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Last week, as Congress leaders protested against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s so-called “anti-Ambedkar” remark in Rajya Sabha, Rahul Gandhi joined his party MPs in a blue T-shirt, giving up his trademark white polo T-shirt. His sister Priyanka also twinned with him wearing a blue sari. Clearly the Gandhi siblings opted to go for a very visual protest against Shah’s remarks. The choice of the colour of clothes of the Leader of Opposition (LoP) — usually spotted donning plain white T-shirts raised eyebrows. The colour blue has been associated with Dalit politics since 1942, when Dr BR Ambedkar established the Scheduled Castes Federation to campaign for the rights of the Dalit community. The body adopted a blue flag featuring Ashok Chakra. The flag was later retained by the Republican Party of India (RPI), founded by Ambedkar in 1956. Over time, blue became very closely associated with Dalit identity and activism. Even political parties like the Bahujan Samaj Party and the ASP, which champions Dalit welfare, embraced blue colour in their branding. As the Gandhi siblings lead the protest, it was the choice of colour of their clothes that caught everyone’s attention!
The Winter Session which saw a two-day discussion on the 75th anniversary of the Constitution and introduction of One Nation One Election (ONOE) Bill has come to a close. It brought out sharp divisions over discussions and bills at least in two political parties — the Congress and DMK. In the Congress, if a first term MP Priyanka Vadra was seen opening the discussion on the Constitution in the Lok Sabha, for some reason senior leader and eminent lawyer P Chidambaram did not get an opportunity to have his say about the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha. In the DMK, there was a clear division of views between the DMK parliamentary party leader TR Baalu and deputy leader Kanimozhi. While Baalu endorsed the government’s offer to refer the Bill to the Joint Parliamentary Committee, Kanimozhi seemed completely surprised by his stand and insisted that her party was opposed to the Bill and demanded its withdrawal.”DMK has consistently opposed the entire Bill. We do not accept that there can be ONOE because it is against the Constitution. It is against federal rights and it is against the will of the people. People choose state governments for 5 years, I don’t think you can take that right away from the people and give it to the EC to decide how many years governments can last or not. So, this is completely against the state, against federalism” said Kanimozhi. While her stand reflects TN assembly resolution passed in February against ONOE Bill this year, the media is awash with reports about how her late father Kalaignar M Karunanidhi had highlighted the benefits of simultaneous polls in his autobiography Nenjuku Neethi. Incidentally, Karunanidhi had advanced state polls to 1971 to coincide with LS polls.
The Thursday (Dec 19) visit of BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde) MLAs to the RSS headquarters in Nagpur has become a hot political topic though there are other reasons, too, for intense politicking. Firstly, the MLAs belonging to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar did not join the event. Secondly, those disgruntled due to their non-inclusion in the council of ministers have started expressing their anger openly. Like earlier two occasions, Ajit Pawar and most of his followers distanced themselves from the visit organized by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. The presence of former CM Eknath Shinde and his MLAs proved to be another highlight. However, the discontent brewing within Mahayuti on other counts is now becoming more vocal. Political heavyweight Chhagan Bhujbal was the first to articulate it. His open criticism of Ajit Pawar surprised many since he had stayed by the side of Pawar all through. Now, there are reports that some of Bhujbal’s supporters want him to join the BJP to end his political wilderness. So far, Bhujbal has maintained that he is with the NCP (Ajit). The other notable leader to become the subject of political speculation is the legislative council’s deputy chairperson Neelam Gorhe. Her detractors, mainly the recent Sena (UBT) entrant Sushama Andhare, have started hinting at Gorhe’s plans to go with the BJP. Gorhe, too, has not reacted to the talk. Ajit’s sudden disappearance for two days from the winter session only added grist to the grapevine. His explanation that he was down with a throat infection is hardly swallowed. More murmurs are expected to be heard once Fadnavis announces the allocation of the portfolios.
The Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray has started preparing for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election, expected to take place early next year. This will be the fight for political survival for Thackeray because the Sena has been in power in India’s richest civic body since 1985. Taking stock of the situation, other political parties, too, have begun their planning. The picture this time will be fundamentally different since the BJP has emerged as the largest party in the state after the assembly election. Its estrangement with the Sena (UBT), which split in 2022 owing to Eknath Shinde’s decision to walk out of it, will be a major factor in the coming election in which the Congress will be an insignificant player, given its lacklustre performance in Mumbai and the state as a whole. Equally exasperating is the condition of the state Congress committee as its president Nana Patole is perceived as an ineffective leader by the rank and file. The BMC’s last election saw the Sena winning 84 seats in the 227-member house while the BJP had captured 82. Owing to the alliance ethics, the BJP had made no effort to bag the mayoralty of the financial capital of India. However, the BJP is not prepared to take any chance this time and a decision about its Mumbai president is likely to be taken soon. Sitting chief Ashish Shelar is among the hopefuls though his inclusion in the council of ministers could be a decisive factor in the final choice.
This was to happen one day or the other with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) putting its foot down saying it will not send its national teams to India for any signature event of the ICC, like the World Cups in the two formats in men, women and the juniors. This was the PCB’s riposte to the long-standing BCCI position — citing security concerns — that it will not send its team across the border for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and that it will play only at a neutral venue. For three World Test Championship (WTC) the two nations have taken themselves off the Future Tours Programme (FTP). The cricketers of the two countries may enjoy good relationships when they lock horns in neutral country venues and have fans across the border, but the Indian government has been steadfast in denying permission to the BCCI. The latest communication from the ICC has confirmed that in the 2024-2027 cycle all ICC events given to India and Pakistan, the matches featuring the two countries will be held at a neutral country chosen by the host country; in the Champions Trophy case the PCB is the host. What all this means is the elimination of high security arrangements that India had to do when Pakistan played last year’s World Cup matches in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata. It took hard bargaining by the PCB with the ICC — with Jay Shah in Chair since December 1, 2024 — for it to agree to a hybrid model in order to ensure that it remains the host in a neutral country venue as well and where India will play and this country is said to be the United Arab Emirates.
The massive success of Pushpa 2, has reignited the debate over screen allocation in West Bengal’s single-screen theatres. While the blockbuster continues to dominate the box office, its stronghold has created challenges for four Bengali films— Khadaan, Shontaan, Chaalchitro, and 5 No. Swapnamoy Lane—which targeted Christmas Day for their releases. The overlap has sparked a heated controversy over securing adequate slots in single-screen theatres, which remain a key audience base for Bengali cinema. Single-screen theatres across Bengal are grappling with the balancing act of accommodating these films while catering to the massive demand for Pushpa 2. Tollywood’s Christmas lineup has been significantly impacted, with producer-actor Dev expressing frustration on social media. He alleged that Khadan’s shows and advance bookings were disrupted due to the overwhelming presence of Pushpa 2. Arijit Dutta, owner of Priya Theatre, reported dividing slots among the films: Khadaan (two shows), Chaalchitro (one), 5 No. Swapnamoy Lane (one), and Pushpa 2 (one). However, veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty’s Shontaan was left out entirely, sparking outrage from its director Raj Chakraborty, who criticized the lack of consistent support for Bengali cinema. A distributor, speaking anonymously, blamed the simultaneous release of multiple Bengali films during the festive season, suggesting a lack of coordination among producers. He pointed to Bollywood’s strategy of staggering releases as a model Tollywood could emulate. Star Theatre owner Joydeep Mukherjee called for better planning within the Bengali film industry to avoid internal competition. Interestingly, allegations have resurfaced about Shontaan‘s producer, pressuring hall owners to prioritize its films. This history has led some distributors to side with independent producers in the current clash.
Sunday’s swearing in of 33 (16:9:8 ratio for BJP, Shiv Sena, NCP respectively) mostly young cabinet ministers in CM Devendra Fadnavis’ 3.0 government was not followed up by expected portfolio allocations even late Thursday (Dec 19). The unrelenting clamour for one specific portfolio by a senior BJP minister-in-waiting (in apparent conflict of interest), aspiration to improve upon earlier performance in power sector by another are in the open awaiting the Maha Chanakya to coolly decide upon. Scribes housed at the state government ‘Suyog’ facility within the Family court premises near Vidhan Bhavan enjoy the Nagpur chill over familial evenings at ‘Sneh Bojans’ hosted by these as-yet ‘Anamika’ ministers. DCM Eknath Shinde’s camp brews hostility from left out veteran MLAs and cherry-picking ministers-in-waiting who threaten boiling point anytime soon. This is unlike the chill that has set upon the near deserted NCP office at Vidhan Bhavan sans activity, notwithstanding the bustling beehive of activity right outside and within the state legislature that is hosting its winter session. It is probably the first time in Maharashtra’s political history for such an ongoing legislature session without specifically assigned ministers manning questions on the floor of the state assembly and council while responding to public interest issues of state. For now, all portfolios rest with CM Fadnavis. NCP veteran Chhagan Bhujbal, Sena’s Tanaji Sawant complain vociferously from out in the cold even as some BJP MLAs rue their bad luck despite winning big in Mumbai city where the richest civic body will face the hustings very soon.
