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Upon the official announcement of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as the Congress’s candidate from Wayanad, Kerala for Lok Sabha by-election, Congress workers have started putting up her posters in the constituency. The posters featured the greeting “Wayanadinte Priyankari” (Wayanad beloved). The question is with the Lok Sabha bypoll for Wayanad on November 13, how much time will siblings Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi give for polls in Jharkhand and Maharashtra on November 13 and 20? Since it will be Priyanka’s first electoral foray, it is quite likely that Rahul is likely to do much of the heavy lifting for her. The seat fell vacant as Rahul who had contested from both Rae Bareli and Wayanad, decided to represent the UP seat and wanted Priyanka to contest from Wayanad in a by-election. However, the ruling Left Front has made it clear that it would not be a cake walk for Priyanka. Kerala Minister MB Rajesh sought to remind how Rahul Gandhi has deserted Wayanad. “In August, when the state was reeling under floods, we had expected Rahul to deliver special help from the Centre. Wayanad is a constituency that gave RaGa refuge when he lost Amethi, but in the very next opportunity, Rahul Gandhi abandoned Wayanad, and now people of Wayanad will give him a befitting reply.”
Normally, questions about EVMs (electronic voting machines) and the Election Commission are raised after elections. However, the question of EVM was raised again soon after the EC declared the poll schedules for the Maharashtra and Jharkhand assembly elections. Shiv Sena (Uddhav) leader Sanjay Raut said opposition parties do not trust the working of EVMs, and what happened in Haryana can be repeated in Maharashtra too. Congress leader Rashid Alvi alleged that EVMs could be manipulated just like Hezbollah pagers, which Israel hacked to carry out blasts in Lebanon. Rubbishing doubts, CEC Rajiv Kumar said, “Our EVMs are more robust than Hezbollah’s pagers, and they are 100% foolproof. EVMs cannot be hacked. Pagers are connected devices, but EVMs are not. “Those who are again questioning EVMs will have to answer many questions. Were EVMs working perfectly during the Lok Sabha polls but were hacked during the Haryana polls? Did EVMs work perfectly in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh but were tampered with in MP and Chhattisgarh? Who will believe such allegations? An electronic voting machine is just like a calculator, and it has no connection to the Internet via Bluetooth or any remote device. The battery usage of an EVM is written on the form when the EVM is packed and sealed. Candidates or their agents countersign it. Secondly, in a big country like India, where thousands of EVMs are used, and lakhs of government employees are involved in the electoral process, how can EVMs be hacked? And if some people tamper with the EVMs, how can the matter remain a secret? Victories and defeats occur during elections, but blaming the defeat on the EC or raising questions about EVM tampering is childish.
The deep depression in the Bay of Bengal has been pounding Tamil Nadu with massive rainfall and flooding. Schools, Colleges and all public institutions are to remain closed with dire warnings of every hue…red, orange alerts to stay indoors and stay safe. But the government in its wisdom is keeping the state-run TASMAC outlets open for thirsty denizens. PMK leader Dr Anbumani Ramdoss has lashed out at the TN government over this move. “Is it life-saving medicine or an essential that the public can’t live without? Is it an intrinsic part of the Dravida model to keep liquor sales open”? asked Anbumani in X. Significantly, Deputy CM, Udhayanidhi Stalin addressed the media even as the MET office warned about the heavy rain conditions to hit and assured that the DMK government was fully prepared to take on the threat of flooding. Having suffered severe losses in the past two cyclone hits with cars inundated, the public quickly resorted to parking cars on the flyover bridges….The Velachery flyover overnight turned into a parking lot. It’s another outrage that the police warned about big fines for such “parking”, adding insult to injury. YouTube podcasts on the rain caused flooding in Poes Garden, the hallowed precinct of power, politics and prestige turned smirk worthy. Ramadoss and his take on keeping TASMAC sales open as part of Dravida governance is seen as justified. Strange are the ways of “ideology” when it is business as usual.
Even as the Election Commission finalised polling date for Maharashtra as November 20, the Congress took a lesson from the BJP playbook and appointed senior leaders from other states to manage the polls in Maharashtra as observers. The high-profile team includes former CMs like Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Baghel and Charanjit Channi. Karnataka deputy CM G Parameshwara, former deputy CMs TR Singhdeo and Sachin Pilot. The team also includes two Telangana ministers Uttam Kumar Reddy and D Anasuya Seethakka. Deployment of a super team comes right after Congress’ debacle in Haryana elections where BJP won for the third time, securing 48 seats despite exit polls predicting a definite win for the Congress, which was able to secure only 37 seats. One of the reasons that was attributed to the party’s loss is leaving it all to former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot and Karnataka deputy CM G Parameshwara have been assigned Mumbai and Konkan region while Vidarbha region will be handled by former Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel and former Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi and Madhya Pradesh MLA and former minister Umang Singhar. Former Rajasthan deputy CM Sachin Pilot and senior Telangana minister Uttam Kumar Reddy have been deputed to Marathwada region while former Chhattisgarh deputy CM TS Singhdeo and senior Karnataka minister MB Patil have been assigned Western Maharashtra. Senior Rajya Sabha MP Syed Nasser Hussain and senior Telangana minister D Anasuya Seethakka have been asked to look after North Maharashtra. For Jharkhand, the party has appointed a 3-member team headed by Tariq Anwar and Adhir Ranjan Choudhary. Meanwhile, the party has declared Priyanka Gandhi as Wayanad Lok Sabha candidate.
The Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra held over five cabinet meetings in the span of the first fortnight of October and took over 200 decisions. This was the sprint before the code of conduct got enforced on October 15, 2024. In fact, even the death of Ratan Tata, that had the state observe a day of mourning, did not dissuade Shinde from not holding a cabinet. There was rapid fire decision-making with two cabinet meetings witnessing almost 71 decisions and even 80 decisions each. The chief minister has been over-generous and liberal in doling out freebies, sops and financial allocations in a bid to earn brownie points in the forthcoming elections forcing the opposition to claim that the state treasury was being emptied to woo voters by Shinde. Maharashtra already has debts of over Rs 7 lakh crore and the Ladki Bahin Yojana is expected to bleed it further. Concerns are already being raised about the feasibility of Shinde’s schemes be it the launching of multiple corporations considering that CAG report had claimed that most corporations were not functioning well. In fact, Shinde’s generosity in financial disbursements goes beyond the confines of the state. Sanjay Raut has claimed that the BJP has got Shinde to fund elections in other states like that of Haryana and that each of the probable candidates were being doled out Rs 20 crore by Shinde. The average Mumbaikar is happy that the toll fee at the five entry points has stopped for now. Whether this will convert into votes for Shinde remains to be seen.
The BJP has finalized its polls strategy for the Maharashtra state assemblies for which Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and UP CM Yogi Adityanath will be the star campaigners. The troika will address 18, 26 and 26 public rallies respectively across Maharashtra in a blitzkrieg of public rallies. This carpet-bombing political strategy seeks to exploit the party’s recent success in the Haryana assembly elections where the BJP returned to power for a record third time and improved performance in the Jammu region of J&K where this troika delivered the goods so-to-speak in good measure. International political developments particularly, in neighbouring Bangladesh played a crucial role in consolidating the Indian voter base of the BJP. Additionally, the RSS had organized 16,000 public meetings in Haryana over the last four months encompassing 6,000 villages in the state through a targeted door-to-door campaign by deploying its Karyakartas in the run up to the state assembly elections with a message of Hindu unity that worked like a charm for the BJP. The RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat publicly announced that his cadre of Pracharaks has laser focussed its attention to the forthcoming state assembly elections in Maharashtra, Jharkhand just like it did for Haryana and the general elections of India prior to that through a micro-outreach program. “Our culture, country and (Hindu) religion must not only survive but thrive,” Bhagwat has stated in obvious reference to consistent international (deep state) efforts to undermine India’s growing economy and its cultural identity that has been re-established over the last decade.
