Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Tudu Bishweswar who hails from Mayurbhanj, Odisha is on overdrive to appease the tribal communities who constitute about 23% of Odisha population. This explains why as many as 87 Eklavya Model Residential School (EMRS), a co-ed school affiliated to CBSE have been sanctioned for Mayurbhanj which is highest for any state as well as district in India.  Eklavya Schools are being set up in States/Union Territories with grants under Article 27 and are being implemented by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. Every block with over 50% of Scheduled Tribe population having at least 20,000 tribal persons will now have EMRS and all backlog have to be completed by the extended target date 2025. Already, the parliamentary committee has expressed dismay over the slow pace of EMRS implementation work by the Tribal Ministry which for not being able to meet the original target of 452 Eklavya Schools by 2022 forcing the government to now extend the deadline to 2025. Tudu, BJP MP, is also under pressure to arrest the large number of tribal children who drop out of school — 55% at primary and nearly 71% at secondary level. It is clear the Modi government is on mission mode to uplift tribal communities and its action of nominating Droupadi Murmu also from Odisha as NDA’s presidential candidate indicates it means business.

Tamil Nadu’s senior BJP leader H Raja may have lost elections, and his national Secretary post but neither age nor defeat have withered his chutzpah and energy to take on the DMK and chief minister MK Stalin whom he calls friend. At a recent press meet, Raja took on the DMK’s A Raja for his secessionist speech, daringly, yet managed to entertain the onlookers with his extempore slugs of wit. He nailed it when he demanded Stalin should either put A Raja behind bars for sedition or face his government’s dismissal under Article 356, if Raja was his mouthpiece. “No one should think this can’t happen. Even a lame duck PM like Chandrasekhar dismissed your father’s government in 1991”. Raja claims that Jagat Gasper, a protégée of the first family is an arms peddler, and Stalin has to show him the door. Stalin, according to Raja, has a talent for claiming credit for efforts of the Centre. The BJP government under the leadership of Modi brought home over 10,000 medical aspirants from Ukraine’s war zone Stalin quickly pounced on this opportunity to claim “It was our efforts that all came home unscathed“ . The sucker punch line H Raja delivered that turned the press meet into a Stand Up comedy, “If a neighbour celebrates the birth of a child, we must offer congratulations. But if you claim responsibility for that too….it becomes awkward”.

Opposition Presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha had decided to skip Jharkhand and West Bengal due to the stand taken by JMM chief Hemant Soren and statements made by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee in favour of NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu. Mamata was open to letting her MLAs do what they want on the Presidential vote; she was also not keen about a Sinha visit to the state. However, it seems Opposition leaders have not taken kindly to Didi dropping Sinha like a hot potato for her electoral calculations in Bengal. In fact CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge do not want Sinha to skip Bengal or Jharkhand in his campaign as they feel it would send a wrong message. Yechury has even assured Sinha that the Left Parties would host him in Bengal. Meanwhile, Droupadi Murmu is reaching Kolkata on July 9 for a meeting with 69 BJP MLAs. She has also sought a separate meeting with Mamata. Now, it is clear Murmu’s presidential candidature has caught Mamata in a cleft stick– she can no longer wax eloquent about uniting the Opposition, but keep her focus on her home turf in Bengal.

The Congress high command is in two minds about taking disciplinary action against its seven erring Maharashtra MLAs for defying a party whip in the recently held Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls, fearing an exodus like the one witnessed by the Shiv Sena over the past fortnight. Due to the cross-voting by several MLAs, including seven of the Congress, it became possible for the BJP to bag an extra seat in both elections despite its numerical minority. The hurt was aggravated when a dozen Congress MLAs, including former chief minister Ashok Chavan, failed to turn up for voting when the saffron government led by Sena rebel Eknath Shinde was facing a floor test in the lower house. The issue was raised by another former chief minister, Prithviraj Chavan, demanding stern disciplinary action against the defaulters. Subsequently, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole and a defeated party candidate, Chandrakant Handore, rushed to Delhi to appraise Rahul Gandhi. This was followed up by a meeting with Sonia Gandhi. However, they failed to get any specific direction from Delhi.  Already, there is discontent in the party because of its support for renaming Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar. Hence, Sonia and Rahul are said to be proceeding cautiously. It is expected that they will wait till July 11 when the Supreme Court hears petitions regarding the developments in Maharashtra.

The decks are clear for Edappadi K Palanisamy to take over the AIADMK party as its General Secretary at the July 11 meeting to be held in Chennai.  A division bench of the Madras High Court on July 7 dismissed a contempt application seeking to punish the former CM and AIADMK leader and his supporters for alleged non-implementation of its earlier orders. The bench of Justices M Duraiswamy and Sundar Mohan also dismissed the applications to stay the general council meeting and the one against Tamil Magan Hussain, who had been nominated as the permanent presidium chairman of the party at its June 23 general council meeting. Since their orders passed in the small hours of June 23 had been stayed by the Supreme Court on July 6, the judges said they were dismissing the applications and petitions. OPS has lost the battle because EPS was able to gather a brute majority favouring a “single leader” rule that had been in force till the death of party supremo and CM J Jayalalithaa in 2016. EPS ran a sustained campaign in the background to woo all important party functionaries to his side. His clever portrayal of OPS as a “double agent” leaning towards Sasikala as well as the ruling DMK helped swing support. Only the anointing of EPS as leader of the principal Opposition party in TN remains to be completed now.

On August 6 the country will have a new Vice President and there is a lot of speculation about who it will be. Though the BJP has not revealed its card, there is a strong rumour that it is most likely to be Union Minorities Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.  A day ahead of his term ending in the Rajya Sabha, Naqvi quit as minister. He and JDU’s RCP Singh, who is Minister of Steel, also attended the Union Cabinet meeting where PM Narendra Modi praised both of them. Soon after the Cabinet, Naqvi visited BJP headquarters to meet with party chief JP Nadda. Initially, when Naqvi didn’t make it to the list of Rajya Sabha nominations it was felt that he would probably contest the Lok Sabha by-election from Rampur in Uttar Pradesh, his native State. However, after BJP fielded Ghanshyam Lodhi in SP stalwart Azam Khan’s stronghold, it was felt that Modi was likely to field the only Muslim minister in his cabinet in the vice-presidential elections. Another name doing the rounds is that of Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot. Seventy-four year Gehlot was leader of the Rajya Sabha before he moved as Karnataka Governor. Yet, what could still work in Naqvi’s favour is that he is much younger at 64 and has been very familiar with Rajya Sabha working.