The events outside Parliament House that led to injuries to two BJP MPs was best summed up by FM Nirmala Sitharaman in her X post. She explained how “During the INDI Alliance’s protest inside Parliament premises today, Rahul Gandhi had forcefully pushed an MP, causing a domino effect that injured 2 BJP MPs –Pratap Sarangi (Balasore, Odisha) and Mukesh Rajput (Farrukhabad, UP)” Both the MPs are now hospitalised as they have sustained head injuries. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan was surprised that the Congress had so far not even bothered to say sorry. “I was wondering what was the purpose of Kharge-Rahul Gandhi’s presser, if they can’t say sorry. Our Nagaland MP, a tribal woman leader Phangnon Konyak had voiced discomfort that was caused to her by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.” She has written a letter to the RS Chairman. Adding further he said, “We feel Rahul simply does not deserve to be the LoP. When the Opposition is holding a protest, we usually take another gate. What was the need for Rahul Gandhi to wade into the area where BJP MPs were standing? He should simply quit as LoP.” BJP MPs including Anurag Thakur and Bansuri Swaraj filed a complaint against Rahul Gandhi at the Parliament Street Police station in connection with the scuffle between Opposition and NDA MPs. It is learnt that security forces repeatedly requested the Congress MP to use an alternative path, specifically arranged for a peaceful entry into Parliament. However, Rahul Gandhi declined the request. BJP’s Thakur said “The kind of attitude Rahul Gandhi has, he thinks he is above the law.” Responding to the allegations, Rahul said BJP MPs were trying to stop him and were threatening him “
Home Minister Amit Shah whose intervention in discussions on the 75th anniversary of the Constitution sparked off a row and seemed to have majorly united the Opposition. Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge charged him of insulting Dr BR Ambedkar.. He accused his rivals of being “anti-Ambedkar” and “anti-Constitution”, and “spreading lies”. In his concluding remarks in the Rajya Sabha, Shah sarcastically said, “It has become the fashion to say ‘Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar…’ If they (the opposition) took God’s name so many times, they will get a place in heaven.” At a Press Conference, he charged the Congress of distorting his comments in the Rajya Sabha saying the Congress had put out an edited version of his speech. “I come from a party which follows the ideals of Ambedkar,” asserted Shah.” Rebuffing calls for his resignation by Kharge, Shah made it clear that he had no intention of stepping down. “Kharge is asking for my resignation. If that will make him feel happy, then I’ll give it. But the Congress has to sit in the opposition for at least 15 more years. “In an unusual move — perhaps underlining the impact of the Opposition’s attack on this issue — PM Modi and senior ministers rallied behind Shah. “If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr Ambedkar, they are gravely mistaken!” said PM Modi. Amidst this, PM Modi and Shah met Rahul Gandhi and Kharge to appoint the next NHRC chief. TMC leader Derek O’Brien has moved a privilege notice against Shah in the Rajya Sabha for his remarks on Dr Ambedkar.
Ravichandran Ashwin was adroit in bowling the carom or knuckle ball or the doosra, but on Wednesday afternoon, Brisbane time, the nonconformist off-spinner of 13 years in the big league of the game deployed the “bombshell” to bring an end to his illustrious career. At the conclusion of the rain-marred third Test at the Gabba, the finger spinner with a few sobriquets, “scientist” being the most used among the media, Ashwin sitting beside his beleaguered captain, Rohit Sharma, matter of fact said: Today (Wednesday, December 18) was his last day as an international cricketer across formats and that he will be seen in action in club cricket, meaning IPL etc. The seasoned campaigner, starting his Test career in November 2011, was capped 106 times, and he missed 25 Tests after his debut; he featured in 61 wins, 47@home and 14 overseas. He read the writing on the wall about him losing the primacy as the No 1 spinner of the team in flannels after Washington Sundar was chosen for the first Test in Perth. Then being dropped to bring in Ravindra Jadeja for the third Test in Brisbane convinced him that his time was up…to hang up his boots. The home series against New Zealand that India lost 3-0 was a bitter pill to swallow for him. His numbers — 765 wickets in the three formats, including 537 wickets in Tests alone speaks of his right to be called a legend. It was a bold, practical call to take a bow while not in the field and that was an unhappy part that Indian cricket could not give one of its icons a fitting farewell. Ashwin has perhaps shown the way for a few more to bid adieu, sooner than later! They are over the hill, indeed.
Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis is emerging as the BJP lone firefighter… dousing the fires created by the announcements of candidatures of 20 of the total 48 seats in Maharashtra. The BJP in the state is busy molly-coddling sitting MP’s, aspirants, party supporters and various rival factions. It is as if the BJP’s high stakes campaign in Maharashtra is riding high entirely on the shoulders of Fadnavis. Fadnavis personally visited the Kandivli residence of Gopal Shetty, to quell anger among Shetty’s supporters after the two time MP from Mumbai North constituency, was asked to vacate the seat in favour of Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal. He also met up with senior leader, Harshavardhan Patil, who is upset at the prospect of having to campaign for the wife of his bete noire, Ajit Pawar from Baramati constituency. The Madha constituency has already been on the boil despite Fadnavis deputing Girish Mahajan to quell tempers there. Then there are simmering issues like sitting MP from Satara, Udayanraje Bhonsale rushing to New Delhi to prevent the seat going to his cousin Shivendraraje Bhonsale after Devendra’s intervention failed. Fadnavis also had to personally intervene to cool down tempers with the Ranas of Amravati — Ravi and Navneet — who are keen to get re-nominated on a BJP ticket. Beyond this, Fadnavis is also spearheading alliance talks with Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
Uddhav Thackeray seems to be a man on a mission. Not only was he the first one to kickstart his party’s campaign but also the one to jump the gun by announcing names of four candidates from his party even as the seat sharing talks were in progress among alliance partners of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Uddhav, who emerged the worst affected post the split of his party, seems on a mission to avenge the betrayal. He has already addressed 23 campaign meetings and has planned more meetings in the regions of Konkan, West and North Maharashtra as also Marathwada. Most of his meetings are attracting huge crowds and this has already caused discomfiture in the BJP camp, which is in alliance talks with his cousin Raj Thackeray to undercut the strong sympathy Uddhav seems to enjoy in the state. When Uddhav announced the candidature of Amol Kirtikar for Mumbai North-West constituency it drew sharp retorts Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam as he was keen to contest from that constituency. Talk of not sticking to coalition dharma failed to deter him and he went ahead with more declarations. He was also the first party in MVA to declare co-ordinators for 23 Parliamentary constituencies at a juncture when the MVA had not even finalised on the number of seats within the MVA coalition. Similarly, he went ahead and announced his candidature for the Sangli constituency and Congress was left mumbling that they are still in the reckoning for this seat.
Maharashtra has muddled into chaos as the seat sharing process gets underway. Incidents of threats of rebellion, secret midnight parlays, allegations and accusations, bickerings, shifting to different parties and symbols have become the order of the day. The partial announcement of candidatures by parties has already muddled the coalition politics creating more chaos across the political spectrum in Maharashtra. So far, the BJP has announced candidatures for 20 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra, the Congress for 7, Uddhav Thackeray’s faction of Shiv Sena for 4, while the rest are still groping in the dark. The BJP’s announcements have been greeted with threats of rebellion and even demands for changing of candidate at Madha constituency by BJP veteran leader Naik Nimbalkar. Girish Mahajan, who was deputed there to cool down tempers with the influential Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil clan, was blocked from entering the area. At Raver constituency, the re-nomination of sitting MP Raksha Khadse led to dissenting voices from her own party members and family. Though a straight fight with sister-in-law Rohini Khadse, has been averted for now, the bad blood threatens to impact the BJP’s chances here. Jalgaon nominee Smita Wagh is also facing opposition. The candidature of sitting MP from Amravati, Navneet Rana, aligned to Devendra Fadnavis camp, is also stuck due to strong opposition by her Sena counterpart Anantrao Adusul. To add to the confusion Manoj Jarange Patil is planning to field Maratha candidates. Even the Dhangar community has demanded adequate representation failing which they have threatened to put up their own candidates. Even individual rebels like Vasant More, ex-MNS leader from Pune, are planning to play spoilsport.
Wednesday, March 20 had compelling events at different venues. Superstar Rajinikanth inaugurated Kauvery Hospital’s advanced quaternary care centre at Vadapalani. His address was peppered with personal anecdotes and much humour. Evoking laughter, he said “This body has been through many hospitals…Isabella, Kauvery, Ramachandra, St. Elizabeth (Singapore) and The Mayo Clinic (USA).” Time was when the Alwarpet Kauvery Hospital was identified by another landmark…Kamal Haasan’s residence across the road. Today, its prominence makes it the GPS for Kamal’s residence/office. Ouch! Was that a reference to Kamal’s drop in popularity after his Rajya Sabha seat acceptance? The same day saw actor Dhanush, the estranged Damaad of Rajini, announcing his new film — a biopic on music maestro Ilayaraja. Guess what, the music for this biopic is by Ilayaraja himself. Surprise, surprise ….the screenplay is by Kamal. Dhanush gave an emotional vent to his aspirations, “I have longed to play the role of this living music legend. And I now have only one more wish…to act as Rajinikanth in a biopic,”even as Kamal shared the stage.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal after carrying out searches at his official residence and questioning the AAP leader for nearly two hours in connection with the money laundering probe linked to the now scrapped liquor excise policy. The arrest comes hours after the Delhi HC refused to grant him interim protection from coercive action in the money laundering probe. In fact, the HC judges sought to know why Kejriwal was only being summoned by the ED — nine summons had been issued — and he had not been arrested so far. Kejriwal’s arrest had become inevitable ever since the ED had taken BRS leader K Kavitha into custody last week. AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are in jail for the last several months. Time was really running out for the so-called “anti-corruption” hero. According to the ED, Kavitha was allegedly linked to a ‘South Group’ lobby of liquor traders who were trying to play a bigger role in the now scrapped Delhi excise policy. Vijay Nair, one of the accused, allegedly received kickbacks worth at least Rs 100 crore on behalf of AAP leaders from the ‘South Group’, said to be controlled by Sarath Reddy, Kavitha and Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy. Politically, Kejriwal’s arrest is bound to impact the performance of AAP in Delhi as well in Punjab. In fact, Congress sources wondered if the so-called tie-up between the parties would even last in Delhi. All this only means with the arrest of two CMs by the ED — Kerjriwal and Hemant Soren– the I.N.D.I.A front looks much hobbled.