Could Baba Siddique who was shot dead while he was bursting crackers outside his MLA son Zeeshan’s office on Vijaya Dashami lived if he had moved out of Maharashtra politics just as he had wished? The former Congress leader, who hailed from Bihar, was apparently wanting to return to his roots and had even met with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, seeking a Rajya Sabha berth before making the switch to the NCP led by Ajit Pawar. It seemed he had enough of Mumbai politics and deals. Responding to Siddique’s tragic news, Tejashwi Yadav merely acknowledged how he had interacted with Siddique and his family during his recent visit to Mumbai. Siddique hailed from Gopalganj district. For some reason, Siddique was uncomfortable with the Congress and Shiv Sena(UBT) alliance, and had decided to opt out of the party in March this year. A three-time MLA from Bandra West assembly constituency, Siddique had served as a minister in the Congress-undivided NCP government in the early 2000.While his exit would be a big loss to Ajit Pawar ahead of the assembly polls, Sharad Pawar too hailed him as a leader who fought for the “minority community and championed secularism”. A close associate of actor-turned-politician Sunil Dutt, who helped him secure his first Congress ticket in 1999. Siddique is credited for bringing to end frosty ties between actors Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan in 2013
India’s Twenty20 team — a new look team — after the Twenty20 World Cup win has been going full throttle, starting with the five-match series against Zimbabwe in Harare. Zimbabwe made India — led by Shubman Gill — trip in the first outing, but since facing that one-off reverse by 13 runs, the men in blue have won in a canter, almost every match. After the World Cup win — Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja bid adieu to the short format to make way for youngsters. The selectors made the biggest change, appointing Suryakumar Yadav as captain of the Twenty20 team, not Hardik Pandya. Yadav was rested for the Zimbabwe tour, but the ball-basher from Mumbai has been going great guns from the three-match series against Sri Lanka. The best though, India reserved it against Bangladesh, smashing them out of sight in the three matches that ended with the home team posting a mammoth 297 in Hyderabad. The team was without Yashasvi Jaiswal, Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rishabh Pant, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. Out of 11 matches, India won nine of 10 matches with ease. The third and final match against Sri Lanka ended in a super over finish. Yadav, it appears has taken a leaf out of Rohit Sharma’s Kanpur book — going after the bowling and taking the game forward. In all India struck 57x 4s and 44 x 6s in three Twenty20s accounting for 492 runs. Such was the annihilation of the Bangladesh attack, a significant pointer to hit sixes as a strategy to mount pressure and bring down the opponent.
Sixty-year old popular star Jayaram Subramaniam has created a soft and stylish spot for himself in Kerala films despite Mammootty and Mohanlal’s reigning supreme as evergreens. His performance in the hit period drama Ponniyin Selvan (as Alwar Kadian Nambi, the articulate comic Brahmin) was as much the highlight of this epic drama as the pivotal characters of Ponni and Karikala Chozhan. His 26-year old son Kalidas Jayaram has created a niche for himself in the film industry. Recently he was cast in the Dhanush film Raayan, and showed his mettle in the Tamil OTT anthology Pava Kadaigal in which he played a transgender. Kalidas is all set to marry Tarini Kalingarayan, a former Miss Tamil Nadu 2019, well known model and alumnus of MOP Vaishnav College. Jayaram and wife Parvathy had just celebrated daughter Malavika’s wedding in grand style , and it came as no surprise that they announced Kalidas ‘ wedding too in quick succession. The only surprise was that Jayaram, Parvathy and Kalidas honoured MK Stalin, TN CM with the first invite. Not surprising it created a buzz as why had he not given the first invitation to the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan? In the world of politics and cinema events occur not according to the logic of mundane society. Celebrities have their own exalted status or political predilections. Superstar Mammootty’s son Dulquer Salmaan’s was an arranged marriage in 2011 to Amal Sufiya whose family is from North India. Mohan Lal’s son, Pranav Mohanlal’ marriage with Kalyani Priyadarshan has remained an enigmatic topic.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s Dussehra address in Nagpur is seen as an endorsement of the BJP’s policy of Hindu consolidation. It is like a green signal for the party to proceed with its agenda, the insiders feel. Bhagwat’s remarks will be helpful in boosting the BJP’s prospects in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly election since there is no ambiguity in his message. The tone of the address, delivered at the beginning of the centenary year of the RSS, will be interpreted severally but the RSS will continue its work undaunted, its veteran members say. The BJP had suffered in the Lok Sabha election since the RSS had not immersed itself fully in the contest. The BJP took due note of its displeasure and took corrective steps. The result was that it bagged Haryana, though with a nominal margin. The same formula will now be emulated in Maharashtra where the BJP lost 16 Lok Sabha seats due to minority collective vote in favour of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi candidates. Learning a lesson from the debacle, the ruling Mahayuti partners have been implementing their strategy in an organized manner. Still, there was uneasiness in the saffron camp given the clout of NCP founder Sharad Pawar. The announcement of the election dates and the candidates of respective parties is expected to occur at any moment now. Hence, Bhagwat’s clear call has come as a welcome breather for the Mahayuti.
The photograph on poll strategist Prashant Kishor’s Twitter handle says it all. It has Mahatma Gandhi’s quote: “The best politics is right action.” So he took the right action by shutting down his outfit IPAC at the peak of its success. Both his clients Mamata Banerjee and MK Stalin won the 2021 Assembly Polls. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh who had appointed Kishor as political advisor with a Cabinet rank for 2022 Assembly election is awaiting clarity from Kishor. So what next? Politics it is …and that too from Bihar his home state — he was born in Rohtas; his father Dr Shrikant Pandey practiced in Buxar. The Brahmin boy grew up without his caste surname — like many in the state do in the hope of a more egalitarian society or to escape caste-based biases. After finishing higher education, he moved to New York to join the United Nations. He came back to India some times in 2010 and has been a poll strategist since then. His clients: BJP, INC, AAP, AITC, YSRCP, DMM and TMC. He has been nursing political ambitions; he joined Nitish Kumar’s party JDU as vice president in 2018 but was expelled in January 2020 for opposing NDA’s Citizenship Amendment Act. Analysts who have read his mind say that Kishor knows the future is Bihar. Reason: Congress presence has shrunk. Nitish Kumar’s JDU is losing its grip and Tejaswi Yadav of RJD may be popular but carries lots of baggage. Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party is no threat. That leaves BJP – and he knows every chink in the BJP’s armour. But, the key question everybody is asking: Will he float his own party? Will it be an AAP sort scenario in Bihar? So, for now it’s watch-and-wait.
