with PTC Channel over the broadcast of the Gurbani at Golden Temple was to end Sunday, it appealed to the channel to continue the same, till alternative arrangements are made by it. But a big question remained unanswered: will the SGPC pay Rs 12 lakh from its pocket and provide free Gurbani Kirtan signal to PTC, in which Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Badal has a majority stake? The SGPC has promised a solution by Sunday.

Last year, PTC paid more than Rs 16 lakh per month to the SGPC for exclusive rights to the live broadcast.

The SGPC finds itself in a spot over the contract as the Aam Aadmi Party government has held it up as another proof of the inordinate influence of the Badals over the body that is responsible for running Sikh holy shrines across the country. CM Bhagwant Mann last month offered to pay all expenses for broadcasting Gurbani across channels free of cost, questioning why it is being telecast by the Badals’ channel.

The SGPC has announced that it will be launching its own channel, and using its s own social media platforms, for the broadcast of the Gurbani. Meanwhile, a firm shortlisted by it as a replacement is also facing allegations of links with PTC and the Badal family, Kamaldeep Singh Brar reported.

The long trail of Bengal panchayat polls

The BJP is determined to keep highlighting the violence during the recent panchayat polls in the state, and it is also using the same to hit back at the Trinamool Congress when confronted with the Manipur violence. On Sunday, yet another team of BJP leaders, this time five of its MPs belonging to Scheduled Castes — Vinod Sonkar, Manoj Rajouri, Vinod Chavda, Suresh Kashyap and S Muniswamy – will be visiting households of three victims of the post-poll violence, as well as meeting “homeless” BJP workers and winning candidates, at the Arambagh district BJP office.

The panchayat polls had seen widespread violence, with more than 50 people believed killed since the election process began.