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 Way
to Go
Delhi: In
the sweltering summer, can our honourable ministers be expected to stay
put in the capital? Not by a long shot. Here's a sample of the travels of
some of the senior ministers. Home Minister L.K. Advani went to Israel,
Britain and France, ostensibly to imbibe the art of fighting terrorism
from the past masters. Defence Minister George Fernandes flew to the US,
Germany and Britain. Last heard, he was in Moscow. Pramod Mahajan, Ram
Vilas Paswan, Satya Narain Jatiya, Rajnath Singh and Murli Manohar Joshi
also did not want to be left behind. Jetsetting Foreign Minister Jaswant
Singh is out so often nobody notices when he flies out and flies in.
Time to Say Nay
Jaipur:
Imagine Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, former Rajasthan chief minister, without
the ubiquitous pan masala. Impossible, you would say. A pouch of pan
masala in his hands had become almost his trademark and BJP workers used
to present him with tins of masala instead of the usual bouquets. Even
after three bypass surgeries, Shekhawat failed to heed the warning. But
two months ago, after 50 years of tobacco-chewing, he kicked the habit.
All it took was will power, he says. Apparently, he has that in plenty.
Level Headed
Delhi:
What Sonia Gandhi wants, she normally manages to get. Her decision to
enlist the services of Pulak Chatterjee, an IAS officer, as her private
secretary (PS) led to some needless embarrassment. Chatterjee is a joint
secretary, while PSS of Union ministers -- as Leader of the Opposition,
Sonia holds cabinet rank -- are at best director-level officers. Pulak has
managed to sidestep the embarrassment. While signing letters, he notes
quite emphatically that he is a "PS at the level of joint secretary
to the leader of the Opposition".
Laloo's Last Shy?
Patna: The
next fatwa against Salman Rushdie will in all probability be issued in
Patna. Laloo Yadav is furious with Rushdie's book The Ground Beneath Her
Feet in which he feels he and Rabri Devi have been portrayed as the wily
politicians, the Doodhwala couple. "I will sue this Satan," says
Laloo. Rushdie's probably waiting.
| CONFESSIONAL |
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Cyril Mar Baselios took over last
week as president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India after
Archbishop Alan de Lastic's demise.
Q. You have taken over at a very
critical juncture.
A. A task unfinished has to be finished. The CBCI will continue to
play an inspirational role and serve the poorest of the poor.
Q. The prime minister says the attacks
on Christians are isolated cases. Your comments.
A. Any incident is isolated. But if there is a series of attacks,
there must be a connection. The motive may be political or religious. We
have to get to its root.
Q. What is the root?
A. Ignorance about the nature of Christianity and about the make-up of
India. Christians are working to empower the poor. This may be a threat to
those who want to keep them in ignorance. The only way out is dialogue.
Q. Do you think the Government is doing
enough?
A. No. The Government doesn't see the attacks as a moral problem. We
are not here to play politics. We are here for Dharma.
-S.Sahaya
Ranjit
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