Kamal Haasan is busy picking up pieces of his shattered ego, his political outfit and his cinematic charisma bartered away for an ephemeral Chief Minister’s Gaddi. The media in Tamil Nadu is as vitriolic in its scathing commentary of failure as it is in showering praise on victors. The other day a popular Tamil magazine’s prime time show called Kamal’s ambitious venture, Makkal Meedhi Maiam (The remains of the outfit). Ouch! That hurts. True enough, a number of Kamal’s key functionaries quit, Makkal Needhi Maiam, in quick succession. First it was Dr R Mahendran, VP and most visible fundraiser, Kamila Nasser, Dr Santosh Babu ex-IAS, who came on board with high mutual expectations, activist Padma Priya. More exodus is predicted. Kamal reacted with cinematic flare and Shakespearean style: “Traitors and fair weather followers, be gone. It’s good that I didn’t have to de-weed the ungratefuls.” The quitters too have their grouse and lament, “The fault dear Brutus…..we are underlings”. There are many who now gripe that inner party democracy was missing, Kamal took key decisions advised by two acknowledged carpetbaggers, an ex-PR consultant Suresh Iyer and a mercurial media consultant, Mahendran, building an impenetrable barrier around the leader. His admirers and followers have to now accept that he could not morph into that all conquering cinematic hero who could punch the opposition one-handed. In essence, has Kamal burned his bridges and used up his life lines?
Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin has ushered in a new era of healthy politics. In forming an anti-Covid committee of all-party MLAs he was signaling that he is ready to take the bi-partisan route to politics. An immediate beneficiary was his own Covid relief fund that attracted a contribution of Rs 1 crore from the opposition AIADMK as well as a month’s salary from its 66 MLAs.
More than the money, the gestures towards fostering healthy political ties carried a trend-breaking message of amity. This is a sea change from the frosty relationship between the two Dravidian majors, which have been daggers drawn for decades, especially after Assembly incidents involving Jayalalithaa whose saree may have been tugged by ruling DMK legislators. A series of walkouts or boycott of Assembly proceedings used to be a constant feature as the parties refused to see eye to eye on anything save the most popular issues. Stalin seems determined to change all that and ex-CM Edappadi K Palaniswami is also playing up to it by being a graceful loser while tweeting his congratulations to Stalin on the popular verdict. While it is not certain how long the bonhomie will last, a positive change in the political atmosphere is owed to Stalin’s willingness to be the diplomat.
Of the charmed circle of MK Stalin’s cabinet, the new Finance Minister, Palanivel Thiagarajan is seen as a Wall Street poster boy, with his MIT Sloan School credentials, stints at Lehman Brothers (ahem, a not so bespoken qualification), and his stint at StanChart, Singapore. But above all his political DNA and public service provenance is impeccable. Born to wealth, grandson of a Justice Party Leader who was Tamil Nadu CM in the late 30s, and son of PTR Palanivel Rajan, former Speaker of TN Assembly and a cornerstone of DMK strength in Madurai. The famous Meenakshi Amman is the family Deity for their unshakable faith. Palanivel Thiagarajan has a compelling telegenic presence. Add to this public profile mix, an American wife in the correctly saree clad Margaret Thiagarajan and two adorable sons Palani and Vel and you have the perfect formula for newsworthy curiosity. But don’t let all these optics divert your attention from what the newly minted Finance Minister is facing; a never before debt ridden and fiscal deficit reality in the second most industrialised and developed state in India. PTR has to grapple with the frightening Covid, face the problems of a nearly 5 lakh crore debt and a catastrophic drop in production and new jobs. Definitely a hot seat to cut one’s teeth as a finance minister. Goddess Meenakshi may be invoked with much faith by this family.
Former Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami won his first battle post-polls when he was elected “unanimously” as leader of the AIADMK legislature party and appointed as Leader Of The Opposition. O Panneerselvam, former deputy CM, also former CM, waged a protracted bitter fight for the post until he knew he would be outvoted in the party and compromised. But the war is far from over. EPS was bent upon retaining control of the party for the simple reason that OPS is seen as a Sasikala loyalist who would like to bring back the discredited “General Secretary” into the AIADMK fold. OPS may have been shabbily treated by the Sasikala’s Mannargudi Thevar clan when he was interim CM after Jayalalithaa’s death in December 2016. He was said to have even complained to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it but the PM laughed it away saying he was CM with the police department under him and should face no threat from anyone. EPS knows he has to be on constant guard. Though Sasikala announced her retirement from active politics, it was believed that it was strategic move on her part to wait for election results and try to take back the party if it was trounced in the polls. The good performance by EPS has saved him but his position and the party is safe only for now.
After receiving drubbing in the recently held five assembly elections, the dissenting group, G-23 within the Congress party, has once again become active. Its member, the Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal fired the first salvo; so did others targeting the Gandhi family — Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka — and their man Friday, KC Venugopal, Congress General Secretary (Organization). The G23 group’s main contention is to have an elected president instead of a nominated one. Seeing the built-up and media coverage, the Congress Working Committee held a Zoom meeting on May 10 with Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot parroting, “How can we hold elections during Covid?” Interestingly, Ghulam Nabi Azad supported Gehlot. So, for now the problem has been laid to rest. Sonia Gandhi will continue as CWC President. According to an insider, they were sure about the outcome of CWC meeting. Now, they will hold secret parleys to mount pressure for an elected president. Among them there is a consensus to project the candidature of Shashi Tharoor for President’s post. Tharoor has a strong CV. The insider is at pain to point out that they are not against the Gandhis per se but want to protect the legacy of Congress so that they can bounce back under new leadership. The question is will the Gandhis listen?
It was undoubtedly one of the most dignified and significant swearing in ceremonies of any Government in Tamil Nadu. But amidst the solemn dignity of a historical event, it was Durga Stalin, the Chief Minister MK Stalin’s better half, who quietly cornered the focus. As her husband took the oath, she shed tears, wiped away quickly from her masked face. And why not? He had waited in the wings for 10 years. Durga was married in 1975 into this politically strong milieu, lived in a bustling joint family in that iconic Gopalapuram house, as the daughter-in-law of Kalaignar and his wife, Dayalu Ammal. Only when Stalin moved into the Chennai mayor’s chair, could Durga could set up her own home, run her nuclear family to bring up her daughter Senthamarai and son, Udhayanidhi. She recollects without a trace of self-consciousness that they were like any other household. Stalin helped the kids with their homework, getting them ready for school. Durga would fret and lose her cool if the kids grades suffered. Stalin was and still is Mr Cool, the Cucumber. They loved watching every Tamil movie released, opting for the late-night show. What is most striking is her unfailing faith in religion, in contrast to the public stance of a self-styled atheist family. She has visited many temples and performed several religious rituals for her husband’s success. Religion and faith have been her mainstay.
BJP has stepped one step backward and opted for a former Congressman turned the party’s poster boy, Himanta Biswa Sarma, for the Chief Minister’s post in Assam, over giving second term to Sarbananda Sonowal. BJP’s ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), was clearly against Sarma’s anointment but BJP had no choice in a serious bid to avoid a rebellion from Sarma who enjoys clout among the newly elected legislators. Due to strong claims made by Sarma on CM’s post, BJP did not project Sonowal or him or any other leader as party’s CM candidate in the run up to the assembly elections. Instead, BJP took cautious decision to reach out to the Assam people on the development and welfare plank while deftly handling the CAA and NCR issues and hitting out at the Congress promoted MahaJyot alliance, led by leaders like AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, seen by many as the allies of the illegal immigrants. Sarma is widely lauded for his effective management of Covid-19 as the State’s Health Minister; as well as for his intuitive leadership that has helped the BJP win assembly elections in 2016 and 2021. According to some observers, he will have to skilfully handle the CAA and NCR matters even though the Congress led front failed to mobilize the voters on this tricky issue. On the other hand, Sonowal, who gracefully signed off as Assam Chief Minister, having completed the full five-year term since 2016, has declined a Union cabinet post. He had earlier served as the Union Minister of Sports & Youth Affairs (2014-16) – and is now seeking to stay back in Assam.
