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devendra uddhav

BJP-Sena To Bury The Hatchet and Form Govt In Maharashtra?

Is it a truce between the two estranged partners BJP and Shiv Sena? According to reliable sources, BJP has renewed its efforts to form the government with estranged ally Shiv Sena in Maharashtra – a move that gathered momentum after CM Uddhav Thackeray’s exclusive meeting with PM Narendra Modi. It is learnt that the Union Cabinet expansion has been deliberately delayed in view of the new development in Maharashtra. Sena will be accommodated in terms of cabinet berth. Devendra Fadnavis is likely to become CM for the third time while the name of Aaditya Thackeray for deputy CM is doing the rounds. Party insiders indicate that the “Maha Vikas Aghadi government may fall in the next 72 hours or in two weeks”. The deal is that the BJP-led government will not pursue various legal cases against Sena leaders. It may be recalled that Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik, in a letter to Thackeray, had urged him to patch up with BJP to avoid harassment from Central agencies. Coming together will also help in the coming civic elections. Now the ball is in Thackeray’s court, and he has to decide whether to once again play a second fiddle in the interest of the party’s future or remain in the driver’s seat with the NCP and Congress.
sushilkumar_pritviraj_nana

L To R: Sushil Kumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan & Nana Patole

Can Congress Regain Its Pristine Glory In Maharashtra?

Congress party’s ‘going solo’ call by the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole has not gone down well with the alliance partners Shiv Sena and NCP. But, he has received strong support from two former CMs Sushil Kumar Shinde and Prithviraj Chavan. Both have hailed Patole’s efforts in a short span to rejuvenate the party and recharge the cadre. Both said there is nothing wrong to declare party’s resolve to regain its past glory and become No. 1 again and assume power single-handedly. In fact, Chavan went a step ahead saying that the MVA was formed with the single point objective of keeping BJP out of power and that has nothing to do with the Congress party pursuing its expansion plan. Chavan said Congress can tolerate Shiv Sena’s ideology but not that of BJP. With dissensions within the party, and the Congress leaders speaking out of turn, can this number four party in Maharashtra regain its pristine glory? That’s a wager nobody is willing to take.
raghuram_aravind_narayan

L To R: Raghuram Rajan, Aravind Subramanian & S Narayan

Is Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin Wooing The Brahmins?

Dravidian politics is hard to comprehend. Often, it is riddled with inconsistencies. How else could one interpret the composition of the just-announced economic advisory council (EAC) for Tamil Nadu? The MK Stalin-led government of the DMK has set up a high-profile EAC comprising Nobel laureate Esther Duflo (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Raghuram Rajan (former Governor of Reserve Bank), Aravind Subramanian (former Chief Economic Advisor to the Centre), Jean Dreze (Development Economist) and S Narayan (former Union Finance Secretary). Who said DMK is anti-Brahmins? Well, the just- formed EAC has three Brahmins – two high-profile ones at that! Rajan and Subramanian, in particular, turned much bigger than the institutions they headed. Narayan is all too well known in the political and bureaucratic circles in Tamil Nadu. If these three have roots in Tamil Nadu, the other two are rank outsiders. Not surprisingly, tongues have started wagging. DMK is a party which has vociferously articulated the cause of reservation in higher educational institutions and government jobs. In the formation of the state’s highest policy-advisory body, the DMK regime of Stalin appears to have quietly overlooked its own relentless demand for reservation for dalits, backward classes and the like. Is there a paucity of talent within Tamil Nadu? Inconsistency is the sign of development, it said. DMK has embarked on a growth path, it appears.
kyle jamieson

Photo: Royalchallengers.com

RCB Player, New Zealand Bowler Jamieson Is The New Sensation

He refused to bowl at Virat Kohli in the Royal Challengers nets though the RCB captain was instrumental in signing up the giant from Auckland for the IPL. Kyle Jamieson did the star turn for New Zealand in the rain-hit WTC Final at Southampton, picking up his Bangalore skipper’s wicket with one that came back. Cricket may have already found the new Joel Garner as the 6 ft 8 in fast bowler claims a unique record of a fifth five-wicket haul in only his eighth Test for a tally of 44 wickets at an average of just 14.13. No bowler since the 1890s has taken more at a lesser average. Bowling to a fuller length, up by 44% after an opening day in which he tried to do too much, did the trick as Jamieson dominated the Test while presiding over the destruction of the reputed Indian batting. Like Garner, the Kiwi gives nothing away, no loose balls as freebies for the batsmen.  During the IPL, Jamieson put two new Dukes balls in his kit bag to practise with them as the England tour was to come up immediately after IPL. What we have now is a gentle giant capable of bowling out Test batsmen with his consistency of line and length.
arya