DMK MP A Raja, a confidante of the late M Karunanidhi courted the country’s ire and shock while addressing a meeting of local cadres of DMK in Tamil Nadu. Raja, in the presence of the chief minister MK Stalin, threatened the Centre that TN would secede if the state was not granted more autonomy. “We will not stop until TN gets state autonomy ….I request the PM and the HM not to force us to revive the demand for a separate TN, an ideological demand made by Periyar for Thani (separate) Nadu “. The outburst, perhaps deliberate, is to remind the Modi government of their unhappiness with the TN Governor’s role, NEET issues not being addressed, inequitable distribution of GST, imposition of Hindi; the usual litany of woes that a non-BJP ruled states has with the Union government. Both AIADMK and BJP have condemned Raja’s seditious speech. But, what is intriguing is the CM playing the role of a mute spectator. Analysts are saying that the CM was using Raja as a trial balloon to assess people’s mood. Political analyst Sumanth Raman says “He embarrassed Stalin…sidelined in the DMK and sulking. Except for such fringe elements, no one in TN talks about separatism “. Says DMK Rajya Sabha MP TKS Elangovan, “Raja aired his frustration “. The grapes of wrath are bound to be sour. A Raja may soon discover, discretion is the best part of valour.

NDA presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu’s visit to Ranchi to seek electoral support from MPs and MLAs of Jharkhand was a resounding success. She not only managed to strike an emotional  chord with her electors as she disclosed that she was connected to Jharkhand by blood as her grandmother belonged to the state but seems to have also got assurance of support from the ruling  Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). Murmu, who was the Governor of Jharkhand (2015- 2021) shared with the NDA legislators that when she was declared as candidate, she had shared her apprehension with PM Narendra Modi about her ability to do justice to the responsibilities of the high office. To this Modi had told her that “The Constitution will guide and show you the right path.” He had also recalled how she had groomed “Jharkhand while being Governor”. During her stint, Murmu handled ticklish legislation issues amending tenancy laws. Significantly, Murmu called on JMM supremo Shibu Soren and his son Chief Minister Hemant Soren seeking their support. She was welcomed by the Soren duo at the Chief Minister’s residence. Though JMM-Congress is only a post poll alliance, and 18 Congress MLAs backing isn’t a big deal, state Congress Rajesh Thakur is already uncomfortable at the thought of JMM keeping away from UPA candidate. Is it because it could be a redux of Maharashtra once again?

Even though the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik have a good equation, that has not stopped BJP from trying to foist its flag in the state.  So every time there is an election in the state, BJP puts all its might only to come a cropper. Patnaik is a revered leader who has transformed Odisha which is helping the common man. BJP’s goal was to emerge as an alternative to the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha by 2024. Now that seems to be impossible given the fact BJD swept the panchayat and urban elections a few months back thereby derailing BJPs  ‘look east’ campaign. But BJP is not giving up easily. Its State President Sameer Mohanty, National Vice President Baijayant Panda and Odisha State BJP in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar have jointly prepared a 3-month strategy to make the monsoon session stormy. This plan will see BJP raise its decibel level on Mahanadi water dispute, power outages, unemployment, mineral theft, PMAY corruption, law and order, tender fixing including Naveen babu’s foreign trip. BJD seems unfazed since it is well-versed in handling opposition darts.  One has to wait and watch whether BJP’s going for the jugular strategy yields dividends?

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s recent remarks that NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu’s chances are better in the presidential elections stirred a lot of political interest making every one wonder whether she was already having second thoughts about the Opposition choice, Yashwant Sinha. A fortnight before the polls, Mamata even began to distance herself saying she had no role in Sinha emerging as the choice even though Sinha was TMC V-P. “Now we know Droupadi Murmu’s chances are better because of developments in Maharashtra.  BJP didn’t discuss with us before announcing their candidate for Presidential elections. They should have taken our suggestions then we could have considered,” she said. A section in the BJP even began to feel that perhaps Mamata’s rethink could make her endorse Murmu. However, such musings were short-lived as Didi loudly wondered in a TV interview on July 4 why the suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma was “not arrested” even after Supreme Court’s much contested observations. Of course, digging a little deeper, it seems Mamata was feeling increasingly nervous about Murmu’s candidature. Maybe she realizes that by opposing Murmu in the Presidential poll, she could lose her party’s tribal vote bank in south Bengal which she had regained from the BJP in the 2021 state Assembly elections. Her arch BJP rival Suvendu Adhikari has already participated in several events across the state’s Junglemahal region, which has a significant tribal population.

The exquisite array of gifts Prime Minister Narendra Modi carried to the G7 summit tells the story of an extraordinary politician who has made India and Indians proud. And the GI Tag on a few of these gifts came as an added bonus to promote Indian artisans and their body of work. The gifts ranged from a Gulabi Meenakari brooch and matching cuff links, GI tagged from Varanasi for the U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady. Japan’s PM Fumio Kishida was gifted Black Pottery, a process specific speciality of Nizamabad. The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was gifted an ultra special platinum painted tea set to commemorate the Queen’s platinum jubilee year. Emmanuel Macron was the recipient of a Zari Zardozi box crafted in Lucknow, encased in hand embroidered khadi silk in the colours of the French flag. The contents were even more exotic — it held Attar Mitti, a fragrance mix of jasmine, rose and musk.  Germany’s Chancellor was gifted brassware from Moradabad .The Italian PM was delighted to receive a semi-precious stones inlaid marble table top, reminiscent of the Pietra Dura that originated in Rome.  So what is unusual about PM gifting exotic memorabilia? Normally, one expects such esoteric tastes to a “Manor Born “. Or praise the team designated to choose. Ultimately, it is the leader’s forethought to showcase India discerningly, abroad.

Nothing seems to work for the Bengal BJP at present. While Trinamool Congress manages to make a significant dent in North Bengal by gaining the maximum number of panchayat and gram panchayat boards under Siliguri division, the Bengal BJP is grappling with internal feuds. Taking cognizance of this, the central BJP leadership has sent out a strong message to the leaders who have been vocal against the present state leadership. Towards this it has excluded Dilip Ghosh, former state president and MP from Medinipur, and Locket Chatterjee, MP from Hooghly, from the panchayat coordination committee. Instead, Debasree Chaudhuri, MP from Raiganj, has been given the charge. Interestingly, Ghosh had spearheaded the 2018 panchayat polls which helped BJP to make inroads and become West Bengal’s principal opposition party. Similarly, Locket who was in charge of the committee set up to celebrate the Modi Government’s 8th Anniversary celebration, also failed to be a part of the Panchayat Committee. Insiders said both Ghosh and Chatterjee had been voicing their dissent against the current president Dr Sukanta Majumder. Debasree is known to be close to Majumder.  When asked why Ghosh has been excluded from the committee, BJP says Ghosh is one of the members of the National Working Committee. But so is Debasree. Locket’s exclusion is understandable as she continues to show her allegiance to the former state president.

After attending a closed door meeting with Rahul Gandhi on election strategy for Karnataka elections early next year, an ecstatic Siddaramaiah could not avoid interacting with select journalists from Delhi media at a 5-star hotel. That’s because the Congress leadership more than ever seemed dependent on him. A party survey showed that 20 to 30% Muslims votes had shifted to formations like the SDPI and AIMIM.  In a four hour discussion with state stalwarts like Siddaramaiah and DK Shivkumar, Rahul had expressed anxiety about Muslims moving away from the Congress and urged the need to win them over.  He wanted both Siddaramaiah and DK Shivkumar to work together.  What made Siddaramaiah happy was that the party was now ready to endorse his AHINDA formula under which party candidates were selected from minorities, backward castes and Dalits. However, even as he was interacting with journalists, he received a call from Randeep Surjewala, AICC General Secretary in charge of Karnataka warning him not to utter a word to Delhi media as they tend to misinterpret his statement on Karnataka politics. Nonetheless, Siddaramaiah could not help conveying that he was the top leader in Karnataka not DK Shivakumar.