BJP, after its failure to unseat the Trinamool Congress Supremo Mamata Banerjee in the high-octane West Bengal elections, decided to do course correction. Reward and recognize people even if they had joined BJP recently. There was intense lobbying within BJP and RSS for electing the Leader Of Opposition. But finally, Modi-Shah duo decided in favour of the giant killer Suvendu Adhikari who had defeated Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram as promised. Adhikari’s presence inside the Assembly as Leader of Opposition is bound to give heebie-jeebies to TMC leaders, especially Didi. He will be a constant reminder of her defeat. Maybe that seems to be BJP’s strategy. Three other names doing the rounds were that of the party’s state president Dilip Ghosh, Mukul Roy and Ashok Lahiri. RSS had made a strong case for the economist Lahiri. According to RSS insiders, even though BJP’s number has grown from 3 to 77 but winning the election and forming the government after five years largely depends on the kind of role the Leader of Opposition plays. RSS therefore hinted that aggressive posturing won’t do party any good. They should succeed in reaching out to all sections by effectively selling an alternate development agenda by questioning TMC. RSS, it is learnt, does not want BJP to repeat its mistake of targeting Didi personally.
The chorus for appointing Nitin Gadkari as Health Minister – even if for time being — is growing louder by the day amid deadly second wave of pandemic. The Union Minister of Road & Highway Transport – also fondly called as Mr Phoolkari in Maharashtra owing to some incredible feats of engineering, including Mumbai Pune Express and some 55 flyovers in the Maximum City – is now being talked about as the Man of the Moment who could address the unprecedented demand for Covid beds and oxygen – needed critically to save lives. Not only his own BJP fraternity, but also political stalwarts and corporate leaders cutting across ideological lines acknowledge that the minister never fails to walk the talk. The way he managed the raging Covid situation in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region – drawing goodwill of all parties – is the sort of leadership that his admirers expect him to carry forward. This leadership was amply evident in the way he secured about 300 ventilators from Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy; and also got leading industrialists committed to higher oxygen supplies. Despite lockdown, he delivered a record 36.4 km a day construction of highways – and has set even higher targets for the current fiscal. His handling of the MSME portfolio too assumes critical importance as he continues to shore up morale of small businesses hit hard by the virus, reaching out with over 500 video conferences. With rumour mills doing overtime since 2019, he has strongly denied that he is eyeing the highest office in the country – nor is he keen to be the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. Looks like Gadkari is born to serve the people. May his tribe increase!
In Tamil Nadu, MK Stalin is firmly in the saddle but has work cut out for him. So far, he has done everything by the book, keeping to protocols. But, all of a sudden, some DMK “extreme loyalists” targeted Amma canteens, an abiding symbol of J Jayalalithaa’s populist policy. They ransacked one, bringing down the nameboards, smashing the cooking and serving utensils — with a vulgar show of strength, post victory. Since 2013 when JJ’s Government started these Amma Unavagams (eateries), lakhs of the poor and marginalised people have eaten their fill here, all over TN. Idlis at Re 1, curd rice at Rs 3, sambhar rice at Rs 9, a subsidised system where no one was discriminated against. Other states have emulated this model. Stalin reacted immediately and the anti-socials were booked. The DMK cadres have a reputation for violence and unruly behaviour, and Stalin has to reign in such overkill. But the AIADMK too has not been beyond reproach. The people here cannot forget the vindictive response of Jayalalithaa, when AIADMK stormed to power in 2011, and promptly overturned the decision to convert the newly minted legislative and executive complex at Omandurar Estate, a dream project of late DMK chief M Karunanidhi. The charismatic statesman had personally overseen the design of this aesthetic complex. JJ converted this into a super-speciality tertiary hospital, later adding a medical college and retained Fort St George as the seat of Government. An entirely serendipitous, fortunate fallout as taxpayers’ money did not go down the drain. It’s in the interest of the new ruling dispensation to ensure that election triumphalism does not lead to malevolent political actions. But who cares? Taxpayer and his money are soon parted.
Cricketer turned politician Navjot Singh Sidhu has launched a tirade against his own party’s government in Punjab. He is demanding a fair investigation by a new SIT into a sacrilege case and has also accused the state Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, of colluding with the Shiromani Akali Dal that was in power then. The case refers to the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib by miscreants and the subsequent police shooting on those protesting the desecration. There are other Congress leaders Sunil Jakhar and Hinder Randhawa who are also upset. But the insiders suggest that the Punjab farmers are not happy with the state leadership and it would affect the party’s prospects in the coming state elections. The farmers seem to be tilting towards the AAP party in Punjab. The grapevine indicates that AAP party leadership is considering Sidhu as its next CM candidate in Punjab and Bhagwant Maan, AAP MP has consented for the same. No wonder Captain Singh has already roped in Prashant Kishor to strategize to overcome anti-incumbency factor, farmer’s negative sentiments and work for his return to power! But Kishor after steering Mamata Banerjee and MK Stalin to victory has quit the election management business. It needs to be seen whether he will fulfil the contract with Captain. Sidhu joined BJP in 2004 and won two assembly elections from Amritsar. In April 2016 BJP nominated him to Rajya Sabha but he was disillusioned with BJP and resigned in July 2016. In 2017 he joined the Indian National Congress.
It was harakiri everybody thought when political strategist Prashant Kishor stuck his neck out, saying if BJP crosses 100 seats in West Bengal he will quit his business. He was bang on. BJP won 77 seats. Suvendu Adhikari said he will defeat Mamata Banerjee in his pocket borough Nandigram. He did it, by 1,956 votes. But, others starting with BJP, TMC, bookies, political pundits, pollsters and Journalists seem to have got the whole sum – numbers and strategy — wrong. Now, people are saying, “I told you” Muslims and women voted for Didi. In the case of BJP, spokesperson Amit Malviya tweeted: “The BJP in Bengal, when it set itself a target of 200, displayed audacity of ambition….” Ambition is good but there certainly was disconnect with hoi polloi. TMC, on its part, was unnerved with their MLAs, party workers quitting in droves and joining BJP (though most of them lost the elections). Worried by BJP’s juggernaut, Didi started chanting chandi path and doing temple rounds to appease Hindu voters. And also appealed to Muslims to consolidate (that led to the Election Commission of India barring the Chief Minister from campaigning for 24 hours). In the end, TMC much to everybody’s surprise won 213 seats against 211 in the 2016 assembly elections. It was a similar feat BJP did in 2019 Lok Sabha polls when it won 303 seats while market intelligence was talking about 160 seats. In 2014 BJP had won 282 seats. Clearly, the story that comes loud and clear is: one strategy fits all does not always work. Corruption may not prove to be an issue sometime, whereas at times the idea to leverage religion can backfire.
