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Former BJP MP Poonam Mahajan’s implication that a conspiracy was behind her father Pramod Mahajan’s murder has stirred the polity. The serious statement made before private Marathi TV channels has come at a time when her party is fighting a pitched battle with the Maha Vikas Aghadi to retain power in Maharashtra. BJP boss Pramod Mahajan was killed by his brother Pravin almost two decades ago. Poonam had maintained silence about the tragedy all these years. She was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014 and 2019 and was expected to run for a third term. Hence her disclosure at this juncture is interpreted in different ways but none in favour of the saffron party. Poonam’s assertion that her family relations with Uddhav Thackeray have remained unaffected has added to the speculation since all top BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, regard the Shiv Sena leader as Enemy No 1. Poonam’s charge that she was refused nomination this time for the Lok Sabha election since her work was disliked by ‘someone in Maharashtra’ has deepened the suspense created on the eve of Modi’s and Union home minister Amit Shah’s visit to the state for campaigning for Mahayuti candidates. Her target is deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, according to BJP insiders. Poonam’s veiled warning that she will write to the Union home ministry to throw light on Pramod’s demise has only added to the BJP’s discomfiture.
Firebrand politician Chhagan Bhujbal has rejected the statements attributed to him by journalist Rajdeep Sardesai in his latest book, 2024: The Election That Surprised India by threatening to initiate legal action. According to the book extracts published by Marathi daily Loksatta, Bhujbal had conceded that he, along with many other MLAs, had gone with the BJP in 2022 to extricate himself from the clutches of the Enforcement Directorate (ED). According to the published version in the daily, Bhujbal said, “All were happy for aligning with the BJP since the ED’s harassment had ended.” Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and some prominent leaders of his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were on the ED radar at the time. There have been persistent allegations that the cases against them are not pursued ever since they decided to join the Mahayuti government in the state. Bhjujbal pointed out that most of 54 MLAs belonging to Sharad Pawar’s NCP had followed Ajit out of the party though ED cases were against only a few. Secondly, he was acquitted from the Maharashtra Sadan matter when Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister. Finally, he decided to go with Ajit in the interest of development. “My assembly constituency has been sanctioned Rs 2000 crore worth development works,” he claimed. The Loksatta version had said that Bhujbal opted for this course since he was scared of going back into ED custody at the age of 75. “I made no such statement,” Bhujbal has insisted.
Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan, an ally of the ruling TDP and the BJP, censured state Home Minister Anitha Vangalapudi for not taking adequate action to curb crimes against women and children. Accusing her of “incompetence”, he warned that he would be forced to take over her portfolio. The warning came amid a spike in crimes against women and children. Of course Anitha refused to be alarmed by the harsh comment and viewed Pawan Kalyan’s words as encouragement and not criticism. “I have taken his comments very positively. I have a responsibility”, she declared. She admitted that Kalyan could be disturbed by the incident in Tirupati where a four-year-old was raped and strangled to death by a relative last week. Anitha, 45, who gave up teaching to join politics in 2013, has herself been a target of obscene messages and trolling on social media. The TDP minister is a two-term MLA from Payakaraopeta (SC) seat. Interestingly, while addressing a rally in his Pithapuram constituency, Pawan Kalyan warned Anitha about the law-and-order in the state while heaping a lot of praise for UP CM Yogi Adityanath’s record in combating crime in his state, which recorded 65,743 cases of crimes against women in 2022 — the most of any state in the country — according to the NCRB. Kalyan known to play the Hindu card also met with Union Home Minister Minister Amit Shah recently and handed him some Kondapalli tribal craft which have GI tag.
The entry of super star Vijay into politics seems to have shaken the foundations of several political parties in Tamil Nadu. Every political party in TN pivoted 360 degrees –how would it affect their fortunes? Ironically, the November issue of India Today published India’s Power Pantheon list of the 20 most power wielding politicians … .and guess what, TN chief minister MK Stalin is ranked 8th after PM Narendra Modi, Mohan Bhagwat, Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi and others. Despite Stalin’s ideological speak not reaching pan India, he has made his voice heard in the power echelons of Delhi, with 22 Lok Sabha MPs, 10 Rajya Sabha MPS, having won all 39 constituencies in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls cornering 70% vote share. Now this is the kind of power that Vijay wants to move and shake with his just minted outfit. Vijay himself a green horn with ambitions of turning into a second MGR who made history challenging Stalin’s father the late Kalaignar by founding the AIADMK. Without naming Vijay, Stalin said in his recent meet at his constituency, Kolathur, anybody can start a party and claim lofty status. But it needs years of experience and powerful DNA. As a counter to Vijay’s rally where 3 lakh plus people showed up, it is learnt that Stalin has asked DMK workers to make his son’s Udhayanidhi’s birthday on 27th November unforgettable by organizing a massive youth rally. Clearly, it is sending out a message to Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam that the DMK means business.