Former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis sprung a surprise by announcing that Shiv Sena rebel leader Eknath Shinde would be the new Maharashtra CM. However, this is not the ‘large-heartedness’ of the BJP, as Shinde believes, but a masterstroke that the BJP has played to cut to size the stature of Shiv Sena founder late Bal Thackeray’s son Uddhav and grandson Aaditya in the party and the state politics. “With Shinde at the helm of affairs in the state as well in the party with the backing of 39 MLAs, the significance of Uddhav Thackeray in the party will drop significantly,” said Jay Prakash Singh, a senior political analyst. He added that the move will help Fadnavis and the BJP garner sympathy votes during the upcoming civic elections for letting go of the CM’s chair for the sake of Hindutva.  Fadnavis will be very much in the driver’s seat as deputy CM and this is the wish of the party high command. Fadnavis has declared, “BJP is the single largest party in the legislature… I will ensure the smooth functioning of the government.” However, is causing embarrassment to the Thackerays the only reason why Fadnavis passed on the CM’s chair to Shinde? “Once bitten, twice shy!” Singh asserts. “Fadnavis wants to play safe as he doesn’t want to face a situation similar to that of 2019. NCP leader Ajit Pawar went back to the party fold less than 48 hours after rebelling. What’s the guarantee that the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs won’t return to the Thackeray camp in the coming days/months?”

Notwithstanding the fact that AIADMK has backed the NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu for presidential elections, that did not stop Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from calling up AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami to seek his support for Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha. The call apparently surprised AIADMK’s top brass as O Panneerselvam was present in Delhi when Murmu filed her papers. So why and how did Rahul reach out to the AIADMK when it is already an ally of the DMK? It is being said Rahul’s call to the AIADMK leader was put through by election strategist Sunil Kanugolu. Having worked with AIADMK, Kanugolu had access to top AIADMK leaders. It seems the idea to approach the AIADMK was the brainwave of Viduthali Chiruthali Kathchi (VCK) leader T Thirmamaavalavan. The Chidamabaram Lok Sabha MP wants the Congress to move away from the DMK and forge an alliance with the AIADMK for 2024 Lok Sabha polls as the mood in the state is going against the DMK. On his part, Edappadi politely told Rahul about his party’s commitment to support Murmu.

The online gaming industry may be in for a rude shock as the Tamil Nadu government seems bent on banning any site offering online gaming with a stake. By stake it means money you pay to place a bet. The government, worried over reports of suicides due to debt problems of some addicted gamers, had appointed a committee headed by retired Justice Chandru of the Madras High Court to recommend what action to take.  The committee which submitted its report to Chief Minister MK Stalin on June 27, recommended that the government enforce a ban of not only gaming sites but also the advertisements that promote it which are often seen during the cricket telecasts. The problem is that a blanket ban will not care to distinguish between the legitimate e-gaming sites and the gambling sites, including many offshore sites that are operating freely in the internet environment as it exists. The three largest online skill games associations are already concerned over reports suggesting that the GST rates on online skill games are to go up from 18 % to 28 %. Banning by one state could be emulated by other states. Karnataka had been contemplating action on online gambling in which several sites are claiming revenues in excess of Rs 1,000 crore per annum.

When BJP announced the name of 64-year old Droupadi Murmu from Odisha as NDA’s Presidential candidate penny and jaws dropped. One of India’s best management minds Prof R Vaidyanathan said: “The choice of Droupadi Murmu is a massive tectonic shift in Indian polity. Mark my words, not many developed nations could have mustered the consensus for such a role model like Droupadi to adorn the Presidential chair”. Murmu, a capable administrator comes from the adivasi Santhals of Odisha with stints as a Minister and later, a Governor. A devoted Sanathana dharmi, the first thing Murmu did was to visit the Shiva temple. Undoubtedly, the polity and power shift is in favour of the OBC’s. The RSS, focusing on the importance of the Vanavasis, set up 600,000 vidyalayas in tribal areas to bring the tribals under the umbrella of education. So the choice of Murmu is a logical step for inclusion. Two significant irritants cast their shadow on the tribals of India –.the Naxalite threat and the Christian Missionary Conversion issue, parading under the euphemism, “Soul harvesting by planting the cross”.  With successive government’s tough stand, the Naxal threat spread over 185 districts has now come down to 25. Murmu is bound to face and preside over more such irritants and challenges as our nation moves up to pole position.

Looks like the Congress high command may have to opt for leadership change in Rajasthan if it has to halt erosion in the party’s cadre ahead of 2023 assembly elections. Acharya Pramod Krishnam, a close aide of Priyanka Vadra, has openly called for elevating Pilot as CM and a central role for Gehlot. Party sources admit that a groundswell of sympathy is emerging in the state for Pilot, who as PCC chief led the Congress to victory in 2018, but was denied CM’s post. Sources said if Gehlot leads the party to assembly polls, then it’s likely that BJP may sweep the poll. It was felt if Pilot was made the CM, the Congress could somewhat reverse the damage. After all, even state BJP leaders call Pilot “Neelkanth” (swallower of poison). Significantly, Rahul Gandhi recently praised Pilot’s patience at Jantar Mantar. Rahul’s praise seems to have rattled Gehlot which is perhaps why he has begun attacking his former deputy chief minister for taking BJP’s help during his 2020 rebellion. On his part, Pilot continues to play cool about Gehlot’s taunt and takes it in his stride. “Earlier, also the CM had spoken about me saying nakara (useless), nikamma (jobless) and much more. Ashok Gehlot is an experienced, elderly and fatherly figure, if he speaks something I don’t take it otherwise,” he said.

Before filing his papers for President’s election, joint opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha reached out to BJP veteran L K Advani for a meeting with him and to seek his blessings. The staff of the BJP leader however told Sinha that since Advani’s daughter Pratibha was down with Covid, a meeting perhaps would not be possible now. Interestingly, before the papers were to be filed the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti pledged its support to Sinha. It was also announced that KCR’s son KT Rama Rao would be present. And he did. Prominent among those who joined him to submit his papers included Rahul Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel, Akhilesh Yadav, DMK leader A Raja and Tiruchi Shiva, and Farooq Abdullah. Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot was also present. However, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha was not represented as Jharkhand’s ruling party is yet to decide on whom to support in the presidential polls. Also present was Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh, TMC’s Abhishek Banerjee and Saugata Roy, CPI-M’s Sitaram Yechury and CPI’s D Raja, Rashtriya Lok Dal’s Jayant Chaudhary, Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Misa Bharti, Revolutionary Socialist Party’s N K Premchandran and Indian Union Muslim League’s Mohammed Bashir.