The Congress leadership made a mega event of its lapses. Yes, its failure to file I-T returns for assessment Year 2018-19. Confronted with a penalty of Rs 135 cr, party’s top leaders decided that they must make full use of the I-T action against its finances and dub it as a vindictive action in the time of elections. Is it going to help? Unlikely. Making a rare appearance along with son Rahul and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi dubbed the I-T action as an attempt to cripple the party financially. She declared freezing Congress bank accounts impacted “our democracy itself most fundamentally”. On his part Rahul Gandhi, highlighted how his party was unable to conduct a normal campaign. He wondered if the “idea of India as a democracy” is a lie. The government’s actions are “being orchestrated to cripple us before the elections.” The Congress narrative was countered by senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad. He pointed out that the Congress lost its appeal at every stage — I-T tribunal and in the Delhi HC. “Rs 135 crore tax plus interest was levied. Delhi High Court rejected their appeal on March 13. The court remarked, “It was a badly handled matter. Somebody from the Congress office went to sleep right from 2021. Now they have gone to SC. The matter is listed on April 1. Rahul Gandhi did not disclose these facts but chose to attack all democratic institutions.” Prasad clarified that political parties do not have to pay income tax but have to file their returns every year. “If you do not file every year, you lose your exemption. What has the BJP got to do with it”.
Tamil Nadu’s BJP first list of 9 Lok Sabha candidates was more or less on expected lines. The party leadership decided that all its senior leaders — from state BJP unit chief and charismatic K Annamalai to Union Minister L Murugan to former governor Tamilisai Soundararajan and former Union minister Pon RadhaKrishnan — must enter the fray and explore the popularity of the BJP and ensure that PM Modi’s message reaches people. This was apparently the desire of PM Modi who has paid special attention to the state and has been regularly visiting Chennai and other TN cities in the past few months. As for constituencies, Annamalai would probably be comfortable in his skin as his maiden contest would be from Coimbatore, which is his home turf. The BJP also enjoys a good support base here. Another contest that would be equally interesting is one in Thoothukudi where the party has fielded Nainar Nagendran against incumbent DMK MP Kanimozhi, sister of TN CM MK Stalin. A combative BJP MLA, Nainar could prove to be a challenge for Kani after rains wreaked havoc in her area recently. The third interesting contest would be Kanyakumari from where Pon Radhakrishnan, who was a minister in Vajpayee government, is looking at a smooth re-election. This is a seat that any Nadar leader would covet. The Perambalur seat has been given to TR Paarvinder, founder of Indiya Jananayaka Katchi. He owns SRM University & Tamil channel Puthia Thalaimurai. It is certainly not going to be a smooth sail for a fellow Nadar leader Tamilisai Soundararajan from Chennai South. Similarly it will be a tough battle for Union Minister L Murugan to take on a “resourceful” 2-G enabled A Raja in Nilgiris, a reserved constituency The BJP has fielded a resourceful C Narasimhan from Krishnagiri.
Intense bargaining for claiming more and more Lok Sabha constituencies has delayed the seat-sharing formulas in Maharashtra for both sides. While the ruling alliance is still to declare its candidates in many constituencies, an agreement on this issue is as yet eluding the Opposition I.N.D.I.A front despite several rounds of discussion. Top leaders from both sides are found closeted with each other or with potential defectors. Chief minister Eknath Shinde and two deputy chief ministers, Devendra Fadanvis and Ajit Pawar keep on assuring their followers that the formula is being finalized and will be announced soon. From I.N.D.I.A front side, Sharad Pawar, former CM Uddhav Thackeray and state Congress president Nana Patole have been meeting time and again to hammer out an agreement that would be respectable for all three constituents. Nonetheless, rebels are popping up all over the state to add to the headache for both camps. Family clashes concerning the Pawar and Thackeray families have added to the ferocity of the fight. Uddhav has mounted a bitter attack against cousin Raj for meeting Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi, thereby implying that the MNS chief has compromised the honour of Marathi Manoos. Ajit Pawar continues to be lashed by his adversaries while Beed candidate Pankaja Munde’s selection is described as a signal that her sister, sitting MP Pritam Munde, will be dropped this time. The role of their cousin Dhananjay Munde will be under scanner, given their earlier political enmity.
Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar’s isolation from the larger Pawar family in Baramati has deepened and appears to be heading to a point of no return. Now, his aunt has come out against him. Veteran Sharad Pawar’s younger sister Saroj Patil, a former school headmistress, has broken her political silence for the first time to stand by her elder brother. Saroj is the wife of the late ND Patil, who was an ardent political opponent of the Congress party and Pawar. In her late eighties, Saroj has alleged that it is the BJP’s plan to defeat Supriya Sule from Baramati, thereby finishing Sharad’s clout. But she has warned that Sharad can’t be uprooted from Baramati for which he has worked for such a long time. The family feud has come out in the open ever since Ajit decided to break away from the family patriarch and assumed serious proportions as he announced fielding his wife Sunetra against Supriya. Though Saroj has praised Supriya and Sunetra as ‘decent’ ladies, she has tipped in favour of the NCP MP and remarked that Sunetra is not so much studied. Her veiled criticism of Ajit comes on the heels of the onslaught by his brother Shriniwas, who said the Ajit is an arrogant person who does not respect family elders. In response, a communication has become viral in social media, in which it is said that Ajit has established himself with his talent and hard work. The signatory is “A Wise Baramatikar.”
The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena is appearing to be almost in the BJP’s bag, boosting the ruling alliance’s confidence for the Lok Sabha election. The BJP-MNS alliance was reportedly sealed after Union home minister Amit Shah met MNS chief Raj Thackeray in Delhi on Tuesday (Mar 19), though the meeting was scheduled to take place on Monday night. Raj has insisted on two Lok Sabha seats for his party, Mumbai South and Nasik and using his election symbol, the Railway Engine. If the alliance becomes a reality, the BJP will be able to hit several birds with a single stone as Raj will aggressively extoll Hindutva, will attack cousin Uddhav on ode to Veer Savarkar and kneeling before the Shiv Sena’s erstwhile political foes like the Communists and the DMK. Raj will thus prove to be an asset for the ruling alliance. BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde, an old friend of Raj, and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis played a behind the scene role in persuading the MNS leader to join the bandwagon. Raj was accompanied by his son Amit. No other leader was with him when Shah met them. MNS has been unable to make any dent in the electoral map of Maharashtra so far. The likely handshake will prove to be a win-win situation for both. Shortpost.in had indicated the possibility on Monday.
As expected by many of his critics, Republican leader Prakash Ambedkar has dealt another blow to the I.N.D.I.A front in Maharashtra, attacking the Shiv Sena (Uddhav) and the NCP led by Sharad Pawar. He has suggested to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge that an arrangement should be made between their two parties about the seven seats which the oldest party will be contesting in the state. The presence of Ambedkar has been proving uncomfortable for the I.N.D.I.A due to his various public utterances. Sena MP Sanjay Raut had expressed displeasure about this before the media a few days ago. Undeterred, Ambedkar continues to assail his potential allies. In fact, veteran leader Sharad Pawar and Ambedkar have not seen eye to eye on most issues. However, the mercurial leader was accommodated into the Opposition front at the behest of Uddhav. But Ambedkar has also taken him to task. In his letter to Kharge, he has charged that the Sena and NCP leaders have not been even hearing his party emissaries. “They are giving us step-motherly treatment,” he complained. Still, he has not forgotten to dangle a carrot for the Congress by indicating that the two-party arrangement can continue in the future, also. Though busy finalising the seat-sharing formula, the Sena and the NCP are finding it difficult to find capable candidates in several constituencies like Nagpur. Ambedkar’s intransigence, hence, is considered a headache invited by I.N.D.I.A.
The past three days saw an edge of the seat thriller even as the father son duo of the PMK, Dr S Ramadoss and Dr Anbumani Ramadoss did the pendulum rock to choose between the BJP and the AIADMK. Over dinner, father dear was said to have made an emotion charged appeal to son, “This could well be my last election…my wish is to send at least a couple of PMK MPs to Delhi. Just agree to this once, then you can have your way.” Anbumani, already on the horns of his most challenging dilemma, agreed. Emissaries from PMK and AIADMK met for sealing the deal. Reportedly, AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) drove to Thailapuram to personally oversee the tie up. Obviously, a Shivaratri must have ensued, to change the firm stand of senior Ramadoss, who was convinced with the most powerful arguments and lure, to join the BJP bandwagon. Imagine Edappadi’s shock and jolt when he heard about the latest nail biting finish to the swinging deal. BJP chief K Annamalai and Union minister L Murugan have played the most convincing roles in this crucial tie up, powerful enough to make Senior Ramadoss say, “PM Modi has worked tirelessly for this country. The people of TN are ready for a change, having experienced Dravidam in power”. The fine-tuned print of the deal will be revealed soon, but a visibly satisfied Dr. Anbumani made the acceptance speech when he stood tall and said “we have chosen”. And the Pied Piper of Hamelin continues to play his tune.