Film stars no longer are a magnetic pull in electoral politics. Tamil Nadu is a standing example in the just decided election that this polity has moved on to more substantive qualifications for political office. Ulaga Nayakan (global hero), Kamalhaasan, with his party symbol Torchlight, lost to BJP’s Vanathi Srinivasan. Cinema options too are hard to come by as he tried to keep both pots cooking. Khushboo lost from the Thousand Lights constituency, despite standing for the minorities on the BJP symbol. Seeman, a loquacious crowd puller film director has left his filmi image far behind as the leader of Naam Thamizhar Katchi. Did Rajni have a crystal ball to foresee such rout? His pulling out of the race when so many parties wooed his superstar crowd pulling charisma, seems truly wise, even portentive. Actor Vijay, the second rung superstar and his father, Director SA Chandrasekhar recently had public spats over the launching of Brand Vijay as a political entity. Vijay ruthlessly put a gag order on his Dad and fans. Is Vijay the second wise interpreter of maladies? Fast rising stars Vijay Sethupati and Sivakarthikeyan may be tempted, but they can clearly sight the trend. Better to make hay while the sun shines in the cinema. Only Udhayanidhi Stalin, hero-cum- scion, stood and won with over a lakh of votes, a bigger margin than Dad and a foregone verdict as the DMK juggernaut rolled through on th
The fat lady has already cleared her throat, and in full flowing lung power, has started singing. The two most awaited election results have turned out to be ….well, a whack in the solar plexus for the establishment. “It is not that I love Brutus less, but that I love Rome more.” Mamata Banerjee, despite a BJP juggernaut trying to flatten her, has shown her grit and staying power. Bengal has proved that the minorities are clearly signalling their insecurity: isn’t this what the BJP was supposed to address? Correct fake electoral rolls, and bring a sense of security? Despite that colossus, Jayalalithaa’s yawning void, an intrepid farmer, Edappadi Palanisami managed to keep Tamil Nadu going for the full term. Actually, surprising with his tenacity. An almost grudging admiration for his true grit crept in. Say the talking heads and wagging tongues: “Without the baggage of the BJP and PMK, he would have fared much better, he almost made it.” As they say, “tell me who your friends are, I will tell you who you are.” Again, the Tamilian knew exactly where to draw the line: our Tamilian identity and heritage are dear to us, we will not tolerate tampering with what we have built. In all this, the Sutradaar of these two strong comebacks is seen as the real hero: PK, Prashant Kishor, who scripted this telling victory for two of the most vocal leaders – MK Stalin and Mamata. No wonder that political punters are betting big on PK starting his own outfit, a pan national monolith to represent the aspirations of our youth, impatiently wanting to change a flawed legacy of 70 odd years.
Long before the exit polls began pointing universally to DMK storming back to power in Tamil Nadu, the party chief was closeted with his family in the hills when Stalin’s family members discussed in detail which posts would go to whom once the results came. Now, the dilemma facing the Chief Minister designate MK Stalin is whether to accommodate his son Udhayanidhi in his Cabinet. The authenticity of a WhatsApp message on Stalin’s Cabinet which began doing the rounds early on Monday (May 3) — with a post pencilled in for Udhyanidhi (B Com) as Minister for Municipal Administration, Rural Development, etc — is not known, but it does contain a message about the ‘Young Turk’ of DMK. Udhayanidhi was the firebrand campaigner who took on Narendra Modi and Amit Shah of BJP in all his speeches, questioning them and daring them on many issues. He can’t be kept out of the Cabinet now though he is only 44. As a DMK historian said, “His grandfather became CM at the age of 44. Where is the question of him not being in the Cabinet?” That leaves the question of Kanimozhi being asked to join the Cabinet as someone who has become very popular in the south as the MP from Thoothukudi. But, in view of staving off any talk of family bias, Stalin might skip including his half-sister right now. The focus is on first accommodating Udhayanidhi.
The guessing game ‘will it or won’t it survive’ continues in Maharashtra. The twitterati is on overdrive, “Wait for June”, their tweets say. But, everybody from political analysts to man on the street, are saying that the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) cart is being pulled in different directions by the three parties – Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress. Everyday there is some proof of that. A case in point being Maharashtra’s Cabinet Minister Nawab Malik hogging publicity by saying that the State will provide free vaccines for people in the 18-45-year age bracket. Congress party was peeved. Its leader and state Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat said the decision on a free vaccine should be announced by the Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. Likewise, Aaditya Thackeray had tweeted: “The Govt of Maharashtra has decided to vaccinate its citizens free of cost….” Realising he had jumped the gun, he deleted his tweet quickly. On the other front, Sharad Pawar, who has been vocal and active since the formation of the MVA government, has been maintaining studied silence for the last one month on various events that has engulfed the state – Vazegate, Lockdown and CBI raids on former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. One reason could be his health problem. He was flitting in and out of Breach Candy hospital. Be that as it may but political observers are reading too much into his so-called meeting with Amit Shah in Ahmedabad in March. Political observers say that the Congress and the NCP are quietly going about building their party’s image. On the other side, former Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis is in full flow; doing everything to ensure he is back in the CM’s saddle. Hope it is not the case of Waiting for Godot!
Speculation is rife in the Capital over the outburst of political economist Parakala Prabhakar, the husband of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. In his weekly Blog Midweek Matters on YouTube, Prabhakar has openly attacked the Modi government for its handling of the second wave of Covid-19. In his 15-minute video, Prabhakar used strong words to express his anguish and criticize the Modi government. With this video circulating on social media and stories being written in newspapers, rumour mills are doing overtime whether Sitharaman will meet the same fate as that of Jayant Sinha, son of former BJP leader Yashwant Sinha. It may be recalled that Yashwant Sinha was critical of the Modi government as he felt sidelined in the party. His father’s constant outbursts at Modi saw Jayant Sinha who was holding the prestigious Minister Of State for Finance portfolio being shunted to Civil Aviation ministry in 2016. Even though he won 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Hazaribagh with a record margin yet Jayant Sinha failed to find a berth in the cabinet. Some people are asking why Prabhakar chose to attack PM via social media when he through his wife has got direct access to PM. Meanwhile, the Capital grapevine is buzzing about an imminent cabinet reshuffle some times in May
A new form of chauvinism has been spotted. It is induced by oxygen. Within hours of the top court setting conditions for the reopening of Vedanta’s Sterlite copper smelter in Thoothukudi (earlier Tuticorin) on the Tamil Nadu coast, Opposition leader MK Stalin declared that all oxygen produced by Sterlite should be used in Tamil Nadu and that no oxygen supply from any source should serve other states until Tamil Nadu’s requirements are fully met. Stalin’s observations came because the Tamil Nadu government, peeved at censorious comments from the Supreme Court, was hedging by saying that Sterlite would not be able to manufacture medical quality oxygen. Sterlite’s lawyer Harish Salve, however, told the court that the plant will be able to supply 200 MT of medical grade oxygen within 10 days of opening. Along with oxygen, Sterlite politics is also swirling in Tamil Nadu with a few political parties, including Vaiko’s MDMK, opposing the opening of the plant even in such a dire national emergency. The plant was shut for environmental concerns three years ago after protests turned violent with 13 people getting killed in police firing. And now, local people representing the victims of the firing are refusing to nominate anyone to the committee to oversee the production of oxygen.
For the 43-year-old privileged crown Prince, Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of TN DMK chief MK Stalin, riding two horses simultaneously or wearing multiple hats should not be a problem…the DNA is such. His grandfather, late Kalaignar Karunanidhi, scripted the evolution of the DMK, even as he wrote cinema scripts and thundering dialogues for hit movies, cannily built his political empire into one of the most prosperous family dominated organisations. Son Stalin won his party spurs and long successful years as the heir apparent to the DMK throne, even as he acted in a few movies, won the mayor seat of Chennai, went to jail under MISA, an event frequently dredged up as a horrific reminder of Indira Gandhi’s Emergency. Udhayanidhi aimed directly for hero roles in eight movies, with big time heroines, a few of them box office hits, soaked in that alchemy of Cinema and politics. Now, the TN election scene: Udhyanidhi is the contender from Chennai’s iconic Chepuak constituency. Already the surveys predict that he will breeze through. The grapevine has even decided what his portfolios may be. Now comes the hard part. Udhayanidhi has to choose between Cinema Hero and Party Power, a hard niggling choice. Are you wishing, Kaash mujhe bhi aise chunaav karna pade?