Normally, in by-elections ruling parties tend to have an advantage. This was seen in the manner in which BJP clinched the two Samajwadi Party (SP) bastions of Azamgarh and Rampur in Lok Sabha by-polls in Uttar Pradesh (UP). However, what came as a surprise was that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) lost Punjab’s Sangrur Lok Sabha seat — a parliamentary constituency, vacated by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, in less than four months after it swept to power in the state. While the two Lok Sabha seats in UP were previously held by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav (Azamgarh) and senior SP leader Azam Khan (Rampur), the Punjab seat considered a stronghold of Mann has gone to an avowed Khalistani supporter Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) candidate Simranjit Singh Mann. AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha, however downplayed the loss by pointing out that “AAP had retained its vote share with a meagre fall from 37% to 35% and all other parties INC, SAD (Akali Dal) and BJP lost deposits.” The BJP’s tally of Lok Sabha seats in UP has risen from 62 to 64, while the SP has been reduced to three seats. Though the BJP bagged the Rampur seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, it lost the seat in 2019. Interestingly, Akhilesh Yadav had stayed out of campaign in Rampur while Azam Khan fielded a “weak” candidate.

Looks like Trinamool Congress Supremo and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is taking no chance as far as elections in her state are concerned. Panchayat polls are in 2023 but Didi is already in an election mode. She plans to visit every district in the state so as to establish direct contacts with TMC booth-level workers and voters. This early preparation by Didi is for several reasons. First, to take stock of the implementation of her government’s development schemes and glean whether local leaders and administration are working in tandem. Second, to nip factional feuds within TMC. Third, to weed out corruption from the grassroots level. Above all, Didi has recruited a special force from outside to give her reports without dilution of what’s happening within her party at all levels. Didi who kicked off her panchayat campaign visiting the Jangalmahal areas in the Jhargram district is likely to visit all 23 districts of the state. Her one message to her party workers is: ensure panchayat polls are peaceful unlike 2018, which was marred by violence and opposition not allowed to contest. That poll violence cost the TMC dearly in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections where it lost 16 seats – from 38 it was down to 22 seats. This worked to BJPs advantage, winning 18 seats. Didi cannot afford that mistake again.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee has had a tough time in forging Opposition initiatives to finalise a candidate for Presidential elections. Even as Yashwant Sinha quit TMC to please Left parties that found it difficult to back a candidate affiliated to a political party, Didi was quite stumped by her efforts to get NCP chief Sharad Pawar to be first a candidate and later to even attend the initial round of meeting she had called on June 15. Pawar’s presence was important for her to forge Opposition unity but for some reason the NCP chief was reluctant to take any lead. Didi had to persuade Supriya Sule and Praful Patel to ensure that the veteran leader was present at the event. Mamata even called on Pawar at his residence along with her nephew Abhishek on June 14. Yet in spite of her extra efforts, not all non-BJP parties turned up. Parties like AAP and TRS gave it a miss while the Left was critical that the meeting was held at short notice. Leaders of regional parties seemed more worried about their worth in 2024. At the meet Pawar surprised Mamata by ruling himself out of the contest right at the launch. This wasn’t how Mamata had planned. So finally on June 21 when Yashwant Sinha’s name was finalised at the Opposition meet, 2nd round, Mamata chose to skip it. 

Having exhausted all attempts to stop the conduct of the AIADMK General Council (GC) meeting, to be held on June 23, party coordinator O Panneerselvam (OPS), who is expecting to be ousted from his post, has decided to boycott the event. He refuses to be part of what could be the coronation of his party colleague, joint leader, and now enemy No 1 as he aims to crown himself the sole leader of the party. OPS had been telling his supporters in the GC to strategise counter moves to those of the Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) camp who are determined to raise the issue of a single leader and take control of the party. OPS could not scuttle the GC legally as the court refused to stay the meeting. He also wrote a letter to the Avadi Police Commissioner requesting him to deny permission for the meeting at Vanagaram that falls under his Avadi jurisdiction. But the police are unlikely to take OPS’ word as the party has officially convened the meeting. Police are expected to be present in good numbers as OPS has raised the bogey of violence both in the court and with them. It does appear OPS’ days are numbered in AIADMK and he may also lose the post of Treasurer presiding over two big trusts that control about Rs 3,000 crore corpus.

Many chat rooms offer the possibility in order to meet new people. Frequently , these bedrooms are filled with like-minded individuals. However , there are also a large number of that can incorporate some nasty articles. In fact , there are lots of overseas chatrooms that have been offender of find a bride sexual fermage. These may not be the best locations to get a match. One of the most notorious conditions involved the “Nth Room” chatroom. Founded in February 2021, it quickly gained popularity to become a hotbed of lovemaking innuendos, sexist comments, and obscene photos. The chatroom’s leader, who had above 50, 000 followers, disappeared right after its starting. As though the chatroom’s attractiveness wasn’t enough, that soon enticed a legion of like-minded people. Some of these members shared photos of ladies without their particular consent. Their activities were not only distressing, but incredibly sexist. Another example of a sexist chatroom happened in a group in the social media app Telegram. This particular group had more than 7, 000 people and many obscene photos. Among the list of worst offenders were a perpetrator who uploaded images of his girlfriend, roommates, and other girls. Others lamented that the group’s leader encouraged sex assault. It was not the very first time that a pornographic chatroom had been spotted on an net forum. Another example involves a Chinese person who applied a web proxy service to check out photos of additional men’s women. He was told by a unfamiliar person that his foreign brides good friend had been sharing her photo in a chatroom, and he was not by yourself. Huang Pu did not figure out china bride how come his good friend would take a private relationship which has a man who had been sharing her image. But when he noticed that his friend was in a chatroom, he decided to take a look for...

When looking for a female to get married to, it is important to make sure she is compatible with your values and lifestyle. A girl who shares your areas and passions will make your relationship even more romantic and fulfilling. Ladies who happen to be attractive and also have a positive frame of mind will be a wonderful fit to your marriage. Additionally , you should select a woman that’s loyal, understanding, and fun-loving. Discovering the right woman meant for relationship can be a extended, challenging process. There are countless websites out there which can help you find the ideal partner, both home-based and worldwide. Forums are also a great place to meet up with unmarried ladies. You may also want to visit chat rooms or perhaps joining a dating webpage to fulfill women from other foreign brides countries. Prior to starting chatting via the internet, you must know that several women don’t understand the way men communicate with women. They may communicate with an corrodante tone. You should also avoid discussing controversial single brides subject matter. If you have any doubts regarding whether a woman will be suitable along, don’t meet with her understand what feel comfortable doing so. A quality man is going to listen to the things you have to say and will reverence your opinions. Tinder is an excellent example of this kind of. Tinder users swipe right on males based on appearance. This is a time consuming waste of time. Quality guys take the time to tune in to a woman and find out about her life. A wedded man’s ability to provide for children is attractive to a lot of single girls. He has a financial plan set up and is sensible meant for domestic is important. Single women tend to be attracted to this kind of trait since they know that a married guy will not get in the way with the social existence. They may also look and feel more comfortable...

