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BARU BAITERS BEWARE
DANFES
Dr. Sanjay Baru, eminent economic editor, who became
the media advisor of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the eminent economist who
became Prime Minister, has also no t
been spared the speculatory pinpricking by fellow media persons. Irked
by his near indispensibility and total credibility for the Prime
Minister of India, the Baru-baiters and Baru-bashers have begun to
floats ill wind stories about him. Their jealousy and anger arises from
the fact that the Prime Minister generally wants Dr. Baru by his side
when he is interacting with the media. When he is travelling on
important missions and projects, Baru is by his side. During his tours
in the country and outside, Baru has to be by the side of his boss most
of the times. On rare occasions when the media advisor may take a few
hours off, monitors start tracing him fervently with the message that he
is immediately wanted by the Prime Minister. A habitual hard worker
although he might not be as free as he was as an editor, the media
advisor to the Prime Minister, still maintains the nine a.m. to nine
p.m. routine of daily work and sometimes works for hours later than that
even. Tackling his bonded duties as a disciplined civil servant, a
different experience from the highly independent environment of an
editor’s office, he has earned in a short period more respect and
confidence from an important section of the media community on the other
side than most previous prime ministerial media advisors. And those who
continue to float speculations about his imminent departure from the PMO
in South Block, better beware. The insiders say he is very much there
and shall continue to be there, because he knows where the news is and
what it really is.
CONFUSING THE CONFUSERS
The Indian media pundits have earned great reputation
for scooping, scalping and sensationalising news to confuse both the
newsmakers and news-readers and news watche rs.
But for once, they were caught at the wrong end of the confusion code.
In the case of the Patent Bill, when they tried to scoop its creation
and sanctioning by the President of India, they were put off the scoop
scent by the minister sponsors this legislation, Mr Kamal Nath. He gave
them the impression that the Government contemplated no such bill and it
was not even under consideration. In a way he was right. The bill had
already been consideration and forwarded by the Union Cabinet for
Presidential approval. When its existence became officially public, the
scribes rushed to Mr. Kamal Nath, demanding to know why all that
confusion and why the were kept in the dark. The minister had the last
laugh. He pointed out to them that if they had been taken into
confidence beforehand and information had leaked out to them, would not
the bill had itself developed so many leaks that its existence would be
endangered. He had the satisfaction of confusing the confusers. Ha! Ha!
Ha!
CLASH OF THE TRAIN DRIVERS
More than the clash between various political parties
and the groups and factions within the political parties the assembly
polls in Bihar and Jharkhand have becam e
the most unusual clash and crash between rail drivers. Three rail
ministers – Laloo Yadav, Nitish Kumar and Shibu Soren – are headed for
the poll junction in a head-on collision. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha
Rail, the Rabri Janata
Dal Rail and the Nitish Dal Rail, all are headed for the political Patna
and Ranchi stations. Whose train will be derailed in this collision
politics
which has clearly replaced the collision politics of yesterday nobody
knows. One thing is certain, whichever rail driver may be the victim of
the crash more than the others, there is one happy railway guard that is
certainly going to benefit. That guard this time is the Congress Party.
Paswan, Laloo, Shiboo and Nitish might consider themselves clever than
the other but all of them certainly cannot come up toppers. So watch out
for the great clash and crash of the rail drivers in Bihar and Jharkhand.
WHO WILL BE THE KING?
The throne of Patliputra is anxiously awaiting a new
king. In modern parlance the question is : who will be the Chief
Minister of Bihar? Will it be Laloo or Rabri again?
Will it be Nitish Kumar or will be Ram Vilas Paswan? Last time Nitish
Kumar almost missed the bus thanks to his allies who proved more
liabilities than assets. This time Paswan’s stakes were high and chances
brighter felt his supporters. But what really worried him was a friendly
kiss of death. That was symbolised by the public support which the BJP
political chess-master, Sushil Modi was offering from public platform.
How he wished that the saffron saints kept their blessing private and
less vocal. The louder they offered their support, the deadlier became
the kiss of death, and that made many wonder. Who was the BJP really
targetting? Was it Paswan or Laloo or Nitish? Only time and poll results
will tell.
THE SEER SAYS "ILLAY"
The Shankaracharya-baiter Jaya Jayalalithaa has tried
every trick in her armoury to insult, provoke, needle and destroy the
public image of the Shan karacharya
of Kanchi, Shri Jayendra Saraswathi. Despite that the Supreme Court
finally granted the seer bail. Jaya Ama did not stop at that, she got
the Junior Shankracharya Vijyendra Saraswathi too involved in the
dragnet of investigation and prosecution. But still it seems that she
has not got yet what she wanted, incriminating evidence about the funds
and accounts of the Kanchipeetham. Even the BJP, her faithful friend and
ally of sometime ago has turned against her and seems to have cause some
clouds on her political future. When the senior seer came out on bail,
he uttered no words of anger and invective against his tormentor, when
he saw her posters plastered all over the walls, he said just one Tamil
word of great significance…"Illay". That simple word mean No. No more.
Was it a prediction of the beginning at some kind of an end for
somebody?
CHAUTALA AND BUZZING FLIES
Political flies are buzzing around the Haryana Titan
Om Prakash Chautala and trying their best to sting him all over. He
calls Bhajan Lal and Surjewala as the big political flies buzzing around
him and tying to bite him every minute. To conquer the forthcoming
Haryana poll, Chautala goes to Jat gatherings and lashes at Ahirs, goes
to Ahir ga therings
and lashes against the scheduled castes and goes to the scheduled caste
gathering and blasts the Muslims in order to bust the vote banks of his
opponents, what Bhajan and Surjewala are doing is that they go to the
Jat gathering and repeat what he said about Jats, to Ahir gathering and
repeat what he said about the Muslims. A fly-bitten Chautala is
obviously irritated and calls them poll flies which have to be dealt
with like all other flies. He says he knows how to do it. How will he do
it? The Haryana voters are waiting to see.
And Chautala’s poll strategy has set off new campaign
technology too. He has got designed a hydraulic jeep. With the touch of
a button it roof opens and a poll dais cames out with Chautala on top.
He addresses his poll audiences and at the end of his address, with
another touch of the button down goes the mobile poll dais and up comes
the roof. Commented the grand old man of Haryana politics, Chautala
Bansi Lal, "Why does he continue falling up and out? What cannot be stay
down there, where he really belongs?"
Tailpiece
Question is the same being asked everywhere. But this
time in Haryana, who will be the Chief Minister if Congress gets 40
seats? Bright polsters say, Bhajan Lal. And if Congress gets 50 seats
then who will be the C.M.? The answer is : Congress. |