Actor Khushboo at 51, has done it all. She has acted in over 130 South Indian films, has idlis, sarees and jhumkas named after her, and then came that icing on her popularity cake: Tamil cinema fans built a temple for her near Tiruchirappalli … all this for a ‘woman of substance’ who can hold her own in a debate, talk about premarital sex and women’s empowerment with no hypocrisy. You can love Khushboo or hate her, but not ignore her. Well, she proved it to three of the most articulate political outfits sashayed into DMK in 2010, welcomed no less than the then Chief Minister, M Karunanidhi, walked out in a huff in 2014, right into the arms of a Congress party in disarray and quit in 2020, claiming being sidelined as Queen Sonia ignored her. Then she had that Eureka moment: the merry-go-round popular star found an attractive perch in the BJP in 2020. A lesser woman would have collapsed under the trolls and media sarcasm that ensued. Not Khushboo. She took on the baiters with unashamed elan. So, what if I changed political affiliations like costumes for a film dance sequence, she shot back. The BJP had met its match…and Khushboo her rocket launch. She is the party’s candidate from Thousand Lights, a Muslim and historical DMK stronghold. Come May 2, she may well sweep the trolls or the polls.
The Game of Thrones for Tamil Nadu has never before seen such heated speculation. Whichever party is about to win according to the main characters, it ain’t over till the fat lady sings. DMK Supremo MK Stalin waiting in the wings like Prince Charles, AIADMK Chief Minister Edappadi Palanisami smug in his expectation of a runaway electoral win with his considerable heavyweight alliances, the BJP hopes of a breakthrough, Chinnamma Sasikala sulking at her unexpected down turn of fortunes after thumping hard on Jayalalithaa’s gravesite, the lesser political parties hoping to pull off a bargaining coup. TN is awaiting the poll results with abated breath! So wearing masks is not an option. They say in Urdu, Bade Miyan Tho Bade Miyaan, Chote Miyaan Subhanallah. This political ilk may well be outflanked by the greed and ambition of the Babu class. After a full five year stint as part of the ruling power, the race is already on for the next tranche of share in goodies — portfolios, berths, lobbies. Word on the street, many an IAS and IPS incumbent has already started kite flying. Stalin and son Udayanidhi were tracked fiercely by some bureaucrats. Stalin’s family posse of 15 including cousins Maran winged their way to Kodaikanal, to savour some quality time away from these pestering aspirants, and a savvy scheme for family squabbles to be settled.
The AIADMK caretaker power centre is no pushover either. Chief Minister Edappadi Palanisami found out in good time that at least 15 of his erstwhile MLAs were planning to jump ship. So he called in the Judas team, coolly read out his numbers chart — his party would be neck-and-neck with DMK according to his intelligence wing’s math. So think twice before you kick this ladder, he advised. The lost souls quickly caught on, but they are still marked. Greed can make for a tenuous perch. As they say in Hindi, Na ghar ke, na ghaat ke. One does think, may be Super Swami Jaggi Vasudev’s popular motivational words, athanaikkum aasai padu (desire everything) inspired them. The thrills and chills of an election, and its outcome! Meanwhile, going by the betting market predictions, it is clear that the odds are against the ruling AIADMK.
The ferocity of the second attack of pandemic has rattled everybody – with Covid toll hitting 1,500 a day after new cases surged from 50K on March 24 to 261K on April 18. Ten states – including UP, Delhi and Maharashtra — account for 79% of all new cases. For the argumentative Indians, it’s a moment to speak truth to power, to hold up a mirror to the all-powerful Prime Minister – with Mann Ki Baat (words of wisdom) pouring from plucky crusader Prashant Bhushan, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Saamna editorials. Beginning February, the tone was set by Bhushan: “FM announces Rs 35,000 crore of our money to be spent on Pvt Vaccine Companies for untested Vaccines at a time when Covid is naturally dying down in India! But this money cannot be given to poor migrant labour who lost their jobs or to Farmers for MSP on their crops. Wah FM sahiba!” The tweet was as confusing as it could be. The State had the opportunity to counter the disturbing narrative: instead of wasting time haggling over the MRP for the atm-nirbhar, all-affordable jab, it could have simply taken a leaf from America’s Operation Warp Speed that made the Big Pharma the nation’s ally. India’s fresh $17-million funding to ramp up Covaxin should hopefully lead to more investments in capacities – which are needed now to save lives as much as defend its $3-Trillion economy (and also, the $5-Trillion dream).
Super star Rajinikanth cited health reasons and backed out of politics. But stories and innuendos are still doing the rounds. What happened after he went to Hyderabad for that shooting schedule of yet to be released Annaatthe? Just to jog memories, this mega budget movie is a SUN Network production, and it is vital that Maran brothers get the DMK elected — several legal issues are riding on a DMK win for the brothers and the cousins. According to the tongue-in-cheek waggers, if Annaatthe had a Pongal release as originally planned, it would have given huge heft and traction to Rajini’s political entry and indirectly hit the DMK. So why not delay? And what better reason than Covid on the sets. Many think the penny dropped, a bit late for the star. Things were not going to be that simple, that you get a crazy fan following translate into votes, and snowball it into an AIADMK victory with its alliances. What MGR, M Karunanidhi, and J Jayalalithaa had wrought, endured and survived cannot be replicated. These were very special talents, colossuses who could overcome the toughest challenges. Rajini realised that his health issues could not take on the scorching heat and vitriol of election politics. Better to accept the fan frenzy, sustain your superstardom. Politics is a marathon only a few can run.
Cycling his way from Chennai to Mamallapuram in a red and black tracksuit, sporting his party colours, MK Stalin is sending a message of dynamism to the public of Tamil Nadu. Private exit polls run by elements close to political parties seem to suggest he should get ready for his coronation. Even before he hit the campaign trail, Stalin had presented himself to the voting public as a younger man with a complete makeover — hair transplant, dentistry and Botox — to give him greater confidence in front of the camera. He is the quintessential political leader now all geared to take his father’s seat in Fort St George as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. His DMK party’s booth level workers have also injected plenty of confidence in him with confidential reports of how the party may sweep the polls. Looks like the 68-year old Stalin who has been waiting in the wings for a long time will finally find the well-deserved place under the sun.
Gambling syndicates in Kolkata are offering bets on the results of 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly elections, including picking the winners of 294 seats. The official results will be out on May 2. So, who will form the next government? How many seats will the TMC win? Will the BJP improve its tally? You get some answers from the bookies, based on their projections, as on April 12: BJP may win 154-156 seats, while TMC may bag 116-118 seats and the balance by other political parties. The going rate is even money, that is, 1:1, for both TMC and BJP. BJP is clearly the favourite as of now. Bookies are paying Rs 1.20 for WB Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who is contesting from Nandigram and Rs 0.40 (40 paise) for BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari, Didi’s confidante-turned-adversary. Higher rate indicates lower winning probability while lower rate indicates higher winning probability. A month ago, before elections began, the bookies were paying Rs 0.40 for Didi and Adhikari. After the first phase, the rates for both Mamata Banerjee and BJP were Rs 0.90 each. The bookies were quoting a price of Rs 1.20 for TMC and Rs 0.40 for BJP after the second phase. High rate indicates lower winning probability, while lower rate indicates higher winning probability. The high-voltage poll rallies have kept the bookies on their toes as they are frantically exchanging notes almost every minute, and fixing rates for each party and candidate. Following the completion of the fourth phase of polling, Kolkata bookies claim BJP is clearly ahead of TMC. The fifth phase of the poll scheduled for April 17, may go in favour of TMC and Left Front, they speculate. As for the veteran political pundits, the fierce tussle seems to be leading towards a hung assembly!