Sixty-two year old Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan is undoubtedly the acknowledged heroine of the election “manch”. And with good reason. The full time Governor of Telangana and the stand in Governor for Puducherry put in her papers and walked out of Raj Bhavan to wade in the heat and dust of the ensuing elections. She is cautious though, amidst speculations that are pinging around like a gaming parlour. Having lost to DMK’s Kanimozhi in Tuticorin in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, this colourful BJP personality was written off as a political power, even as she was made the Governor of Telangana, where she found herself in a stormy environment when K Chandrasekhar Rao’s party Bharat Rashtra Samiti was the face of power. But Governor Soundararajan could tenaciously hold her own, in fact it was obvious that she honed her power skills even as she was given additional charge of Puducherry. But close aides could see through her hankering to get into active politics, not be a figurehead representative of the BJP even as she saw the rise and rise of K Annamalai as TN BJP chief. Her resignation made waves and now the buzz is rife …is she a key Prachara Beerangi (Tamil for cannon) or is she contesting from Tuticorin or S. Chennai or no surprise, Puducherry? Watch this space for the role of her career… Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan … she of the colourful bold print sarees, flowers in her hair and dazzling smile.
It was a political storm that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi provoked little realising that it could risk hurting Hindu sentiments. His flippant use of “Shakti”– an evolved stream of worship in sanatana dharma — at a political platform where DMK leaders, who are not sympathetic to the Hindu cause, were present came as a political surprise. It was precisely for this reason that SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, who comes from the Ram Mandir belt, kept away from this “anti-sanatana dharma” forum in Mumbai– he didn’t want to be seen sharing space with “anti- Hindu” Tamil leaders like MK Stalin or VCK leader. Looks like Rahul imagined he could attack Hinduism, and get away with his word play on “shakti”. What he did not realise was that an alert BJP team would pick every word he had uttered against Hindus. The interaction with a Christian pastor in Kanyakumari during his Bharat Jodo Yatra and deprecatory references to Hinduism made two years ago was one such gem .The pastor is heard telling Rahul,”Jesus is the real god, not Shakti” in the clip. It came in handy as PM Modi lambasted Rahul as a person who had scant respect for sanatan dharma. From Jagtial in Telangana to Shimoga in Karnataka, Modi tore into Rahul’s remarks at his rallies and personalised his fight against Shakti. “For me, every daughter, mother, and sister is a personification of Shakti. To those who are raising their voices against Shakti, I accept your challenge. I am willing to sacrifice my life for Shakti,” he added. Modi, who clearly reached out to 49 % women voters through a series of governance steps, has now sharpened the battle for their attention with “shakti”.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s sly reference to him has been ridiculed by former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan. Similarly, the scion’s claim that then finance minister Arun Jaitley had requested him not to speak about the Land Acquisition Act has been questioned by top BJP leaders. In his public rally at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on March 17, Rahul had described how a senior Congress leader from the state had wept before Sonia Gandhi while admitting that he was joining the BJP lest he would be arrested. Although Rahul did not name the leader, the reference was obviously suggestive and it was identified to be Chavan, who recently joined the BJP and was immediately elected to the Rajya Sabha. Chavan said if Rahul was pointing a finger at him, there was no truth in the allegation. Chavan said his decision to leave the Congress party was not known to anyone. He was busy with the party’s work till the previous evening and nobody had an inkling of his next move. The news broke out when Chavan submitted his legislative assembly membership’s resignation to the speaker. Hence, the claim that he had a meeting with Sonia Gandhi in this connection was utterly laughable and unfounded, Chavan stated emphatically. Rahul’s other assertion that Jaitley had met him has similarly been viewed with mistrust. Let him come out with evidence to substantiate his claim, BJP leaders have challenged Rahul.
The ruling Mahayuti has been unable to resolve the stalemate created over the seat sharing formula, which is likely to undergo a major change if the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena is included in the saffron alliance. While deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has indicated that the Mahayuti now has no scope to welcome any new partner, several other factors have impacted the ongoing talks. One of them is MNS chief Raj Thackeray, who has been ambivalent about joining the Mahayuti but has not discounted the possibility outright. His trusted aide Bala Nandgaonkar has been reportedly sounded to contest from South Mumbai, a Shiv Sena stronghold all these years, though due to the BJP support. BJP leaders are weighing the pros and cons about taking MNS on board since it is felt that Raj can easily discredit his cousin Uddhav Thackeray in campaigning. Even at present, Raj does not lose a single opportunity to throw barbs at his cousin Uddhav. Besides South Mumbai, there are about a dozen seats which are claimed by more than one partners of the Mahayuti. The BJP, of course, will get the largest slice though the Sena led by CM Eknath Shinde and the NCP under Ajit Pawar are yet not ready to relent about their demands. The final round of talks will be held in Delhi in a day or two, according to the three leaders.
Even as the Election Commission of India will be announcing the schedule for 2024 Lok Sabha elections and elections to four state assemblies on March 16, with it the Model Code of Conduct will kick in, there is apparently going to be no change in PM Narendra Modi’s travel plans abroad. Yes, he will be going to Bhutan after the announcement of poll dates. He is going to the Himalayan Kingdom on March 21 and 22. The visit is significant from the point of China creating problems there. Modi feels he must send a message to Beijing that India is standing with Bhutan. A few days ago, I & B minister Anurag Thakur made it clear that the government is not going into caretaker mode and the Union Cabinet will continue to meet as and when necessary. With opinion polls already predicting the return of the NDA Government post poll with overwhelming numbers, it is not surprising that PM Modi vows to continue working.
There is apparently a sense of unease and worry among the West Bengal security establishment that chief minister Mamata Banerjee should get grievously hurt at home. She was reportedly “pushed from behind” while working on the treadmill. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo fell and hit her forehead against a showcase. She was rushed to the SSKM Hospital by her nephew and heir apparent Abhishek in his car. She was discharged after stitches on her forehead. Though there is no clear answer as to who pushed her, sources say, attempts are being made to water down Didi’s initial statement to the doctor. The push has also raised questions about proximate security to the CM. This incident reminds of the attack on late Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa. Security agencies feel Mamata should move to the official CM residence in Alipore. Apparently, no Bengal CM prefers to live here. Mamata has been staying at her personal residence along with her brothers and their extended families in Kalighat. Of late there has been a lot of jostling among the brothers and their wives for a piece of action in TMC politics. They have been questioning why Abhishek, who is Diamond Harbour MP, was getting so much importance within the TMC. Party cadres worry that Mamata has been prone to disastrous attacks almost before every election. During 2021 assembly elections, it was a wheelchair-bound Mamata with her leg in a cast, who managed to swing the polls after suffering an injury in Nandigram. Post-Sandeshkhali, however a bandaged Didi may not be able to whip much sympathy. Stark revelations in PDS and recruitment scams have become a bitter pill for the masses.
Bengal CPI-M found itself on a sticky ground after the allies of Left Front– Forward Bloc, CPI and RSP gave an ultimatum to announce the candidate list in 42 Lok Sabha seats. Chairman of Left Front Biman Bose announced the first list of candidates for 16 seats — three seats for the allied parties respectively and 13 for CPI-M on March 14, after being given a deadline of 24 hours by the allies a couple of days ago. The situation turned extremely volatile when Left Front allies questioned CPI-M’s alliance talks with Congress. Left Front sources confirmed that even during the internal discussion of announcing the names, these three smaller parties declined CPI-M’s offer of exchanging seats so that they could leave room for Congress and ISF. Interestingly, sources claimed that CPI was offered to exchange its usual Basirhat seat with some other seat in South Bengal. However, a senior CPI leader said this is a heritage seat since the party’s stalwarts like Indrajit Gupta, Ajoy Chakraborty used to contest from these seats. Similarly, Forward Bloc has made it categorical that it will continue to contest from its usual seats of Cooch Behar, Purulia and Barasat. Meanwhile, Congress has informed CPI-M that it will contest the Purulia seat. Meanwhile, CPI-M’s State Secretary Mohammad Salim accepted that it’s the responsibility of his party to take the Left Front and Left Unity forward and keep it intact.
In politics you cannot take anything for granted unless it is signed on the dotted line and formal announcement made to the Press. Just when everybody thought it was the done deal — the alliance between BJP and BJD — comes the news that at the last moment it has hit a speed breaker. Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal on Thursday (Mar 14) on his return to Bhubaneshwar from Delhi said BJP will form the next government in the state “on its own”. Sources say BJP seems to be pushing Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik hard and are waiting to see whether he gives in to their demands. Or else BJP will go solo both in the Lok Sabha and assembly elections. The Odisha BJP leaders are not keen for an alliance with BJD. BJP says it will now contest 100 assembly seats in Odisha. Earlier BJP had demanded 55 seats in the Assembly with BJD fighting the remaining 92 seats.
