| Newsnotes Delhi: Non Voyage
A fallout of the rapidly heating political climate was that the two leading lights of
the BJP had to cancel their foreign trips. Atal Bihari Vajpayee was scheduled to be in New
York for the un General Assembly session, where the address of the leader of the
Opposition has become a tradition of sorts. And last week, Advani should have been
enjoying the sights and sounds of Madrid in Spain where he was invited to a function to
mark the golden jubilee of Indian Independence. But as it turned out, both had to cancel
their trips at the very last minute. An indication perhaps of the situation hotting up in
Gujarat and at the Centre. Vajpayee, however, is the more fortunate of the two. Despite
the taboo on Brahmins crossing the seven seas, he remains a widely-travelled politicians
-- even in these crisis-ridden times. Last month, amidst the turmoil in Lucknow and Delhi,
he managed to squeeze in a trip to Bulgaria and the UAE.
Delhi: Home Comfort
If the Central Government has its way, T.N. Seshan could soon find himself living in
humbler premises. For now though, the former chief election commissioner (CEC) is not
budging from his elegant Pandara Road residence which has a market rent of Rs 20,000 a
month.
Seshan contends that he is entitled to spacious accommodation as he falls under Y
category security. But officials maintain that he does not as he has ceased to be the CEC.
One option for him would be to shift to type VI quarters that he is entitled to. And that
wouldn't be a bad deal. For he will then have worthies like Congressmen H.K.L. Bhagat and
K.K. Tewary, who face serious threats to their lives, as neighbours.
Ahmedabad: Mixed Blessings
After the mild-mannered Dilip Parikh took over from mentor Shankersinh Vaghela as
Gujarat chief minister, the first thing he did was to visit former chief minister
Keshubhai Patel. Nothing wrong, except that Parikh, under Vaghela's leadership, had
toppled the Patel ministry in October 1995. So when Parikh, accompanied by his wife,
sought Patel's blessings "at this great moment of ours", all he got by way of
response was a "do come over again for lunch". When Parikh's wife pleaded with
Patel to forget the past and bless her husband, the BJP leader refused again. But despite
the snub, Parikh was magnanimous. Conceding that Patel was bound to feel bitter after the
way things had gone between them, Parikh said: "But I am sure the degree of
bitterness must have come down considerably following my gesture." For Parikh's sake,
one hopes he is right.
Mumbai: Audio Problem
The Shiv Sena-BJP regime in Mumbai is faced with a piquant situation. Maharashtra and
Goa Governor P.C. Alexander, at a recent conference in Goa, apparently agreed with the
view that there "is a law and order problem" in Mumbai. Quick on the draw, the
Government denied that the Governor ever said such a thing. So did the Governor. But
matters didn't end there. The language dailies published the transcript of the
conversation in which Alexander does say on tape -- with adequate qualifications -- that
there is a law and order problem. A copy of the tape has now reached rabble-rouser and
Sainik-turned-Congressman Chaggan Bhujbal (which means Sharad Pawar also has it). But like
the Sena, he too is faced with a piquant situation. He (and the Congress) can't quite make
out if Alexander is saying there is a problem or is saying there isn't. On top of it, the
Congress can't figure out how to put this little piece of evidence to use.
Mumbai: Raw Emissary
It was Madhavrao Scindia playing the Congress big boss in Mumbai recently. On his
maiden visit as aicc general secretary, Scindia mouthed boring platitudes like "all
factions must come together" and so on -- a visit that had more to do with
showmanship than substance. Congress stalwarts in Maharashtra are still at each others'
throats, groupism is thriving, party workers are as disheartened as ever. This has
apparently dawned on party chief Sitaram Kesri, who sent Scindia as his emissary. Anxious
to turn around the state unit, he has now thrust the responsibility on his favourite
mission-man Tariq Anwar. Apparently, Anwar will go through the routine of
"understanding the minds of various leaders" before suggesting a course of
action to the party president. If Scindia has no stomach for the cut-throat politicking
among the Marathas, can Anwar, who is more of a novice, accomplish what the senior leader
couldn't? Kesri is hoping he will at least make some breakthrough.
Bhopal: Acid Tongue
When former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Govind Narayan Singh -- the maverick
politician who pioneered defections in the late '60s -- decided to break his decade-long
silence last week by inviting the press to a post-Diwali gathering, a few feathers were
expected to be ruffled. So when someone asked him about his views on Chief Minister
Digvijay Singh, the veteran quipped: "Opinions can be given about humans, what do you
say about a person who calls himself a dog?" Singh obviously was taking a dig at
Digvijay's dog-on-a-pilgrimage anecdote at a Congress meet in Indore recently. And
Digvijay was not the only one receiving a tongue-lashing. Singh pointed out that Arjun
Singh, by nominating seven family members as mpcc delegates, had made a sham of the
party's organisational elections. And Madhavrao Scindia, he recalled, was the man who
persuaded him to topple the Congress ministry in 1967 and helped him become chief
minister. As for suggestions on resurrecting the Congress, he had aplenty. But, given
Singh's blitzkrieg against an array of Congress leaders, it's doubtful if there would be
any takers.