Whether you are a Thailänder man looking to woo your western lady, or perhaps you are a traditional western man trying to date a Thai woman, you have to be mindful belonging to the potential problems. As you browse through the web that is Thai going out with, here are some helpful tips to hold you on target. Among the easiest methods to get a Thai girfriend is through the web dating sites currently available. Some of the most well-known sites incorporate ThaiCupid, A good amount of Fish, and Match. While these sites may not deliver free health club to man users, they will remain well worth your time. They offer many tools and features that will help you find a Thai girl that fits your requirements. One of the most impressive thing about these sites is a intuitive individual software. Users can easily set up a profile, upload photographs, and look for women of all ages, sex types, and locations. They also offer a chat feature just where users may interact with Asian girls. There are also extra credits to be earned with regards to tests the site’s features. One of the best ways to look for a Thai girfriend online is usually to go to the Persons section of the internet site. You can also look for ladies by position, social status, or possibly a combination of three. This characteristic is particularly valuable when you have a selected area in Thailand in mind. You can also find gals from other countries, like the Philippines, by utilizing the newsfeed characteristic. The secret is to stay away from the pitfalls that can lead to catastrophe. Here are some common mistakes to stop: The most basic miscalculation is to not understand the traditions of the Thailänder people. You have to be willing to recognize the actual fact that they usually do not treat women as well as americans do. You how to get a wife should consider that a relationship with a Thailänder woman calls for the...

If you are looking for top free online dating site, eHarmony is the place to go. This site boasts more than 10 million subscribers and 750, 000 paying subscribers. It was one of the first dating sites to supply compatibility testing and possesses a useful interface. Inspite of the fact that it is liberated to join, the sign-up process can be lengthy. It can take up to one hour for users to develop a questionnaire and get a meet. This site is incredibly similar to Tinder in that it matches users based on their very own likes and preferences. This amazing site, unlike Tinder, also offers mobile types. The iphone app also allows users to speak with people in real-time. The best part about OkCupid is its ability to meet people based on their particular interests and personality traits. The algorithms used by these types of dating websites vary. Several target a younger audience with less detailed profiles, whilst others cater to the greater mature gang. Some of the mature, more serious dating sites employ more complex methods that consider core values and personality traits. They find a bride allow users to filtration profiles by simply last online and gender name, among additional criteria. Elite Available singles is known as a dating web page that requires a more specialized methodology. The site is definitely geared towards people who are looking for serious associations. Elite Lonely hearts has above 90 percent of paid members who are at least 30 years outdated. However , you should keep in mind that these kinds of dating sites are not for everybody. Zoosk is a superb dating web page that allows users to talk and message other affiliates. It has various choices for get together new people and includes online video and messaging services. It also incorporates a subscription-based way. Paid users can create users and hunt for singles inside their area. Fell users in addition have...

The defeat of Congress’s first candidate in Maharashtra Legislative Council elections — Chandrakant Handore– and victory of second candidate Bhai Jagtap by eight votes reflects more poorly on vote management by senior ministers Ashok Chavan and Balasaheb Thorat, who is also PCC chief. Party sources feel defeat of Dalit leader Handore, who was to get first preference votes, was a shocker and, fear it would have implications in the Mumbai civic elections. Handore’s defeat also reflected the mood of MLAs who did not like the way party affairs were being managed. Sources said Handore’s defeat was a snub to Rajya Sabha Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge. Apparently, state leaders were irritated by the way Kharge got around to pushing for neo-Buddhist candidates in every election. Once it had even cost the party post of deputy chairman in the Legislative Council in 2018 as he insisted on the late Sharad Ranpise’s candidature. Many in the party feel the defeat of Handore is also a message of Maharashtra Congress to high command for imposing non-Maharshtrian candidates for Rajya Sabha in the past three consecutive elections — Rajiv Shukla, P Chidambaram and now Imran Pratapgarhi. Post Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde revolt, senior Congress leader Anant Gadgil feels Congress should have never joined the Government. “I had told Ahmed Patel in 2019, let us provide outside support to MVA,” recalls a vindicated Gadgil.

Former Haryana CM Bhupinder Hooda has been sulking ever since his arch rival and fellow Jat leader Randeep Surjewala got elected from Rajasthan as Rajya Sabha MP and he couldn’t get anyone elected from Haryana. So when Congress high command initially dialled him to make protests in Delhi and at Jantar Mantar over summoning of Rahul Gandhi by the ED a success, a miffed Hooda told them to take help of Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot who had ensured election of three Congress RS MPs. Hooda’s refusal made a desperate party leadership to send out a message to summon Rajasthan MLAs and party workers to reach Delhi to block streets on June 20 — Rahul’s fourth day at ED headquarters. But then it seems after initial reluctance, Hooda relented; his supporters not only made the protests a success in Delhi, Hooda himself turned up at Jantar Mantar. Meanwhile, party sources admit Gehlot had emerged as a troubleshooter in the Congress and he has been carrying messages on behalf of party president Sonia Gandhi. She wanted Ghulam Nabi Azad to handle the AICC Organisation — something he had managed in the 80s; Gehlot reached out to Azad who declined saying it must be given to younger people. He also pacified a miffed Tariq Anwar. Both Azad and Anwar were hoping to get a RS berth.

Retired Indian High Commissioner to UK Gayatri Issar Kumar at her farewell hosted by the Indian Journalists Association there said in lighter vein that London looked like India’s new “summer capital”.  There is a ring of truth to what she said. Post Covid, no sooner were travel rules relaxed than there was a beeline of ministers, bureaucrats, businessmen air dashing to London. Union Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, Telangana’s IT Minister KT Rama Rao, Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Salman Khurshid landed here in quick succession to engage with the Indian diaspora. Goyal’s frequent visits and systematic follow-ups were to generate investments through government bonds and expedite progress of FTA, slated to be concluded by Diwali this year.  Senior BJP leader and RSS ideologue Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, who is set to visit London, is scheduled to address Indian groups and includes the Overseas Maharashtrians Professionals and Entrepreneurs Group. India’s growing soft power is the message. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also plans to visit London.  Sometime in July, the Chief Justice of India and law department secretaries have their scheduled visits and public engagements. And finally, the Commonwealth Games will likely see the entire sports lobby from India travelling to the West Midlands in the UK. Clearly, London is not just a summer capital. Indian business and politics seems to evolve and revolve around it.

AIADMK, the principal opposition party in Tamil Nadu, is in turmoil. A tussle between the two factions headed by Joint coordinators Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) and O Panneerselvam (OPS) has led even to skirmishes and a former minister’s car being thumped as he left HQ. Together, EPS and OPS mean something in Tamil Nadu politics but if they go their separate ways, the former ruling party, founded by MGR and nurtured by J Jayalalithaa, will lose ground rapidly. Prime Minister had played the peacemaker on his last visit to Chennai, telling both party honchos to stay united and play a constructive role as opposition party. What is causing stress now is the playbook of EPS supporters eyeing to bring back the old days of a unitary leader and to hold an election for a revived general secretary post. But, OPS, fearful that he may stand no chance in a party poll, would like to avoid a head-to-head contest. A compromise may be OPS’ best route out but he would end up losing whatever hold he has on the party. A hidden hand in this is, of course, that of the Jaya confidante VK Sasikala whose political ambitions run sky-high. Truth to tell, EPS is the party’s best-known face but he can assert himself only at the cost of the party splitting. June 23, when the party council meets, should be fraught with interest.