An upset PM Narendra Modi has discussed with Home Minister Amit Shah and other top security officials why terrorist attacks have increased in Jammu and Kashmir. With a surge in encounters in the Kashmir region, intelligence agencies have told the PMO that some of the highly trained terrorists operating in the Jammu region might have shifted to the Valley ahead of the winter season when the high mountain passes will shut due to heavy snow. Intelligence agencies believe that the terrorists operating in parts of J&K are battle-hardened and are trained on the Afghan front. Most of these ultras also carry U.S.-made M-4 carbines, which suggests that the arms of NATO, which were left in Afghanistan, have fallen into the hands of terror groups based in Pakistan. In the recent past, the Kashmir region has witnessed attacks on non-locals, gunfights with security forces and even an ambush on an Army vehicle on October 24, which left two soldiers and two porters dead. The ambush was similar to the ones that took place in different parts of the Jammu region during the past year. The new trend in which highly trained ultras are conducting attacks has left the security and intelligence apparatus in a tizzy. Major terror attacks in the Jammu region started on the first day of 2023 when seven villagers were killed by armed ultras in Dhangri village of Rajouri. After that, multiple attacks and ambushes were reported from different corners of the Jammu region.
Is there a tussle between Amit Shah and Yogi Adityanath over appointing the next DGP of UP police? Not really. Yet Uttar Pradesh’s move to enact a law to appoint the state’s DGP at the local level, bypassing the existing Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) process for such appointments is being viewed as a political contest within the BJP fold. This at a time when UP would not be the only state with a law to appoint the top cop. Punjab, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh already have such laws. The Yogi-led state Cabinet has approved Appointment Rules, 2024, which provides for an independent mechanism to select the DGP through a committee headed by a retired High Court judge. The selection committee will also consist of the Chief Secretary, a UPSC representative, Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission chairman or nominee, Home Department additional chief secretary or principal secretary and a retired state DGP as members. The new guidelines say that a person, to be eligible for selection, must have six months of service left on the date of creation of the vacancy — a provision, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav signalled, could favour UP’s current acting DGP Prashant Kumar. Kumar is close to Yogi. Politics apart, UP rules conform to the SC’s landmark 2006 judgment in the police reforms case filed by retired UP DGP Prakash Singh. The SC had in 2006 clarified that its directions on the matter would apply only until the Centre or the state enact their legislation on the subject. Until 2006, DGPs were appointed arbitrarily. UP itself has only appointed ad hoc acting DGPs for three years.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s secret political agenda, at work since assuming national power in 2014: Empowerment of one lakh non-political dynasts across political spectrum of India from local self-bodies right up to the topmost constitutional post of President of India. Common man and Dalit Ramnath Kovind became India’s president followed by tribal BJP grassroots worker Draupadi Murmu in the last presidential elections. Latest entrant to big ticket politics is Navya Haridas, international software professional from Kerala, blooded for the Kozhikode civic elections in 2015, now fielded for prestigious Lok Sabha byelections from Wayanad relinquished by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. According to a BJP insider, “PM Modi consciously and overtly launched a broadside against the all prevalent dynastic politics on the Indian political landscape first. He covertly also launched his personal mission for introducing meritorious people into active politics having little or no prior political backgrounds to empower one lakh such candidates across the nation. Navya Haridas is only the latest candidate introduced into national politics to fulfil this endeavour.” Haridas has already served as a two-term civic councillor from Kozhikode and was pressed into service by PM Modi for relief efforts when floods and landslides visited the Wayanad region in Kerala recently. A humble RSS worker’s daughter, relative newcomer to politics, Navya is tasked with taking on Priyanka Gandhi, a political heavyweight ironically being tested for the first time in national politics herself. The result may be a foregone conclusion to many but, for Navya her national political journey has just begun.
Not being white washed — losing all Test matches of a 3-Test series — was a rare record India held for 91 years and that’s starting from the Douglas Jardine-led England in the winter of 1933. India had played 87 Test series at home, won 54, drawn 17 and lost 16 and played 293 Tests, won 120, lost 57, drawn 115 and tied 1. After winning the first two Tests in Bengaluru and Pune, New Zealand created a chance to inflict a first white wash on India. The home team has been led by 28 captains including Rohit Sharma and the outcome of the series against New Zealand on Sunday — third day of the concluding Test — confirmed the fears of a white wash for the first time at home in nine decades and Sharma became the first captain to get into the ‘bad’ book. India has lost Test matches in a series, but not all that was played in a particular series with a cap of three Tests. Almost 25 years ago India played a two Test series against South Africa and lost both in Mumbai and Bengaluru by four wickets and 71 runs. And in the last 25 years India lost a series 1-2 to England and Australia each. India was described as the last frontier by the Australian captain Steve Waugh. But he was not successful in India; that honour went to Ricky Ponting in 2004. Alastair Cook was the captain when England won a series 2-1. Tom Latham became the first New Zealand captain to win a series in India with a clean 3-0 sweep. Will heads roll?