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India has leaped dramatically from Covid-19 vaccine-reluctance to celebrate the Tika Utsav since the first Covid-19 jab received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 1 and the second one on April 9. From less than 1% of population receiving at least one dose of vaccine on March 1 (1.2 crore), the coverage jumped to 6.3% (8.57 crore) by April 9. Modi taking Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin dispelled all fear and doubts. “The Covaxin has not yet had Phase 3 trials. Approval was premature and could be dangerous,” Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had tweeted earlier. Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav announced he would not take the “BJP Vaccine”. On April 12 – the second day of Tika Utsav, and the 87th vaccination day – more than 37.63 lakh citizens (over 45 years) received jabs, making India the fastest nation to administer vaccine doses to 10.8 crore. With the states running mass campaigns – from high-frequency TV ads of Delhi Chief Minster Arvind Kejriwal to Sonu Sood being appointed as brand ambassador by Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh – the focus has now shifted to preventing vaccine wastage (6.5% nationwide) amid the second wave of pandemic. States like Telangana with wastage of 17.6%, Andhra Pradesh 11.6% and Uttar Pradesh 9.4%, will have to reorganise their efforts to meet the goal of keeping it below 1%. The task is critical as capacities are ramped up with new vaccines like Sputnik V getting regulatory approvals.
In less than nine months of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s welcoming the first batch of Rafale jets and highlighting how the fighter jet acquisition was a unique Government-to-Government deal, the Congress party is back with a fresh Rafale assault. “Karma = The ledger of one’s actions,” tweeted Rahul Gandhi, triggering a low-intensity twitter brawl with hashtag #Rafale. India’s season of multi-state polls and rallies has once again got animated after Yann Philippin’s Rafale report appeared in French portal Mediapart.fr. Subramanian Swamy’s joining the brawl has only raised confusion. His tweet, “Gov may brief a few to counter the ballooning demand for probes in France on the Indo France Rafale deal. I had originally studied it when XXX struck a 126 plane deal with Carla Bruni. Parrikar cancelled it and started a new deal. He briefed me. But alas Parrikar passed away.” Soon, Swamy shared a livefistdefence.com story (May 11, 2011) where he had attacked the IAF’s $12-billion M-MRCA fighter deal during the UPA regime. Philippin’s disclosures to Barkha Dutt’s Mojo Story point to involvement of a middleman who is already being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate in AugustaWestland case. That partly explains why the so-called scandal – dismissed as “completely baseless” by Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad – didn’t get the desired twitter momentum. The question being asked is at whose behest is the Rafale issue being raked up again?
As the Final Countdown begins for the high-voltage Kerala Assembly elections on April 6, the voters are presented with two simple options: BJP candidate E Sreedharan’s Palakkad model and Kochouseph Chittilappilly-Kitex’s 20:20 model, versus the decades old alternate rule model of the Left and the Congress. Sreedharan has outlined his five-year development vision for Palakkad. This is also reiterated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi: “The time has come for FAST development in Kerala — F for fisheries and fertilisers, A for agriculture and Ayurveda, S for skill development and social justice and T for tourism and technology.” V Guard’s Chittilappilly and Kitex’s Sabu have transformed Kizzakambalam panchayat’s (in Ernakulam) socio-economic landscape with their 20:20 party’s transformative endeavours: roads built to last with a 20-year guarantee, a corruption-free panchayat office and the 20:20 supermarket (akin to a DMart or Walmart’s scale) that enables even a poor family of four members to shop their entire week’s groceries for just Rs 500! Sreedharan, Chittilappilly and Sabu are positioning themselves as the Mahabalis of Kerala (the legendary king of the native folklore in whose memory the festival of Onam is celebrated by all communities in Kerala), who can ensure that it’s a daily Onam lifestyle in certain assembly constituencies of the state. Is “Onam Lifestyle” – having Onam every day as a way of life – an idea whose time has come? Well, we will have to wait for the final word from the Kerala polls to understand the voters’ tryst with Onam.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Principal Advisor PK Sinha, who resigned on March 16 citing personal reasons, is tipped to be the next Puducherry Lieutenant-Governor (L-G). The position is lying vacant ever since L-G Kiran Bedi was called back by the Centre because of constant face offs between her and V Narayanasamy, who eventually stepped down as Chief Minister after the Congress government lost majority. Tamilisai Soundararajan, current Governor of Telangana, has been given additional charge of Puducherry. The official announcement is expected to be made after May 2 when the Puducherry assembly election results will be declared. Sinha, who is from 1977 batch, is the only IAS officer to get three extensions as Cabinet Secretary. It is learnt that Modi is keen that Sinha, his trusted advisor, can be a guide and friend sitting in the Raj Bhavan unlike his predecessor’s constant tug-of-war with the Chief Minister. The Madras High Court last year amid widening rift between Bedi and Narayanasamy had ruled that a government is “a trustee for the little man who should not have a perception that the running of the government is a gigantic conspiracy.” It held that the role of Puducherry’s L-G and that of an elected government in the Union Territory were intertwined as per law, and therefore they were expected to act in unison and not in division. Against this backdrop, the BJP insiders point out that Sinha is the best choice.
The BJP fights every election — be it Taluka Panchayat or the Lok Sabha election — with a spirit to win and establish its rule. Even though the party’s plan went haywire with superstar Rajinikant bowing out of politics, it has not given up hopes. It is going whole hog with its ally AIADMK and other smaller parties to ensure the AIADMK-led government retains power. Towards this, all their senior leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi are vigorously campaigning in Tamil Nadu. Very much aware that the BJP may not make big gains in Tamil Nadu, it is doing everything within its means to make its presence felt in Dravidian politics. BJP’s strategy received a major push after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Karuppa Palaniswami announced a 10% quota to Vanniyar community from the Most Backward Class category. This move was to checkmate DMK which enjoys sizable support. What is interesting is that the Vanniyar community has a strong presence in at least 40 of the total 234 seats where it can really change the political equations. Further, PMK, which had garnered 5.36% vote share in the 2016 elections, and has been demanding a quota for the Vanniyar community, is the AIADMK-BJP alliance partner. This quota politics has also raked up an issue of caste-based census. Looks like the BJP is spreading its wings in yet another southern state by riding piggyback on AIADMK.
By not denying his meeting with NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the de facto chief of BJP, has yet again dropped hints that it has not given up on “Operation Lotus’’ in Maharashtra. At the same time, he has created suspicion among Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners about Pawar’s next move. Shah knows that by holding parleys with Pawar, it will make Opposition parties think twice of forming a front under Pawar’s leadership to take on Modi. Political analysts say the idea is to sow the seeds of suspicion that Pawar cannot be trusted. Shah’s timing seems to be perfect. Currently, there is a mistrust between the three MVA partners — Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress — after the Ambani bomb scare conspiracy came to light. This incident has opened the Pandora’s Box with Maratha strongman trying to defend Home Minister Anil Deshmukh over the Rs 100 crore hafta charges levelled against Deshmukh by the former Police Commissioner, Parambir Singh. On another front, the Leader of the Opposition in Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis who has rocked the MVA government with his explosive expose is now getting ready to fire more salvos ahead of the BMC elections slated for 2022. BJP has launched MissionMumbai 2022 with a resolve to elect its own party mayor and thereby end Shiv Sena’s dream run. Here it is toying with the idea of entering into an alliance with Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena so as to steal Sena’s Marathi Manoos plank and wrest BMC. But, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray seems to be leaving no stones unturned to ensure that BMC, the country’s richest municipal body stays in Sena’s fold.