India’s Youngest Mayor Arya Rajendran You Can’t Mess With

Arya Rajendran, all of 22, adorns the mayor seat of Kerala’s capital, Thiruvananthapuram with the distinction of being the youngest elected mayor in the country. This BSc maths second year student, stood and won from the Mudavanmugal ward under the CPI-M banner. Arya is no greenhorn test case politician, fielded by her party. Daughter of an electrician father, a CPI-M activist and working mother (LIC agent), privilege and power did not boost her rise, having been inducted into the Balasangam (the children’s wing of CPI-M) when she was in Class 5.  Politics being what it is, the accolades she got from all over the country when elected mayor, must have rankled the major opposition incumbents, the BJP and the Congress among others. Recently, BJP Councillor Karamana Ajith took her on for lack of supervision and accountability in her duties. The ward’s garbage disposal and inventory and high-cost equipment obviously got flak.  “The AKG Centre’s LKG student probably thinks of this as a play school. Taking on a Mayor’s duties is not child’s play.” Ouch, that must have hurt.  But Arya is no wilting wallflower. Her repartee, “No one needs to judge my capability and efficiency by my age. I am confident of holding my own.” Don’t mess with this Miss.
olympics

Three Cheers For Tipple Time At Olympic Village In Tokyo, No To Condoms Though

Athletes and officials who like to tipple will be allowed to consume their favourite alcohol, but strictly within the confines of their rooms at the Olympic Village spread over 44 hectares in Tokyo. The local organising committee of the Summer Olympics 2020, postponed exactly by a calendar year, because of the  COVID-19 pandemic, had actually mulled over banning consumption of alcohol in the Athletes Village in order to enforce the “No, No” rules generally put in place in Japan. Now the habitual among the 18000 athletes and officials, can look forward to enjoying a drink or two. However condoms will not be available. It’s from the Summer Games in Seoul in 1988, that condoms were distributed at the Olympic Village, but as a forced shift from a 32-year-old custom, the athletes and officials will get the contraceptives when they depart Tokyo. The Olympic Village consists of 3800 condominiums and 21 residential quarters. The “Playbook” which details the rules to be followed by all delegates and athletes during the Games has counselled participants to avoid being close to people. Any violation of the rules will risk getting ejected from the Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) believes that the majority of the people involved with the Games would have received both jabs of the vaccine by July 23, 2021, the first day of the Games.
samantha

Photo: Fotocorp

The Family Man 2: Samantha Akkineni’s Touching Tribute To Eelam Women

Samantha Ruth Prabhu, now Samantha Akkineni, has put in a once in a lifetime performance as the LTTE woman in a very highly acclaimed Season 2 of The Family Man, on Amazon Prime. The central antagonist, Srikant Tiwari who carried Season 1 entirely on his talent and skill, playing the role of a covert operator of TASC (a fictional NIA), is pushed to play second fiddle to Samantha as Raji. In trying to tar her in sepia tones as a Sri Lankan, the brown make up has totally gone haywire…but this does not diminish from her brooding, menacing , almost other worldly countenance as she takes on the suicide mission of bombing the venue for a crucial meet of the two neighbouring country’s Prime Ministers. Her kill skills, spycraft and totally frigid inhuman approach to the enemy spies and mission…chilling. Samantha has pirouetted through many inane films that showcased her good looks. In The Family Man Season 2, she conveys every nuance needed to prove what it takes to be a suicide missionary, whatever the cause.

TRENDS & VIEWS

Editor’s Note: Big Punch In Small Pack

It is the Third Anniversary of Short Post and as a news media startup launched during the Covid-19 pandemic it certainly feels better than good to find ourselves where we are today. Here, I must cite the unstinted support of our seasoned contributors, all senior editors in the country, who brought a great degree of maturity and sagacity to the Short Post newsroom. But for them, our tagline “Authentic Gossip”, an Oxymoron, would not have matured viably. Our user numbers may be small but our stories have created the desired impact among people who matter — decision makers and influencers. We offer a big punch in a small pack and Short Post with its 225-word stories has been punching above its weight category. Having posted close to 3,000 stories in the last 36 months, Short Post, I feel, is an idea whose time has come.
And this is vindicated by our two marquee advertisers – IDFC FIRST Bank and ICICI Lombard. Both believed in our story and have supported us from Day one. A big thank you to both.
If you look at the media landscape – print, TV and digital — it is a mixed bag. There are job losses as some outfits have closed down while a lucky few were bailed out by large corporate houses. Yes, there is a lot of action in the digital space. However, the entry of corporate houses has raised the question of independence of news media outfits. Sadly, there are just a handful of independent media outfits in the country that are highly respected for their neutrality. At Short Post, our credo is not to take sides, prejudge issues or be biased but, informing readers of behind-the-scenes happenings. In essence, Short Post strives to be a neutral editorial platform — neither anti-establishment nor pro-establishment.
As I said last year, disruptions in the media world are moving at a fast and furious pace. Technology is playing a very big role in how content is generated and consumed. But, we are neither alarmed nor perturbed as it is all a part of the evolution process. What gives us comfort is that AI is unable to create original gossipy content. And that is the news arena where we have achieved a distinction.