Prakash Ambedkar’s ever-changing list of demands seems to have put Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in a fix. His constant shuffling stances and barbs means that no one seems to have a clue on what to expect from him. Though his party has no Member of Parliament, he insisted on 12 out of the 48 seats for his Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) in Maharashtra, equivalent to the rest of the alliance partners, namely Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and the Congress. Then he demanded that the MVA parties give a written undertaking that they will not align with the BJP post elections. Thereafter, he insisted that he would hold seat sharing talks only with the Congress’s leadership and refused to attend the MVA rally at Baramati. As if all this was not enough, Ambedkar spares no chance to pull down the MVA observing how there was a deadlock on seat sharing of 15 seats and called them lazy for not hurrying up in resolving it as poll announcements dates neared. He further highlighted inter-party rifts by pointing out that Congress was upset with Uddhav’s insistence on 18 seats beyond terming Sanjay Raut a liar. It may be recalled that Ambedkar contesting 2019 LS polls almost alone saw VBA garnering 4.6% vote share and this led to the defeat of many senior Congress senior leaders. To avoid a repeat in 2024 many in MVA are quietly accepting his barbs on their chin.
Mumbai’s (Mumbai Cricket Association) growth in Indian cricket has been colossal. On Thursday (Mar 14), the players sporting the Lion crest obliterated the 41-time winner tag with the 42nd Ranji Trophy triumph against a valiant Vidarbha at a venue that’s a stone’s throw from the Arabian Sea. Mumbai has been fabulously relevant to the development of Indian cricket across formats. As of now Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur and Shreyas Iyer are part of the Indian teams in all formats or either Test, ODIs or Twenty20 internationals. Tushar Deshpande and Shams Mulani have been part of India ‘A’ teams and Musheer Khan has emerged as an India under -19 star. Not long ago Ajinkya Rahane was a fixture in the Indian team, its captain too. Then there is Prithvi Shaw, a “wasted talent” who can rise again. Without a doubt, the Mumbai Cricket Association which matched the BCCI’s prize money of Rs 5 crore that came with the Ranji Trophy triumph, has been doing the right things for its teams -juniors, men and women. Now, Mr Amol Kale and Mr Ajinkya Naik, how about founding a multi-day professional league for the top clubs during the season; or pick 4/5/6 from a big-basket talent pool? The league will help groom/develop talent in many ways with the ultimate objective of being the feeder league for the Ranji Trophy team. Mull over, Mumbai Cricket Association! What are you waiting for?
A crucial meeting of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the largest voluntary organisation in the world, will be held at Nagpur on 15, 16 and 17 March, to chart out its future course of action in view of the RSS centenary and review its working so far. Besides electing the Sar Karyavah (general secretary), the meet will discuss how the saffron organisation should expand its network, which has penetrated almost every public sphere of Indian society. Incumbent Sar Karyawah Dattatray Hosbale will be completing his stipulated tenure. Will he be renominated or a new face replace him, will be the most watched development during the conclave. To be held during the intense electioneering for the Lok Sabha polls, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat is expected to make some major announcement to boost the BJP’s prospects. As a larger strategy, the RSS has decided to achieve the target of setting up one lakh shakhas (branches) by concentrating on the areas where its existence is not strong. Besides 1529 RSS delegates from around the country, the meeting will be attended by heads of 32 frontal organisations like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad. Social cohesion, family awareness, environment, self-dependence and citizen duties will be the focus areas for the RSS activities in coming years.
Gadkari, Piyush Goyal Make It In BJP’s Second List; Mysore MP Pratap Simha Axed For Parliament Blast
The BJP’s second list of 72 candidates reflects a considered strategy of fielding senior leaders who have never faced a direct election like the Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal from Mumbai North. It also got former Haryana CM Manohar L Khattar to contest from Karnal. Speculations about Road Minister Nitin Gadkari’s not being fielded from Nagpur simply proved to be unfounded and sheer Opposition mind game. However, some sitting MPs from Mumbai — Poonam Mahajan from Mumbai North Central and Manoj Kotak from Mumbai North East — failed to make the cut. Mumbai North MP Gopal Shetty who made way for Piyush Goyal could be suitably rewarded. Caste-wise for the first time Pune Lok Sabha seat has gone out of the Brahmin fold to Maratha leader Murlidhar Mohol, a former city mayor. Party sources say Mohol is a pick of Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis. The Brahmin lobby was mollified with a RS ticket given to Medha Kulkarni. Much blood bath has actually happened in Karnataka where the BJP failed to form the government in the 2023 assembly polls. Ticket of Mysore MP Pratap Simha was nixed; he was the MP who got passes for those who ambushed the new Parliament Complex in December 2023. The BJP leadership is so upset with Simha, once considered to be a blue-eyed boy of PM Modi that his seat has been given to Yaduveer Wadiyar, the royal scion. Focussing on playing the Lingayat card, it got former CM Basavarj Bommai to contest from Haveri and shifted Shoba Karandlaje from Udupi to Bangalore North. It has fielded Dr CN Manjunath, son-in-law of JD(S) leader from Bangalore Rural.
“Eknath Gangubai Sambhaji Shinde” says the nameplate outside Maharashtra chief minister’s Mantralaya cabin. Deputy chief ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, too, have asked their staff to redo their official nameplates. This change is one of many, in accordance with a series of decisions the state cabinet has taken on the eve of the Lok Sabha elections and just before the model code of conduct comes into force. According to this decision, all official documents will include the mother’s name after the individual’s name and will be followed by the father’s name and surname. In the last two days, the cabinet took nearly 300 decisions, small and major. One decision has proposed renaming suburban rail stations in Mumbai, in a bid to revive its historical place names. Thus, Sandhurst Road station will be renamed as Dongri while Charni Road will be known as Girgaon. Of course, these changes will become applicable only after the Centre clears the proposal. The renaming spree will include Ahmednagar to Ahilyanagar after Devi Ahilyabai Holkar, the ruler of Indore, remembered for her construction of various temples and ghats on sacred rivers like the Ganga and Narmada. She was born in the district, known for nearly three centuries as Ahmednagar. In response to a demand to name Dadar station after Dr BR Ambedkar, it has been planned to give his name to the newly developing Parel rail terminus. After due process, the fate of most of these changes will be known. For now, they are generally welcomed.
A day ago PM Narendra Modi for the first time had gone public acknowledging his close personal relationship with the outgoing Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar. He had fondly recalled how Khattar and he would share a dari (mat) and Khattar would take him around Haryana on a bike. Recalling their days together as RSS pracharaks, Modi had called Khattar his “partner” and had even promised to have him in his future plans too. Within 24 hours after Modi had heaped praise on Khattar’s work as Haryana CM, the state saw a political churn, Khattar had put in his papers. A younger, OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini (54) took over. “The BJP leadership got what it wanted. It wanted a restless coalition partner JJP demanding two Lok Sabha seats — Hisar and Bhiwani-Mahendragarh — out of the government .Corruption cases against Chauthalas were proving to be a burden. Sulking BJP leader Anil Vij who was in race to be CM, also got dropped as minister. “Saini is going to be a game changer” pointed out a BJP leader. Elections to Haryana state assembly will be held soon after the Lok Sabha polls. That’s why the BJP leadership decided it must go for a new CM face. Changes in the BJP government clearly took the main Opposition Congress by surprise. Former Haryana CM and senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda charged that the change of CM was a moral defeat of the BJP-JJP government. “This (BJP-JJP alliance) was a ‘thugbandhan‘ election should be conducted under the President’s Rule,” he said.
NCP founder Sharad Pawar has received a jolt in his home turf, Baramati, as local traders decided to cancel a meet they had scheduled with him on Monday (Mar11). Despite his advancing years, Pawar had lined up four meets during the day. At the eleventh hour, the traders informed him by sending a written communication that it will not be possible for them to meet him. Immediately thereafter, whispers began to circulate that some ‘influential leader’ had pressured them to back out. Sharad Pawar has liaised with different sections of the electorate which has been electing him ever since 1967. Expressing anguish over the sudden development, Pawar said such a thing had happened for the first time in 50 years. Though he did not mention anyone by name, he indicated the apprehension that someone with clout was behind the cancellation. He made it a point to state that he had been resolving the problems of the trading community for a long time. The Baramati Lok Sabha constituency has been in the news ever since his nephew Ajit decided to break away from his uncle and mentor last year. Now that Ajit’s wife Sunetra has started campaigning her candidature against her sister-in-law and `Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule, both camps are trying their best to outshine each other. As part of this strategy, Pawar has started calling on his old political opponents. Hence, the move by the traders is seen as a shock for him in his backyard.
It is now clear as daylight that BJP and BJD are joining hands for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. It is a done deal. So why is Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik joining hands with BJP when he walked out of NDA in 2009? Analysts say that he knows BJD will win anyway though with less votes in 2024? But, sources say, Patnaik is keen to protect his CM turf for another five years without CBI and ED complications and this explains why he is opting for a peaceful life given his fragile health conditions. In any case, this election is Naveen Babu’s last election. Modi is also keen because BJD being part of the NDA will ensure that all 21 MP seats are in their kitty. It is learnt that BJP Delhi high command has also sensitised BJP Odisha leaders not to not to jump the gun and make any utterance about the BJP-BJD pact to the Press. There are small snags which are being ironed out. For instance, there is push-pull from BJP and BJD over two seats — Puri and Bhubaneswar. Sitting BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi would like to retain Bhubaneswar while Dr Sambit Patra BJP National spokesperson is keen to contest from Puri which he lost to BJD’s Pinaki Mishra in 2019.