The age-old trick of misrepresenting by displaying a similar name is rampant this time as well in the Maharashtra assembly electioneering. This charade had played havoc for some prominent leaders in the past. For instance, NCP (Ajit) leader Sunil Tatkare lost the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Raigad by a mere 2100 votes since another namesake, also Sunil Tatkare, polled over 9000 votes. Influential Congress leader and former chief minister AR Antulay, too, lost from Raigad in the past since another AR Antulay received more than 21000 votes. This time, such instances are quite a few in the district. In Panvel assembly constituency, there are three candidates with the same name, Balaram Patil and also three Prashant Thakur contestants. While the real Patil is in the fray for the Shiv Sena (UBT), sitting BJP MLA Thakur is testing his luck for a second time. Karjat’s present MLA Mahendra Thorve of the Sena (Shinde) has to take on an adversary of the same name. In Alibaug, Sena (Shinde) nominee Mahendra Dalvi is engaged in a battle with three more Mahendra Dalvi names. Moreover, an independent candidate in the constituency, Dilip Bhoir, is facing another opponent of the same name. The district was in the news in 2004 for the first time when Peasants and Workers Party leader Meenakshi Patil was poised against seven independents bearing the same name. Eventually, the PWP bagged the seat, but only after a bitter fight. How many of these aspirants remain in the ring will be clear only on 4 November, the last day for withdrawal.
King Charles along with his wife Queen Camilla were on a secret trip to Bengaluru around Diwali, and underwent a wellness treatment at Whitefield’s Soukya International Holistic Health Centre (SIHHC). According to media reports, the royal couple flew directly from Samoa after attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting between October 21 and 26. As the trip was subject to secrecy, the Karnataka government did not formally receive the royal couple when they landed at HAL airport. King Charles and Camilla had early morning yoga sessions and rejuvenation treatments at SIHHC. Although this was his first visit as a monarch, King Charles had visited the centre on nine earlier occasions in the past decade and celebrated Diwali on three occasions there. The health centre, founded by Dr Issac Mathai, is located in Samethanahalli, Whitefield on Bengaluru’s outskirts. This integrative medical facility combines traditional systems of medicine, including Ayurveda. This was Charles’s first international trip after being diagnosed with cancer. It also underscored his preference for integrative and eastern medicine approaches. SIHHC is touted as the world’s first integrative health destination, with many celebrities like Nobel laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson and royal families from the Middle East and Europe visiting it. Founded by Dr Issac Mathai and his wife in 2011, Soukya offers a package for holistic health. Dr Mathai, who has served as Charles’s holistic physician for years and attended his coronation, oversees the retreat.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Sunday visit to Nagpur is eagerly awaited as he is expected to becalm the tension between Maharashtra and Karnataka over their six-decade-old border dispute. As if impervious to the problems suffered by people from both sides, Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai has again tweeted that the matter is with the Supreme Court. “A meeting between Amit Shah and some Maharashtra MPs would not make any difference,” he has taunted. This stand has been condemned by opposition parties in Maharashtra. Maharashtra being the second largest state after Uttar Pradesh electorally, it occupies a crucial place for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections for the BJP. Despite this, Bommai has been adding fuel to the fire by his various statements. Hence, BJP leaders in Maharashtra are caught in a delicate situation. Chief minister Eknath Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis have already appealed to the PM to intervene. Union home minister Amit Shah’s initiative to invite both chief ministers next week for talks to find a solution will take a specific direction after Modi’s Nagpur visit tomorrow to inaugurate the ambitious Nagpur-Mumbai Expressway’s first leg and other projects. But Bommai’s latest outburst has again created uncertainty. Modi is expected to advise both sides to exercise restraint till a solution satisfactory to will is formulated.
The Narendra Modi Government is believed to be going ahead with its move for a ‘one nation, one election’ plan. Though the plan has not found favour with the main opposition parties. The next Lok Sabha elections is expected to be simultaneously held along with 12 assembly elections. To accommodate this, the Election Commission will have to tweak the dates and even consider advancing the next Lok Sabha elections by a couple of months. The tentative period being considered is believed to be December-January 2023-24, according to informed sources. While the next Lok Sabha elections are due in April-May 2024, the assembly terms of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana will end by December 2023 and Mizoram by mid December 2023. The other states being roped in for the mega election plan are three non-NDA ruled states with BJP affinity — Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim. The term of these assemblies are scheduled to end by June 2024. And also in the mega election plan are two BJP ruled states, Haryana and Maharashtra, where the elections are due in November 2024. If mega election plan fructifies it will bring down the cost of holding elections across India. The cost of the last Lok Sabha elections was around $ 7 bn (approx. Rs 56,000 crore, up 40% from the previous election. The US spend for its Presidential and Congress elections is around $ 6.5 bn.
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.