Falling Star
The uproar over the prime minister's threat to resign may be over with the NDA reaffirming its faith and promising to behave. But the incident has called into question Vajpayee's inclination to govern. Buffeted by crises, is he preparing for a last bow? A report.

The Political Bank
The never-dying saga of UTI pitches the Government and the Opposition into the usual slanging match. More skeletons fall out of the UTI cupboard proving that the institution has been misused by politicians of all hues.

Crouching Tiger
Discontent is brewing in the RSS and the VHP over the coalition-hampered BJP and a pacifist Vajpayee being unable to push through the saffron programme. How long will it be before they refuse to toe the BJP line?

The Centre
Cannot Hold
Prodded by the DMK to requisition the services of three IPS officers involved in the arrest of M. Karunanidhi, the NDA Government is dragged into a constitutional debate.

Unravelling The Plot
A week after Samajwadi MP Phoolan Devi was gunned down by masked murderers, all the men believed to be involved have been arrested. Yet many questions remain to be answered before the case is solved.

Space Invaders
Research reveals life on earth may have originated from outer space comets.

FROM THE EDITOR IN CHIEF

	Some previous covers on Prime Minister Vajpayee

There seems to be an unwritten law that somewhere into the second year in office a government gets into a mid-tenure crisis and runs out of steam regardless of the size of its majority. It happened to Indira Gandhi, her son Rajiv Gandhi and even to the wily P.V. Narasimha Rao. That's why Atal Bihari Vajpayee walking out of a BJP Parliamentary Party meeting after offering his resignation evoked a sense of deja vu. Though the drama was short-lived and his leadership restored in a matter of 40 minutes, the signal that the event sent out is disturbing.

The most damaging is the impression that Vajpayee continues to be the captain but is not quite in charge. With all his personal popularity, integrity and experience, he is unable to cope with the pressures of coalition politics. In October 1999, when he took office for the third time, the Indian electorate had not given Vajpayee's BJP a majority, yet it was clear that people had placed their trust in him. Twenty months later, bullied by allies, stunned by the Tehelka expose, hurt by attacks on the dubious roles being played by people close to him and plagued by ill health, the prime minister seems out of sorts. The seemingly impulsive decision to offer his resignation conveys the impression that either his heart is no longer in the job or that the sheer magnitude of the challenges has finally overwhelmed him. Our cover story this week is an assessment of the reasons why and the circumstances in which he has come to this pass. The irony in Vajpayee's case is that while his mass appeal is largely intact, he is stumbling to carry his will among his own partymen and coalition partners. The contradictions in Indian politics never cease to amaze me.

(Aroon Purie)

MetroScape

Man Of Many Parts
Dilip Chhabria is shifting gears. The 48-year-old ex-designer, rejuvenating the geriatric Ambassador and, sacrilege, redesigning the Mercedes, is diversifying.
more...

Looking Glass

Kolkata Aroma Bar:
The Address

Delhi Exhibition: Journey-Yatra

Bangalore Restauran t: Ai Cavalli

Bangalore Ice-dems : Stem dance theatre

Bangalore Furniture : Cinnamon

Kolkata & Delhi Play: Macbeth

Mumbai Photography : R. Veeresh Babu

Clinical tests of a controversial drug at a Kerala cancer institute exposes the vulnerability of the medical field to a larger malaise. An investigation by India Today Special Correspondent M.G. Radhakrishnan in
Trial And Error