The National Investigative Agency (NIA) is hot on the trail of a Kerala link to the recent bomb explosion at Rameshwaram Café in Bengaluru, Karnataka, that left eight persons injured, two of them grievously. According to a well-placed source, “The NIA suspects this was a trial run and has launched into a major deep dive investigative exercise in its wake that has already revealed linkages to Kerala and the PFI (as well as SFI) mobilisation by an ISIS module based out of the southern most state of India. NIA has also learnt that the operatives involved in the terror act had also visited Pune city in Maharashtra.” What has surprised the agency is the initial effort by the Karnataka government to dismiss the IED blast as a cylinder explosion that was followed by another government spokesperson then suggesting that the bomb explosion was the result of some business rivalry. The zero tolerance to terror policy, enforced since the installation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as India’s Premier in 2014, has Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) on tenterhooks ever since the incident in anticipation of a reprisal offensive on Pakistani soil by India. “Already scores of Pakistani terror elements belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba as well as pro-Khalistani terrorists numbering over 160 were neutralized in Pakistan, Canada and even the world over. Indian intelligence agencies have also established that another one among India’s most wanted terrorists has departed the world.”
With the Trinamool Congress deciding to contest the upcoming general elections solo in West Bengal speculations are rife whether party supremo and chief minister Mamata Banerjee pulled off an ace. In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Didi’s party for the first time won 34 seats but received a severe jolt in 2019 where TMC managed to secure only 22 seats and BJP gained 18 seats. Notably, in 2019, neither was the TMC in the state weighed down by anti-incumbency nor were its mountain of woes this high including the charges of corruption against several of its heavyweight ministers and leaders, and the Sandeshkhali controversy. Interestingly, it pulled a surprise by fielding cricketer Yusuf Pathan from Baharampur against Pradesh Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Tollywood actor Rachana Banerjee from Hooghly against BJP’s incumbent MP, actor-turned-politician Locket Chatterjee. Tollywood stars turned politicians June Maliah and Saayoni Ghosh made it to the list owing to their contribution in the party. Didi not only gave tickets to her close and veterans of the party, she also retained Mahua Moitra from Krishnanagar and Superstar Dev from Ghatal. But she did drop five sitting MPs including non-performers such as Nusrat Khan, Mimi Chakraborty, and Aparupa Poddar along with ailing Choudhury Mohan Jatua and turncoat Arjun Singh. Significantly, ex-bureaucrat Gopal Lama, former IG Prasun Banerjee, youth leader of North Bengal Prakash Chik Baraik have been given tickets from seats in North Bengal where TMC is yet to make a breakthrough. Furthermore, six ex-BJP leaders — Mukut Mani Adhikari, Biswajit Das, Biplab Maitra, Krishna Kalyani, Kirti Azad and Shatrughan Sinha made it to the list.
The Lok Sabha seat sharing talks between the Shiv Sena Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar are finally reaching a consensus. BJP will contest the lion’s share of seats (30 seats), Shinde’s Sena taking the tiger’s share (10-15) while Ajit Pawar’s NCP may be restricted to three to four seats. According to a senior political leader, “The NCP will be allotted seats based on the number of Lok Sabha seats the undivided NCP had secured in the 2019 general elections with the deal likely sweetened with the Pune parliamentary constituency. Things are fluid and the alliance is still open to candidates from any party in the alliance for seats where the other two fail to find suitable contestants with a winning political quotient.” The BJP may give up its claim on the Pune Lok Sabha seat, having already sent its party candidate Medha Kulkarni to Parliament via the Rajya Sabha. In 2019, the BJP had contested 25 seats and won 23. The (undivided) Shiv Sena contested 23 and won 18, giving the NDA a tally of 41 out of 48 seats in Maharashtra. While Ajit Pawar may get Pune, the BJP’s state leadership failed to ensure poll wins in the region in Pimpri Chinchwad and Pune in lower rung elections, cooperative sector may come back to haunt it in the coming days. Union Home Minister Amit Shah is directly handling the talks with Shinde, Fadnavis and Pawar.
Weeks after Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared that no one can stop the CAA law and that it would be implemented before the Lok Sabha elections, the MHA notified the CAA rules paving the way for its implementation across the country. The law makes it easier for Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian and Parsi refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, to get Indian citizenship. “The applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided,” a MHA official posted on the ministry X handle. The law aims to give citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from these countries, who came to India before December 31, 2014. CAA was an integral part of BJP’s 2019 manifesto and it is interesting that to see that it is being notified just a week before next elections schedule is set to be announced. Interestingly after the CAA was passed in 2019 protests had broken out in several parts of the country. Minorities in some areas like Shaheen Bagh in Delhi were encouraged to do sit-in protest . ” The CAA cannot snatch away anyone’s citizenship because there is no provision in the Act. The CAA is an act to provide citizenship to refugees who were persecuted in Bangladesh and Pakistan,” Amit Shah recently clarified adding how the law was once a Congress promise .Incidentally, the law is very crucial to the Matua community –Dalit Namasudra community, which migrated from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in 1947 and during the 1971 India-Pakistan war. They had backed the BJP. TMC cannot afford to oppose CAA. As for Assam students protesting against the CAA the , rules have set a 2014 cut-off and retained exceptions as made in the 6th schedule to the Constitution and the areas covered under “The Inner Line’ notified under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873 “.
Makkal Needhi Mayyam (MNM) party founder and Kollywood’s abiding Ulaganayagan, Kamal Haasan and Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin must have heaved a sigh of relief after their electoral deal. Both came out smelling roses. Even as Stalin’s tightrope act for seat sharing with his alliance partners was swinging like a suspension bridge, his deal with Kamal made headlines for all the right views. Imagine having a star campaigner like Kamal doing the rounds for the DMK among a cinema-fixated populace. From 2017, Kamal had posted his political ambitions on Twitter (now X). So when he launched MNM in 2018, fans and followers flocked to him. Kamal oozing self-assurance was happy hosting Bigg Boss and the laurels/money the reality show fetched…striding two worlds, multitasking, a talent many a Kollywood star has mastered. MGR embodied flamboyance, now seen as a Rajinikanth brand. Kamal is a thespian of the Shivaji Ganesan lineage. In 2019, MNM created a loud buzz, with a vote share of 3.7%. But in 2021, Kamal lost to BJP’s Vanathi Srinivasan and his party fared poorly. Then came the huge film blockbuster Vikram and Kamal’s swag and self-confidence shot up. Enough to reach out to Rahul Gandhi in his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Is Kamal happy to enter the Parliament via Rajya Sabha? Will he overtake his close friend and cinema rival, who turned back at the starting line? Only time will tell.
Uddhav Thackeray’s unilateral announcement that rival Shiv Sena MP Gajanan Kirtikar’s son Amol will be the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate for the North-west Mumbai Lok Sabha constituency has created a unique situation in the electoral arena. Uddhav’s selection has enraged, among others, Congress hopeful Sanjay Nirupam. A former saffronite, Nirupam has castigated Uddhav for giving candidature to someone “who has been under the ED scanner for corruption in a scam.” Already, there is suspense in both Sena factions as the son (Amol) has defied his father (Gajanan) by sticking with Uddhav and preparing for the Lok Sabha election. Who remains in the fight finally, father or son, is a moot question for the constituency which is a stronghold of the BJP. In the changed circumstances, seat-sharing among the three partners in the ruling alliance is being finalised after some hiccups. However, as indicated by Nirupam, the Congress-led I.N.D.I.A front also will receive a jolt as more and more candidates are announced by each constituent opposition party. This is not the first time father and son are fighting each other in the same constituency. It happened in Gujarat when Chhotu Vasava, founder of Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) filed his nomination as an independent from Jhagadia assembly seat while his son Mahesh filed as BTP candidate from the same constituency. Likewise sons of former Karnataka Chief Minister late S Bangarappa, who belong to rival parties BJP and Congress, were pitted against each other in Soraba constituency.
It may seem odd but it must be put on record that the initial reports of the BJP-BJD pact had first emanated from the BJD side and had completely caught BJP leaders from Odisha off guard. It was felt the BJD had read too much meaning into personal rapport that was on display between PM Narendra Modi and CM Naveen Patnaik during PM’s brief visit to Odisha on March 5. Of course, what preceded the PM’s visit was the Union Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw’s election to the Rajya Sabha with the support of BJD. Post Modi’s visit, CM’s political aide VK Pandian had rushed to Delhi to hold talks with BJP central leaders. Odisha BJP leaders too were in Delhi to discuss the possibility of contesting the 2024 elections alongside with the BJD. Suddenly the talks were brought to an end by Odisha BJP chief Manmohan Samal by saying his party would go alone. “Neither Samal nor Pandian can decide on the fate of BJP-BJD ties. It will be clinched only by Naveen Babu and Amit Shah or JP Nadda”, says a BJD Lok Sabha MP. The BJD which parted ways with the BJP in 2009, citing communalism, is keen to come back to the NDA fold for a good reason. It is all because of the growing popularity of PM Modi and the Ram Mandir issue. BJD worries a three-way contest could hurt its prospects, particularly in urban areas as Ram Mandir has a resonance. In power since 2000, Patnaik-led BJD had won 112 seats in the assembly elections in 2019 and 12 Lok Sabha seats while BJP had won 8 Lok Sabha and 23 assembly seats. Looks like in 2024, Odisha will vote differently — it will look for who is with Modi and Shri Ram.