So now it is quite obvious that when Congress President Sonia Gandhi avoided the first ED summons in the National Herald case on June 8 citing COVID, it is clear she wasn’t suffering from it. A party statement  now has claimed she was  admitted to the Sir Gangaram Hospital on June 12 citing “profuse bleeding from the nose” where she  is currently being treated for a fungal infection detected in her lower respiratory tract, along with other post-COVID symptoms. That it is not COVID became clear by the manner in which Rahul and Priyanka were regularly visiting Sonia in the hospital. She underwent a related follow-up procedure on June 16 morning. “She continues to be under close observation and treatment.” It seemed very odd that a medical bulletin on Sonia’s health should be issued by the party, instead of the hospital. Of course, the statement was carefully worded, loaded with medical terminology to help Sonia avoid her June 23 date with ED. Towards this end new AICC media head Jairam Ramesh has done a thorough job. Yet, it is surprising why the hospital did not issue a health bulletin on Sonia? This is generally the practice most hospitals follow whenever well-known political leaders are admitted under their care.

Telangana Chief Minister and TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao wants to rebrand his party as Bharat Rashtra Samiti on the premise that he wants it to grow nationally. The whispers inside his own party are that their chief honcho is guided by astrologers who seem to have picked on the name ‘TRS’ as the reason why it won’t do well in the next polls. In fact, short of saying he may be heading for defeat for the first time since the State of Telangana was formed and the party its leading votary formed sweeping the polls twice, soothsayers may have warned KCR that the stars don’t foretell a great future beyond the elections that are due in 2023 in the state. By rebranding his party through a change to Bharat, KCR believes he can build on his national ambitions by seeking to expand beyond Telangana boundaries. While it is moot if the party can so much as seek to do well even in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, it’s likely KCR is thinking of projecting himself in the Hindi belt, towards which he would like to take on the avatar of a national leader, beginning with an active role in the Presidential polls in July. What the stars portend may be a fear driving him but KCR is convinced that a national role awaits him.

BJP has woken up to the harsh reality of difficulty in dividing Bengal politically. This realisation saw BJP Chief JP Nadda telling partymen not to rake up the Bengal bifurcation issue in public. Some BJP leaders were pushing for a separate state/Union territory status for North Bengal from the state’s western plateau. This change of heart comes even as TMC postures on unity in political diversity making BJP top leader thinks it is inopportune time to be treading on the statehood landmine and getting perceived as dividers of Bengal. BJP’s MLA numbers are down owing to cross-overs to the TMC. Nine local BJP MLAs have written a letter to Nadda expressing displeasure over recent organisational changes in the state. More importantly, with the Presidential election in July, 2023 panchayat elections and 2024 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s top brass won’t risk slicing Bengal politically for the time being. BJP has also realised that there is no common cause among political parties in North Bengal. “The splitting of Bengal is far from being over, BJP has pressed the pause button for now”, analysts say. So, for now the party is focussed on consolidation fearing its anti-Mamata and divide Bengal politics may boomerang.

A lot of meaning is being read into the way NCP Chief Sharad Pawar praised BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis for winning all the 3 seats his party contested. Pawar praised Fadnavis for succeeding in working the “miracle” of weaning away independent MLAs from rival camps using “different means”. He said that there was nothing shocking in the election results, in which a Shiv Sena candidate Sanjay Pawar lost to BJP’s Dhananjay Mahadik. “One has to accept the miracle in which BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis succeeded in weaning away independent MLAs and also those from smaller parties, who would have otherwise supported the MVA. He was successful in bringing people (independent MLAs) close to him by using different means,” said Pawar. Congress sources said the two AIMIM MLAs who extended support to the MVA Government didn’t vote for Sena candidate Sanjay Pawar but only Cong-NCP.  Sena MP Sanjay Raut, who scraped through the polls, however down played BJP’s accomplishment. Political buzz is that the NCP could soon stake its claim to lead the government in Maharashtra. It is being said Pawar would like to see his daughter Supriya Sule installed as the state CM. The MVA Government under Uddhav Thackeray has completed two and half years in office. Guess it must be NCP’s turn now at the top.

Maharashtra Congressmen simply cannot get over the fact that they had to elect AICC minority cell head Imran Pratapgarhi to the Rajya Sabha. It was a tough call to elect an outsider for the single seat that fell vacant in the state. But then it was a whip from Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.  So all the 44 MLAs duly voted Pratapgarhi. Yet what is riling many party seniors is how Pratapgarhi, a well-known poet-qawwaali singer, had played hard to get during the 2019 assembly election campaign. State party managers recalled when asked to do some shows in Muslim-majority pockets in western Maharashtra, the snooty poet had quoted Rs 2 lakh per show. It was a price the state unit found too high to afford. Pratapgarhi had lost from Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Today, Maharashtra has quietly sent him to Rajya Sabha, hoping he may not send a huge bill for the campaign again. In this context, old timers recall how when veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad was sent to the Rajya Sabha for one term in the 90s there was a howl of protest. That too after he had already been twice elected to Lok Sabha from Washim in Maharashtra.

The term of the first ever President from BJP-RSS, Ram Nath Kovind, is getting over and the race for succession has been throwing up interesting names. While the Modi-Amit Shah-RSS chief trio may come up with an outreach name of their own choice to spring a surprise as they did last time, the importance of the person holding the post in 2024 in having to decide who to call to form the government is not to be underestimated. The odds are the name will be acceptable to allies on whom the BJP will be relying to get its candidate past the post. Kovind got more than two-thirds of the vote, which may not happen in these more polarised times. But the BJP is certain it will seal the numbers as the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party(YSRCP) will be its banker. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is an ally who has never stepped out of line, maybe because of his experience with the central agencies before sweeping the polls to become Andhra CM. The result is not in doubt thanks to Jagan deciding to stick with the rulers. The UPA has been toying with various names, including that of Nandan Nilekani whose brainchild is Aadhaar, but it lacks the numbers to make any great impression on Presidential polls that have always been won by the candidate of the ruling dispensation.

Post the embarrassment of fire-fighting utterances of the now sacked party voices Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal, the BJP has come up with new guidelines for its spokespersons appearing on TV shows. As per the new guidelines, only the official spokespersons and panelists will now be allowed to appear on TV debates. The party’s media cell has been charged with assigning spokespersons for the talk shows on TV channels.  The party will once again go back to the old system when spokespersons were briefed by senior leaders or ministers such as the late Arun Jaitley or Sushma Swaraj. Looks like the media cell will once again be guided by senior party leaders or ministers.  For a while spokespersons have been operating autonomously, relying on their own understanding of the subject. The media cell has been sorely missing critical inputs of someone like Shrikant Sharma — now a minister in the Yogi Government — who used to give briefs to spokespersons before they went on air. Sharma used to ensure that no one crossed the line or made any controversial comment.  As per the new advisory, spokespersons have been advised to research on the topic of debate before they go on air and prepare themselves keeping in mind the party line.

