|
Locked-out Front Delhi: United
Front (UF) leaders, who haven't held a meeting in a long time, decided to meet last week
and discuss the emerging political scenario. As agreed, four senior leaders of the front
-- H.S. Surjeet, H.D. Deve Gowda, A.B. Bardhan and Murasoli Maran -- landed at the UF
office on Akbar Road. But they were surprised to see the office locked and no one in the
vicinity. While the leaders waited on the verandah, their security guards tried
desperately to locate the office secretary. Half an hour later, they found his house, only
to learn that the man had left for his village. To make the most of a bad situation, the
four sat inside one of the air-conditioned cars and chatted for 15 minutes before one of
them slammed the brakes on the talks and each went his own way.
Selling Hype
Hyderabad: When
a consortium of Indian corporates reached an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh Government
for setting up a world-class business school near Hyderabad, there were praises galore for
the city. In fact, Housing Development Finance Corporation chief Deepak Parekh joked that
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu's plans for the state should also include the weather.
Asked for his response, Naidu quipped, "Definitely. Hyderabad is the second most
pleasant city after Bangalore." And, as a quick afterthought, he added: "No.
Hyderabad is the first place in the country to have such pleasant weather. Bangalore is
getting polluted." No wonder, people are referring to Hyderabad-turned-Cyberabad as
Hyperabad.
Aerial Attack
Mumbai: Pramod
Mahajan has been accused of being a dalal (middleman) before, but the BJP leader sure
wasn't expecting it from one of his allies. The latest blow came from the Shiv Sena and
the sharpshooter was Sanjay Nirupam, Mahajan's colleague in the Rajya Sabha and editor of
Hindi eveninger Dopahar Ka Saamna. In a scathing piece, Nirupam vented his ire at the rank
injustice to the Tatas' airline proposal, saying it was Mahajan who first argued against
the Tata-Singapore Airlines proposal in Parliament. Why? Because his friend Naresh Goyal's
Jet Airways would have faced stiff competition from the Tatas. That Nirupam has Sena chief
Bal Thackeray's blessings to shoot from the hip is a telling sign of the times to come.
Power Chips
Lucknow:
Perhaps inspired by Chandrababu Naidu, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh has also
taken to computers in a major way. He works on his personal computer -- which has a
databank on developmental works -- late in the night "when he is free", so an
insider informs. Not only that, he has also given a laptop to Chief Secretary Yogendra
Narain for better administration. State departments too have been asked to create their
own websites to project the state's potential through the Internet. But his concern and
efforts do not match with the stability of his government, which faces a serious threat
should the Supreme Court disqualify the BSP's breakaway faction that is propping him up.
Proxy Rule
Patna: Union
Minister of State for Programme Implementation Ram Naik had a first-hand experience of how
RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav continues to call the shots in Bihar. Naik confessed that his
recent visit to the state materialised thanks solely to Laloo. A few days before the trip,
he was informed by the state Government that his visit would be futile as officials were
busy with flood relief and could not attend review meetings. That's when Naik contacted
Laloo on phone for help. The "de facto" chief minister then consulted wife Rabri
Devi and informed Naik that his visit was very much on irrespective of what had been
communicated to him earlier |