It was a much awaited list. Yes, the Congress list of 39 names as candidates for 2024 Lok Sabha elections may have been short but it did have a big message and good news for the party cadre. What really came as a shot in the arm for Congress leaders and workers was the news that KC Venugopal — the all-powerful AICC general secretary had been asked to contest from Alappuzha in Kerala. Considered close to Rahul Gandhi, Venugopal wielded enormous clout in the party. Party seniors and even those close to Rahul felt suffocated because of the clout this one man flaunted. Now that he has been forced to contest, party leaders heaved a sigh of relief. “It is good to see Rahul Gandhi wake up and clip Venugopal’s wings,” remarked a Congress functionary. The Kerala leader, who is a Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan, had such clout that he was known to pick and choose from a peon to who should be sent to RS. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge wanted to change him but seemed helpless. Party sources said it was only after the loss of face in Himachal in the RS elections when the Congress’s official candidate lost that Rahul himself began to see reason and decided to move out Venugopal. Rahul has now set a new benchmark; he will now ensure all veterans are involved in the elections — be it Venugopal or former Chattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel. As for Priyanka Vadra contesting from Rae Bareli, a seat now vacated by her mother Sonia Gandhi, party sources said nothing could be ruled out.
The BJP has emerged as a big bossy brother in the ticket distribution process in Maharashtra insisting on cornering almost 66 % of the seats in Maharashtra — it wants 32 tickets of the total 48 seats. While Eknath Shinde may get 10 tickets instead of 18 that he had demanded, Ajit Pawar could get only 4 instead of 10 that he has sought. This squeezes out the aspirations of those who came in with Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar hoping for better prospects and gives a free hand for criticism from the opposition. Both the rebel wings are not giving it up easily and instead putting up a strong perception fight in the media via statements from leaders like Ramdas Kadam and Chhagan Bhujbal. While Kadam, who is upset about BJP fiddling in his son’s Dapoli constituency, stated that the BJP cannot be growing at the cost of others, Bhujbal insisted that the NCP should get tickets on par with the Shinde’s Sena. Both have been asked by Amit Shah to be practical in their demands and focus instead on candidates having winning potential. A new compromise strategy is being floated to accommodate these aspirants from Shinde and Pawar factions — the BJP wants a few to contest on the lotus symbol. This has sparked sarcastic comments from the Congress leader Nana Patole commenting that BJP is now stealing candidates from other parties since they don’t have their own. This is also believed to be a strategy to weaken the rebel parties and quell any prospect of rebellion, post the elections.
Splinter Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray dared Gadkari to quit BJP and contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls on his own to kick out the arrogance of the central leadership, if his party fails to give him a ticket. Uddhav promised full support from his Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance for his victory. Though the BJP has announced over 195 candidates for states like UP, MP, Gujarat, Rajasthan and West Bengal. The second list wherein states like Maharashtra will figure is yet not out. But, rumour mills are doing overtime that Gadkari could be dropped. This is fuelled further by statements of the likes of Sanjay Raut, who allege that there is a conspiracy to sideline Gadkari to avoid a scenario of him emerging as a consensus PM candidate were the BJP coalition to end up with a lower tally of 220-225 seats. There is strong simmering discontent within the BJP which is abuzz with the talks of majority of the 14 sitting MP’s from Maharashtra of Shiv Sena being dropped to accommodate ‘winnable’ candidates from within BJP or from other coalition partners, to strengthen Modi’s fight for third term. Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis did state that Gakari’s candidature could be announced once a decision on list of Maharashtra’s candidates was completed. Gadkari enjoys strong support across the political spectrum. The simmering discontent within the BJP and the Mahayuti alliance is also evident from the fact that seats sharing in Maharashtra could not be completed despite personal visit and intervention by home minister Amit Shah.
It is only in fitness of things that author Sudha Murty was nominated to the Rajya Sajya on March 8, International Women’s Day by President Droupadi Murmu. With a reputation of having breached many glass ceilings including becoming the first female engineer to be hired at India’s largest auto manufacturer Tata Engineering & Locomotive Company (TELCO), Pune (now Tata Motors) in the early 70s, Sudha’s nomination to Rajya Sabha could not have come on a better day. PM Narendra Modi in a post on X said that “Sudha Ji’s contributions to diverse fields including social work, philanthropy and education have been immense and inspiring. Her presence in the Rajya Sabha is a powerful testament to our ‘Nari Shakti'”. Her elevation was not entirely unexpected considering only last year she was honoured with a Padma Bhushan. Interestingly, Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivkumar came out greeting Sudha’s nomination to RS. Married to Infosys founder NR Naryana Murthy, Sudha is credited with playing her bit role in sustaining the software giant by lending a small sum of money to her husband in the initial years. How she got a job at TELCO makes for interesting reading. The 1950 born Sudha had written a postcard to the company’s Chairman JRD Tata complaining of the “men only” gender bias at TELCO. As a result, she was granted a special interview and hired immediately. In 1996, she started Infosys Foundation and to date has been the Trustee of Infosys Foundation. She has written and published many books which include novels, non-fiction, travelogues, technical books, and memoirs. Her daughter Akshata is married to UK PM Rishi Sunak, while her US-based son Rohan runs Soroco, a technology company.
The Labour Party leadership is leaving no stone unturned to understand the global connections and faith commitments felt by many among the almost 1.8 million people of Indian heritage in Britain. With general elections likely to be held this year, the party is making all attempts to woo the Indian voters back to its folds and build a pro-India narrative fiercely. The Labour party governed the UK from 1964 to 1970, and 1974 to 1979. In the 1990s, Tony Blair took Labour to the centre as part of his New Labour project which governed under Blair and then Gordon Brown from 1997 to 2010. To re-establish its India connection that was lost to Conservatives in recent times a top Labour party delegation from the UK visited India to strengthen community, political and business ties. The delegation included shadow deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, Navendu Mishra MP and the Indian-origin Vimal Choksi of Tameside Council. The trio met Vice President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Minister of Women Development Smriti Irani. The visit was organised by the Labour Convention of Indian Organisations. They also met social community, religious and business leaders.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was in Bengal to start his unofficial poll campaign met his political rival – West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress Supremo Mamata Banerjee at Raj Bhavan. Since then, state BJP unit has been trying to address queries from party cadres about this bonhomie. Significantly Mamata after the meeting said that both of them discussed several things which are not related to politics. Likewise even Modi said the same thing to the senior state leaders like Sukanta Majumder and Suvendu Adhikari. Furthermore, Modi did not meet any of the party leaders during his stay at Raj Bhavan this time. Incidentally, the theory of “Modi-Didi setting” is doing the rounds not only among the Left parties but even among the grassroots cadres of the BJP. Party insiders said that the state leadership is faced with uncomfortable questions such as why the PM never criticized Didi’s nephew and party’s second-in- command Abhishek Banerjee during these rallies. It may be recalled that during Modi’s earlier rallies ahead of the State Assembly election, he was quite outspoken and had taunted Bua-Bhatija governance style. Political observers say that Modi’s speeches had a conscious effort of not going on a personal attack on Didi, since it went against the BJP during 2021 State Assembly polls. It may be recalled that PM’s “Didi-O-Didi” jibes during his political rallies did not seem to go well with average Bengali voters.
‘Mission One Thousand’ is the brainchild of Maratha reservation demand’s exponent Manoj Jarange Patil, aimed at challenging the Lok Sabha election process by fielding a thousand candidates in some constituencies in Marathwada region of Maharashtra. Mobilization with this object has started, according to reports reaching the state election authorities. If the scheme becomes a reality, the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) will be unable to process the voting, as each machine has a limited capacity to show the number of candidates. In case ballot papers are decided to be used, each will run into a score of pages. Though these are mere possibilities at this stage, the eventuality can’t be overlooked. Sensing this, Dharashiv district collector and election officer Sachin Ombase has written to Maharashtra chief electoral officer S Chokkalingam about the probable challenge. Reports also suggest that some gram panchayats have passed resolutions to field two candidates from each village. Over 2000 candidates are being prepared to file nominations in Beed district. If similar steps are taken by supporters of the Maratha leaders elsewhere, the situation will be difficult to handle, officials fear. Moreover, Rs 30,000 will be reportedly raised for each candidate and messages have been sent to collect the funding from Maratha community members. Such a strategy, if it reaches its logical conclusion, will be the first in India’s electoral history. It will be interesting to watch how the Election Commission faces this imbroglio.
In West Bengal BJP seems to be going all out to capitalise the Sandeshkhali controversy to the hilt. Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public rally in Bengal recently, minced no words to target Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee over exploitation of women by TMC leaders. He termed Sandeshkhali controversy as ‘jhor’ (storm) that will reach every part of West Bengal, accusing the TMC government of protecting criminals and trusting its own leaders over the testimonies of oppressed women. Later PM Modi met some women from Sandeshkhali. Not one to take it lying down, Didi countered it with a massive march themed, Mahilader Adhikar, Amader Angikar (women’s rights, our commitment) on the eve of International Women’s Day. Mamata charged BJP with turning a blind eye on women atrocities in Manipur and other places. Interestingly, some of the women from Sandeshkhali who were present at Didi’s rally claimed that the villagers had regained their land as a result of “Didi’s” stern and prompt actions. Significantly, in the West Bengal assembly elections of 2021, approximately half of the female voters cast their ballots in favor of the TMC, whereas 37% supported the BJP. During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP received 38% of the female vote share, while the TMC garnered 47%. TMC has taken several initiatives like Kanyashri, Rupashree, and Lakshmir Bhandar focussing on women empowerment. Political analysts pointed out that in 2021, the two Ms — Muslims and Mahila helped Trinamool win hands down and keep BJP at bay.