A message has gone out to DMK party members from the Stalin household to mind their language in public. A full licence has been given to keep knocking the Centre over Hindi and NEET but don’t get into caste politics by dragging names of communities is the message. Stalin has mastered the art of saying it nicely even if he is diametrically opposed to the Centre and its Governor but many down the line may have lost their way in packaging their messages. The DMK MP TKS Elangovan’s rant against Hindi imposition would have been fine with the party except for the twist given in dragging caste into it with the word “shudras”. The higher education minister K Ponmudy had also raved against Hindi and he also overstepped in calling all Hindi speaking people as “Paani-puri wallahs” but the humour had struck home.  Having won the battle against caste hierarchy long ago after having come to power in 1967, the DMK would like to keep social justice as an ideological peg and not give it a spin by airing caste politics. Their high command may have enjoyed the divisions among the AIADMK over the BJP trying to take over, at least in voice, as the main opposition in the State but it does not wish to get tangled in rhetoric taking over practical politics.

Ever since election strategist Prashant Kishor walked out on the Congress, many tried filling into his shoes. Even his understudy turned rival, poll strategist Sunil Kanugolu has now become part of the Congress task force for the 2024 general elections. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi constantly seeks someone to give him an edge over PM Narendra Modi. It is in this light that a recent tweet by Sudheendra Kulkarni caught the attention of Congressmen in Karnataka. On May 22, Kulkarni tweeted that he had conducted a training camp for Congress karyakartas in Bengaluru in Sarvagnangar assembly constituency of party MLA KJ George. IIT-Bombay educated Kulkarni was a speechwriter for former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. A native of north Karnataka, he also handled senior BJP leader LK Advani’s 2009 election campaign. He is credited for Advani’s praise of Jinnah’s speech in May 2005 during the Pak visit. Congress sources say Kulkarni is yet to join the party. Kulkarni was a student of Jairam Ramesh’s father at IIT, Bombay and it is possible Jairam may have introduced him to Rahul Gandhi. In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, after BJP failed to win, Kulkarni exited the BJP.  Then, BJP leader Muktar Abbas Naqvi had said Kulkarni was never a member of the BJP.

Days after popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala was murdered, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited his family in Mansa district on Tuesday, June 7, to offer his condolences. Sidhu Moose Wala had joined the Congress in December 2021 and unsuccessfully contested from the Mansa seat in the 2022 Punjab state assembly elections. Rahul’s visit to the singer’s family in their native village of Moosa was interesting in the backdrop of Moose Wala’s parents meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah on June 4 at Chandigarh airport. At the meeting, Moose Wala’s father Balkaur Singh had demanded a probe by central intelligence agencies into the brutal murder of his son in Mansa on May 29. Rahul Gandhi was abroad at the time and returned over the weekend. His sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had also planned to visit the Moose Wala family. But it was finally decided that it would be Rahul. With a number of Congress leaders joining the BJP in Punjab, Rahul’s visit to the state assumes importance, party sources said. Rahul was accompanied by several Congress leaders including Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and LOP in the Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa. Yet some MLAs, apparently those close to Priyanka Vadra, like Suhkpal Singh Khaira felt miffed as they were not included in Rahul’s itinerary.

Playing a master stroke is a habit with Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. But, the latest one caught his band of ministers by surprise. Emboldened by the recent bypoll win in Brajrajnagar and the Panchayat polls earlier, Patnaik did the apparently unthinkable –asking all his ministers to resign en masse on Saturday (June 4) and rejigged the 21-member new cabinet with new faces the next day. Non-performers were shown the door. Surprisingly, Governor Ganesh Lal approved the entire exercise without quibbles. In simpler words Modi’s dispensation did not throw any spanners in the works. Seasoned politicians from Odisha say no Odisha Chief Minister ever, including Naveen’s father Biju Patnaik, had the audacity to do what he did at such a short notice. His decision was with some purpose. Naveen babu clearly wants his party BJD to sweep the 2024 Lok Sabha election in Odisha. To ensure the win, he did away with deadwood, controversial ministers and sycophant advisors. While 20 ministers quit, Naveen gave cabinet berths to only nine. Five women and, seven people elected from western Odisha, considered a stronghold of BJP were also accommodated. Some political analysts are calling it a shock therapy while others are saying it’s Patnaik’s winning strategy. There is no denying that Patnaik remains an undisputable hero for some time to come.

It seems wives in the Samajwadi Party have lost out on party tickets, whether for the Rajya Sabha or, even for Lok Sabha by-elections. SP men simply aren’t willing to risk their better halves in UP under Yogi. First it was Dimple Yadav, wife of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav who couldn’t win a nomination to Rajya Sabha as the RS ticket went to RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary. No wonder when Akhilesh Yadav met senior leader Azam Khan in the hospital, after the latter’s release from jail, a clash ensued between the two over the question of fielding candidates for two upcoming Lok Sabha by-elections. Akhilesh wanted to field wife Dimple from Azamgarh, the Lok Sabha seat he vacated to retain his assembly seat of Karhal, even as Azam Khan was against it during their couple of hours long meeting. Finally, Akhilesh picked his first cousin Dharmendra Yadav to contest from Azamgarh. Similarly, Azam Khan initially proposed his wife Dr Tanzeem Fatima but, later opted for SP city president Asim Raza for the Rampur Lok Sabha by-polls. “Earlier it was Dr Tanzeen Fatima but Raza will be contesting now. He is one of the loyal workers we have,” Khan said in Rampur. The BJP has fieIded Dinesh Lal Yadav, who is asking for a vote for “your development”.

A day after receiving flak for all out appeasement of Gulf countries and suspensions of BJP spokespersons Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal, over controversial statements regarding a religious entity, India is standing its ground while dealing with the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC). The Ministry of External Affairs on June 6 cited an OIC statement asking it to stop pursuing a “communal approach and show due respect to all faiths and religions”. “The Government of India (GoI) categorically rejects the OIC Secretariat’s unwarranted and narrow-minded comments. The GoI accords the highest respect to all religions,” the MEA statement stated adding that “offensive tweets and comments denigrating a religious personality were made by certain individuals. And that they do not, in any manner, reflect views of the GoI.”  The MEA had earlier referred to Sharma and Jindal as fringe elements on June 5. BJP sources say Nupur, an Arun Jaitley protégé and Naveen Jindal were too ambitious and not in sync with the official party line; while perpetually competing to impress party bosses. During TV debates Nupur flaunted her skills in shaming fellow panellists. Only this time, her one upmanship blemished efforts by the PM to improve India’s ties with Gulf nations. The ‘y’ category security accorded to Sharma, however, remains unchanged particularly in view of threats issued to her.

The BJP has devised a master plan for the three southern States that are the last bastions against the right – Andhra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The party has been stepping on the toes of regional parties, predominantly in Tamil Nadu, where they have been showing a tendency of setting the cat among the pigeons. The latest friction concerns former Jayalalithaa confidante VK Sasikala. When asked whether the BJP would accept her into their party, Nainar Nagendran said that indeed they would. This set off tremors with senior AIADMK leader C Ponnaiyan wondering whether the growth of BJP was good for the State’s two Dravidian majors who have been ruling the roost alternately over the last 55 years. BJP chief Annamalai stepped in to clarify that the comment represented an individual viewpoint and that only the BJP’s Parliamentary board may decide on high-profile political entrants. So long as the two former CMs – EPS and OPS – stay glued together, there is little threat of BJP admitting the eternal political wannabe Sasikala – a backroom manipulator until her attempt at becoming CM was shot down by the top court. PM Narendra Modi also wants the AIADMK honchos to stay united and not be drawn into divisions. But, in case a split does come about, the BJP might just use the Sasikala card.