Bangalore: Market Value
For the third time, former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda failed to turn up to
inaugurate the revamped Sri Krishna Rajendra Market in Bangalore last week. As usual, he
made some last-minute excuse, but it seems there's more to Deve Gowda's absence than meets
the eye. In fact, his confidant and Civil Aviation Minister C.M. Ibrahim hit the nail on
its head with the counter-question: "How can you expect a former prime minister to
inaugurate a city market?" Incidentally, the refurbished complex -- which took nine
years and Rs 36 crore to revamp -- was eventually opened by Chief Minister J.H. Patel, who
described it as the world's largest retail market. But as an observer remarked,
"prime minister" Deve Gowda had no qualms in inaugurating community halls,
petrol pumps or milk booths in Karnataka just to be there. But now as an ex-prime minister
he sees himself differently. And even as Patel extolled the salient features of the
market, the absentee chief guest chose to sit with an astrologer for almost four hours in
Mangalore district before airdashing to Delhi.
Thiruvananthapuram: Twisted Chapter
It is the most celebrated chapter in Kerala's Communist movement. But the
Punnapra-Vayalar uprising of 1946 -- when agricultural labourers led by the Communist
party rose in revolt against the then Maharaja of Travancore and his autocratic Diwan Sir
C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyer -- has become a subject of heated controversy. What has triggered the
row is Union Home Minister Indrajit Gupta's assurance to the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic
Front Kerala Government that the uprising would soon be granted recognition as part of the
Independence struggle.
Successive Congress governments in the state have refused it this status, backed by the
finding of the A.P. Udayabhanu Committee (appointed in 1986 by the then Congress-led state
government) that the villagers rose in revolt against their social and economic
backwardness and that it occurred after the provisional Congress government under
Jawaharlal Nehru assumed charge. The bjp says it would lead a protest movement if the
uprising is granted the status of a freedom struggle. But with a sympathetic home minister
at the Centre, it may only be a matter of time before this "freedom struggle"
gets cabinet approval.
Bhopal: Breaking Ranks
After the split in Uttar Pradesh, it was another blow for the Congress in Madhya
Pradesh. Last week the party leadership had reasons for worry as Dilip Singh Bhuria,
tribal leader and the party's sole MP from western Madhya Pradesh, floated a parallel
outfit -- MP New Congress Forum. His demand: more power to the weaker sections as the
party is now in the hands of a maharaja (Madhavrao Scindia), two rajas (Chief Minister
Digvijay Singh and Arjun Singh) and a rani (mPCC President Urmila Singh).
The Forum can pose a problem for the Congress leadership because the party banks
heavily on the support of tribals. Only recently, Arvind Netam, a tribal leader from
Bastar, had rebelled and joined the Bahujan Samaj Party. Though Bhuria and his lieutenant
Aslam Sher Khan have not yet been able to muster enough support within the party, they
expect the Forum's ranks to swell in the countdown to the elections.
The state Congress leadership has frowned upon the new pressure group. "This is
sheer indiscipline. We have brought it to the notice of the AICC," says Urmila Singh.
But with Congress President Sitaram Kesri having to walk the tightrope among dissident
groups in various states, the question remains as to whether the party can enforce
discipline.
Bangalore: United Effort
The Diwali gift that both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were waiting for -- the surrender of
forest brigand Veerappan -- never materialised. Considering it was the third time that he
had led them up the garden path, the two governments (which have spent Rs 22 crore on
special task forces to nab him over the past six years) have decided to go in for the
kill.
Veerappan has made a fresh set of demands in an audio tape sent to both the chief
ministers asking for, among other things, Rs 50 lakh for each of his seven gang members
and the release of his brother Koose Madaiah. Says Karnataka chief Minister J.H. Patel:
"We cannot go on like this. We have decided on joint action."
That the two governments are determined this time is evident from the fact that they
have set up a joint command headed by Tamil Nadu IG (law and order) P. Kalimuthu to launch
fresh operations against Veerappan. Senior police officers say that he is unlikely to
surrender soon. "He will use the time before the joint force moves in to plant
landmines," says former Tamil Nadu Special Task Force chief Walter Dewaram. If that
happens, it means another round of bloodletting in the Male Mahadeshwara Hills --
Veerappan's hideout.
Hyderabad: Statue Scam
Congress President Sitaram Kesri's first visit to Andhra Pradesh last month after
taking over the party reins was memorable in more ways than one. Besides getting a
first-hand feel of dissidence in the state Congress, he had the privilege of unveiling a
statue of Rajiv Gandhi in Nellore which lost shape after a downpour. "This is a
scam," thundered state Youth Congress General Secretary K. Srinivasulu Reddy, who
accused former chief minister N. Janardhana Reddy of installing the statue hurriedly. And
to register their protest, party workers stood at the site for two minutes "to pray
for Rajiv's soul". With a leadership tussle on, there was none to defend an
embarrassed Reddy.
Chandigarh: Show of Strength
Punjab Congressmen obviously don't learn from their mistakes. Nine months after a
humiliating rout in the assembly elections, they are battling not the ruling Akali Dal-bjp
combine but each other.
Dissidents, led by former PCC chief Santokh Singh Randhawa and former Youth Congress
president M.S. Bitta, have raised a banner of revolt against PCC chief Rajinder Kaur
Bhattal, who is also leader of the Congress Legislature Party. The point of dissent:
Bhattal's two posts. In a show of strength against her, they held an impressive rally in
Jalandhar on November 1.
Calling the rally "anti-party", Bhattal has threatened action against the
rebels. But with the support of nine out of 14 party MLAs, they are in no mood to relent.
The dissidents have now decided to serve an ultimatum to Congress President Sitaram Kesri,
who is unlikely to be amused by this open defiance of his call for unity in the party.
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