To clear all the haggling over seat sharing with allies, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin has made a generous gesture of allotting the one extra seat over and above the negotiated quota to each party that was clamouring for it. He told his negotiating panel headed by TR Baalu to go ahead and give the extra seat to Congress, which was asking for 9 seats, one over the offer of 8. Kamal Haasan will get two seats rather than just one for himself and the VCK will now get 3 seats instead of 2. The seat sharing among the DMK+ alliance will be tied up by Friday (Mar 8). This comes after the Congress got a bit heated up over being offered only 8 seats though it had won 9 of 10 seats allotted in 2019. Similarly, Kamal had indicated that he would feel sorely done if he went back to his party with just one seat that he may stand in himself. The VCK has been clamouring for 3 and that too has been granted now. The Communist parties that have been given two each may be told to be happy with that offer while the DMK+ may not offer an extra seat to MDMK, which might get one Rajya Sabha nomination instead. All’s well that ends well might well be the emotion on display as the DMK+ gets ready for the poll battle of 2024.
Nearly two months after his armed goons attacked and injured a raiding team of Enforcement Directorate officials, the much dreaded and “suspended” TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh was handed over to the CBI on directions of the Calcutta High Court. TMC leadership delayed the handing over to CBI by hours in spite of two court directives by claiming it had moved the Supreme Court. What surprised Delhi political circles was that more than the accused, the TMC regime was averse to handing him over to the CBI. It was as if West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee was worried about having Shahjahan in CBI custody. That’s why Union Minister Hardeep Puri lashed out against West Bengal for moving the apex court against transfer of the probe to the CBI. “One can understand if the aggrieved person –the accused– had filed a plea. Why is the state government rushing in here?” Significantly, action on Shahjahan came on a day PM Modi gave a clarion call at Basirhat rally that “storm of Sandeshkhali” will reach every part of West Bengal; he had also met with women victims Sandheshkhali soon after the rally. The island village of Sandeshkhali in the North 24 Parganas district has been in the eye of the storm since January 5, when ED officers arrived to search the home of Shahjahan. The ED team came under attack from an angry mob, leaving three officers injured. On February 7, other violent protests began erupting in Sandeshkhali and other areas, mostly by local women, alleging sexual harassment and land grabbing by Shahjahan and his men.
If the same opinion poll can disturb both opposing camps with its forecast, the India TV-CNX Opinion Poll has just done that. Its Maharashtra poll survey has predicted 35 seats for the NDA and 13 for the Maha Vikas Aghadi. Denizens of both camps are somehow disappointed by this forecast. Interestingly, this prediction has come out close on the heels of the visit of Union home minister Amit Shah to the state and his resolve to win at 45 of the total 48 seats. The Opinion Poll has dampened the mood among the three MVA partners – the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray, the Congress and the NCP under Sharad Pawar. Already miffed by the changing stance of Republican leader Prakash Ambedkar over seat sharing, MVA is yet to finalise its seat distribution. In the fluid atmosphere, the survey has endorsed the general impression that the BJP will be the largest gainer in the state, winning 25 seats. According to another prediction, sitting MP Supriya Sule will face defeat in the family fiefdom, Baramati, which will be the most prestigious fight in the state. If the MVA is still groping for an understanding, the three parties in the NDA have given indications that they have almost finalised their slices following a discussion with Shah. This happened only after CM Eknath Shinde and DCM Ajit Pawar diluted their original demands. Now, more surveys are awaited to heighten the election fever.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has been experiencing internal tensions and factional feuds, which could potentially impact its performance in the upcoming Lok Sabha Election. Though TMC failed to stop its veteran leader and MLA Tapas Roy from resigning as legislator and quit the party, it managed to heal the rift between party spokesperson leader Kunal Ghosh and veteran leader and Kolkata North MP Sudip Banerjee. However, insiders of the party and close aides of Roy have confirmed that former poll strategist and Jan Suraj party leader Prasant Kishor (PK) personally called Roy following his resignation from the party and asked him not to join any party in a hurry. Kunal Ghosh met Lok Sabha MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay at his residence in presence of local councillors to resolve the issues. Both Ghosh and Roy had been vocal against Bandyopadhyay on several occasions. Interestingly, despite being close to party’s supremo Mamata Banerjee, Roy has been supporting Mamata’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee’s idea of a new guard. It may be noted that Didi had always utilised Roy’s organisational capabilities rather than inducting him in her cabinet. Post his resignation, speculations of Roy joining BJP are rife within the political circuit. Party insiders said that PK, despite not officially functioning as poll strategist, continues to advise Didi. Many are also saying that Bandyopadhyay was advised by PK to invite Ghosh at his residence to resolve the matter, since Kolkata North is a potential seat of the ruling TMC.
It may sound strange but the changing fates of chief ministers in Bihar and Telangana have resounding repercussions in Maharashtra over the past week. While the state unit of the Janata Dal (U) has been closed down, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) branch is awaiting a word from Hyderabad about its future. As the most accomplished turncoat, Nitish Kumar, revived the alliance with the BJP and his follower, Kapil Patil, who is the sole party legislator, announced that he was snapping his ties with JD(U). Soon, Patil declared the formation of a new party, Samajwadi Ganrajya Paksh (SGP). This event was attended by Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray. Both leaders declared that they will unitedly take on the BJP and NDA. However, soon thereafter, Patil’s close associate Jalindar Sarode entered the Sena (U). Similarly, various prominent BRS leaders across the state had a meeting at Sambhaji Nagar in Marathwada to consider their future course of action since they were left high and dry for a long time. They decided to quiz former Andhra CM K Chandrasekhar Rao if he wished them to continue or shut shop. After his response is received, their next step will be decided, according to BRS Maharashtra Manik Kadam. To exacerbate the atmosphere, the BJP’s state and national leaders keep hinting that more incomings are on the cards. Hence, a pall of suspicion is felt in the opposition camp.
The DMK-Congress alliance that has stood the test of time is on the point of cracking up now. A wordy duel between a DMK and Congress representatives over seat sharing ended in both parties coming to breaking point with a deadline of March 7 given to the DMK now for acceding to Congress demands or face a rupture in ties. The DMK is determined not to let the Congress dictate which 9 seats will be given to them but would like to have a say in which candidates Congress will pick as there is some resistance to Karti Chidambaram and Jothimani getting seats. Ajoy Kumar of the Congress left fuming after the meeting and seems determined to inform his high command that the AIADMK offer of 12 seats and campaign funding looks attractive if the DMK offer does not match expectations. Chief Minister MK Stalin was closeted with his senior colleagues on Tuesday (Mar 5) morning at the DMK HQ, but then they had no inkling then that the Congress would get shrill in the seat sharing talks that they had with TR Baalu and his poll seats panel. The issues could get sorted out at the highest levels if any of the senior Gandhis intervene in the seat sharing process, otherwise a 20-year alliance seems to be at risk.
Actor Kamal Haasan is not in political limbo. He will get one seat for his party Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM), and he will be the candidate for the seat. It is just that the DMK has been playing with the Congress a bit, trying to downsize the GOP’s demand for the nine seats that it won in the last Lok Sabha elections. The DMK has been wanting to cut the Congress quota as it is dealing with demands for additional seats from the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi. It was even suggested to the Congress that it take nine seats but allot one seat to Kamal out of that. The Congress offered to accommodate that provided the actor stood on the ‘Hand’ symbol, which Kamal is reluctant to do as he has spent a lot of time and energy on his political party MNM, which has a shining torch symbol. The DMK may not offer him the Coimbatore seat that he craves because that seat has been pledged to a western TN leader. Kamal will probably plump for the South Chennai seat. It appears now that he cannot expect two seats from DMK+ but one seat of his choice may be his if he is the candidate. Since the seat sharing talks could not proceed in time, Kamal even cancelled his US visit to await word from the DMK boss MK Stalin on a meeting and a Lok Sabha seat.
AIADMK supremo Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) is striding like a sumo wrestler. Political wags are impressed with his show of bravado even as the mighty BJP like the canny spider is inviting him to “come to my parlour”. He has stood his ground of stand-alone status for the Lok Sabha polls for six months, a defiance that has confused and confounded his flock. A senior analyst from the Vikatan Group warns against anyone taking his leverage for granted. This analyst quotes Palaniswami’s resilience in the wake of Jayalalithaa’s demise and how he managed to complete the elected term for the party, in the face of open rebellion by OPS and backroom manoeuvres by Dinakaran and Sasikala to hijack and Two Leaves election symbol and many an attempt to unseat him. He is confident of the support of the moneyed Gounders and his own party strongmen Jayakumar, Shanmugam and others who are voter influencers. Despite several concerted efforts of the BJP to wean him back, EPS stands adamant. EPS shared logic with his close aides “Suppose we get into the alliance, win some MP seats, where’s the guarantee that they won’t be enticed to cross over? I would rather prove our own strength to have bargaining power, than cave in to be used expediently.” The BJP is sure to have its own strategy …EPS or no EPS. As Winston Churchill said, “Success is not final, nor failure fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts”.
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.