The Tata IPL-15 came as a welcome breather for quarrelling factions within the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) who shifted their focus to conducting the 21 league matches. The MCA was able to deploy its resources to run the games virtually incident-free. The association earned much praise from BCCI Secretary Jay Shah and Rs 12 plus crore for bailing out the BCCI in these pandemic times. However, an uneasy calm prevails now in MCA’s corridors of power over the matter of accepting Justice (Retd) Dilip Babasaheb Bhosale as its Ethics Officer and Ombudsman (EOO). Multiple sources caught in the vortex of the sensitive matter told shortpost.in that former MCA President Sharad Pawar, who still commands a lot of clout in matters of the association, is in favour of Justice Bhosale’s appointment. He is the son of former Maharashtra Chief Minister Babasaheb Bhosale and a former Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court.  The reason for rancour is that Justice Bhosale was appointed at an AGM, the present MCA Apex Council had actually called off, but still conducted by a fair number of members, who elected a chair and obtained post-facto validation from senior advocate Darius Khambata. Now, the Apex Council, due for elections in a few months, is showing the barndoor defence to all persuasions!

Following singer Sidhu Moosewala’s broad daylight murder, the Punjab government has been directed by the High Court to restore the security cover of 424 people, which it had earlier withdrawn. During a hearing in the Punjab & Haryana High Court, the AAP government had claimed it had withdrawn the security of 424 people only for a few days. Responding to a PIL moved by a Congress leader OP Soni against his security down-grade, the government told the court that the security covers of the 424 VIPs would be restored after Ghallughara Diwas on June 6, which is observed as a day of protest against Operation Blue Star. Incidentally, a day before Moosewala’s murder, the AAP government had highlighted it as ‘crackdown on VIP culture’ on social media. But then the government got cornered only because of Moosewala’s death.  In a plea against his security downgrade, Congress leader Soni wanted to know how a report of security withdrawal with a list of VIPs came into the public domain. It is being said that Punjab police is being stretched beyond state borders to provide security cover to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal; also special cover for his key aide for Punjab area — Raghav Chadha.  Chadha, a Rajya Sabha MP almost functions like a de facto Punjab CM.

BJP’s firebrand and outspoken Odisha MP Aparajita Sarangi, who is also BJP’s National Spokesperson, well known for her high decibel opposition pitch against BJD CM Naveen Patnaik missed out on a berth in the BJP’s newly constituted 17-member Odisha Core Committee. BJP President JP Nadda heads the committee. Only long serving senior BJP members with relevant experience apart from others the BJP thinks will add value and insight have been inducted. Some core committee members include: Baijayant Panda, Dr Sambit Patra, Jual Oram, Pratap Sarangi, Dharmendra Pradhan, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Biseswar Tudu, Suresh Pujari, Samir Mohanty and Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo. This Odisha Core committee has been formed to prepare for the 2024 general election. The purpose of this committee is to chalk out BJP’s blueprint for the state to win as many seats from Odisha in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The Committee will sit together, think together and work together taking stock of progress made on a monthly basis. Clearly, BJP has understood the need to reinvent itself since the agenda of criticizing Naveen Patnaik and his party Biju Janata Dal BJD did not cut much ice with the people or even taken them anywhere.

On May 26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Chennai, where he launched Rs 31,000 crore worth of centrally-funded projects in Tamil Nadu despite which, Chief Minister MK Stalin tried to humiliate him. Two days later, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu went all out to praise late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi while unveiling his statue in Chennai. As soon as Naidu agreed to unveil the Dravidian stalwart’s statue, BJP cadre had opposed the move on social media. Naidu accepted the DMK invite as it seems the end of the road for him as his term ends in August. The DMK was elated. The party’s mouthpiece Murasoli, in its editorial showered encomiums on Naidu over his speech. The paper also dwelt on Karunanidhi’s long and strong association with Naidu. It said he had replied to the party’s critics during his speech. It recalled his comments when Karunanidhi was arrested in 2001 by the erstwhile AIADMK-led government. It was equally happy that Naidu had taken pot-shots at the step-motherly treatment that the BJP led government was meting out to the state governments led by Opposition parties. “If the States grow, the country grows,” he said.  What does Naidu gain by pandering to DMK? He will never be Modi’s candidate for Rashtrapati.  So, is he trying to position himself as the Opposition candidate for Raisina Road?

After an all-party meeting when Bihar CM Nitish Kumar announced a caste-based survey in the state, he appeared a bit triumphant. He could not conceal his happiness that he had driven a wedge between the state BJP and the Centre on the issue. The Centre had expressed its inability to conduct a caste census after the experience of socio-economic survey of 2011 census. He had the satisfaction that Bihar BJP leaders were fully backing the caste survey. Bihar BJP chief Sanjay Jaiswal denied there was difference between the Centre and the state unit on the caste survey. “Let us get one thing clear: what the Bihar government is going to undertake is a caste survey, not a census. Census comes under the Seventh Schedule and that it falls within remit of the Centre. As for Caste survey, Bihar is not the only state to undertake such a survey. Telangana, Karnataka has already done it.” He pointed out that BJP’s support for the caste survey was incumbent on keeping out Rohingyas and Bangladeshi Muslims. Also keeping out certain Muslims from claiming OBC status. Politically, of course, it is seen that Nitish Kumar has pushed the caste survey idea because the Centre had introduced a quota for the economically weaker section. With the lines of social justice getting blurred among parties, the JDU has been desperately trying to push “contradictions” within the BJP and failing.

It is amazing how Chennai-based Achimuthu Shankar has transformed himself from a social media journalist to a whistle blower folk hero. He gained both fame and notoriety as Savukku Shankar, choosing a self-styled sobriquet. Savukku in Tamil means whip. Shankar who started his vigilante career in the TN Directorate of Vigilance & Anti-Corruption, had extraordinary talent to sniff out corrupt deals. Naturally, this angered a vast array of bureaucrats and politicians in TN.  Savukku paid the price; he was jailed and tortured for two months. Currently he is once again in the news for the wrong reasons though. His name along with BJP leader Maridass appear in a hastily filed FIR by overzealous TN police against the 90-year-old media house, Ananda Vikatan and its sister publication Junior Vikatan. Junior Vikatan, a bi-weekly tabloid, exposed the phenomenally murky growth of a real estate conglomerate, G Square, alleged to be close to the first family, which turned sensational. The FIR indirectly warned “zealous “journos and vigilantes of certain Lakshman Rekhas they should not cross. This police action saw journalists across Chennai raising a storm of protest. These protests coincided around the time of the Prime Minister’s planned visit to the state. Top police officials, fearing journalists may greet the PM with black bands, quietly withdrew the FIR against Vikatan Press, Shankar and Maridass.