The Indian Express annual list IE 100: The List Of Most Powerful Indians in 2021 is out. There are no surprises in terms of Top 10. Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds on to his #1 position, so does Home Minister Amit Shah at #2 followed by RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat at #3. Bhagwat was ranked #4 in 2019, and this slot has been occupied by the BJP President JP Nadda this year. Reliance CMD Mukesh Ambani holds on to his #5 rank while Adani Group Chairman Gautam has pole-vaulted from 28th position to #10. As always, every year there are new entrants. This year there are five names from the healthcare sector as this sector had to do fire-fighting to manage Covid-19. There are 59 politicians, 17 businessmen, 9 bureaucrats who find a place in the survey. Surprisingly, there are no film stars, spiritual guru or sports personalities save for Virat Kohli. So this brings to fore what was the methodology or criteria used to select these powerful Indians? The prefatory note is silent on that front.
With technocrat and builder of some of India’s iconic public infrastructure projects, E Sreedharan joining the BJP, the Kerala voters finally have an “optimistic third option.” The state assembly elections have traditionally been marked by a two-horse race to power – and the rotation of power between the LDF and the UDF over the past couple of decades. Two scenarios are available for the voters: BJP backed by the Christian leadership, Church and voters, could get the 72-seat simple majority to form the government (140 seats). The state observers hold that Sreedharan’s clean image, the likelihood of political autonomy that he may command, and a “strategic” election manifesto should nudge the average Kerala voter to back the BJP and allies. In the second scenario, contrary to opinion polls now favouring the Left, the Congress can form the government, mainly backed by allies IUML, SDPI and Welfare Party. However, it will be a plain replay of the past 20-year administration. Though the Anna-Kitex group backed 20:20 party could win the entire eight contested seats, it prefers to sit independent in the opposition and continue with its well-received public welfare goals. For some analysts, with this assembly polls, the NDA and the 20:20 party may get positioned as formidable options in the next 10-15 years in a radically transformed Kerala.
Can an embarrassed and troubled Uddhav Thackeray ask his Home Minister Anil Deshmukh to resign after former Mumbai police chief Param Bir Singh’s allegation that Deshmukh had asked his officers to extort Rs 100 crore per month for him? Given the tradition in Maharashtra’s coalition government, the Chief Minister is helpless unless the alliance partner NCP agrees to let him go. In this case, it is the NCP which must decide. Had it been a Congress minister, it would have been entirely that party’s call. Should Pawar decide to nominate him for another ministry from those allocated to the NCP, Uddhav would have to allow that. Had it been a Sena minister, Uddhav needn’t ask anyone at all. Technically, it is the CM, who heads the cabinet, but the team members are decided by each partner. When Chhagan Bhujbal was the Deputy Chief Minister to Sushilkumar Shinde, they both got along like a house on fire. But Pawar asked Bhujbal to resign when it was alleged that his supporters had violently attacked a TV station’s offices in 2003. He was replaced by Vijaysinh Mohite Patil while Shinde just had to grin (which he literally does as a habit) and bear it. If Uddhav goes against the delicate alliance arrangement, a serious crisis in the coalition could arise.
Like the Texas ranger J.J. McQuade in the Hollywood thriller Lone Wolf McQuade, this 60-year old Parliamentarian NK Premchand too likes to work alone. He is the one-man army who has made his presence felt in the Lok Sabha. A four-time MP from the Kollam district of Kerala, he is the Central Secretariat Member of the Revolutionary Socialist Party. Whether it is debate or raising questions, he is in the forefront. According to PRS.Org, between June 2014 and February 2019, Premchand asked 471 questions (national average: 293), participated in over 300 debates (national average: 67), and had attendance record of 87% compared to the national average of 80%. He introduced a private member bill overturning Sabarimala verdict and it was the first private bill introduced in the 17th Lok Sabha. Everybody from the prime minister to speaker to MPs acknowledge his dedication and commitment. And nothing misses his sight. He raised the question about a Supreme Court-appointed panel issuing an advertisement in a leading newspaper inviting comments on new farm laws. It was “unfortunate” that the Apex Court was encroaching upon the domain of Parliament, he said. If the panel can seek comments on the new laws, “then what is Parliament meant for”. Quite.
Trouble, they say, never comes alone. At least that is what West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee may be discovering much to her dismay. Many famous personalities who helped build Trinamool Congress from scratch and were part of her inner circle are quitting the party. Respected and seasoned politicians like Dinesh Trivedi, Adhikari brothers, Rajib Banerjee and film personalities are attributing their quitting to Didi’s temperament; as they are not able to put up with her angry outbursts, insults and uncharitable remarks. Add to this, the phenomenal rise of her nephew Abhishek Banerjee, who is rubbing senior party leaders the wrong way. The exodus continues and the latest news wafting from the Writer’s Building, according to reliable sources, is that the current Finance, Commerce & Industries Minister Dr Amit Mitra may relinquish his office after the assembly elections. It is learnt that Dr Mitra is keen to spend more time with family and focus on his health. It may be recalled that Dr Mitra was the familiar face in Delhi when he served as the Secretary General of the FICCI. Born in an illustrious family, economist Dr Mitra joined the All India Trinamool Congress in 2011 and defeated the then Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta belonging to the CPM. Incidentally, Dr Mitra is part of the ministers and MLAs who have been denied party tickets for the current Assembly elections.
As Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is busy in settling scores with his political rival and TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu, the Andhra Pradesh government is heading for a debt trap. The CM is busy in spending on welfare schemes and social security cover. But what is worrying is the high level of borrowings. Amid Covid-19 stress and downturn, Andhra Pradesh’s borrowings in 2020-21 is estimated at a whopping 142% — a cause of concern for the state’s ruling YSR Congress party government. What has also increased the state government’s worry is the high fiscal deficit, which is put at Rs 68,536 crore, while the revenue deficit crossed Rs 48,809 crore in December 2020. Clearly, the economists and experts say the situation is alarming as they predict a fiscal emergency in the state. It is a crucial time for YSR whether he continues to neglect fiscal impropriety or adhere to fiscal prudence to save the state from a major financial crisis.
In recent times one has been noticing Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray formally dressed like an office-goer – trousers and tucked-in full-sleeved shirts instead of his traditional kurta-pyjama. Last December he mandated that all the State government employees should refrain from wearing T-shirts, jeans and slippers to work. He is leading from the front. Most politicians are well dressed. The immediate name that comes to mind is that of the Congress leader Shivraj Patil who held important positions in the Union government. He was known for his sartorial taste. At times he used to change his dress several times a day. Likewise, Sonia Gandhi is always elegantly dressed in a well-draped cotton saree. Rajiv Gandhi’s kurta-pyjama was accompanied with Gucci shoes, Rolex watch and Cartier sunglass. Politicians started becoming dress conscious because of two reasons. One, both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha TV channels were telecasting live the daily proceedings. Two, the entry of youngsters, including film stars. I recall BJP leader Pramod Mahajan saying: “Even when disrupting parliament our voters like us to look good!” Narayan Rane as Maharashtra’s chief minister always preferred an odd two-button jacket but never a full suit. Many like Sharad Pawar preferred white trousers and half-sleeved bush shirts. Gopinath Munde preferred kurta-pyjama and a Nehru jacket but never wore trousers. The bandhgala was the favourite of two chief ministers in Maharashtra: Sudhakarrao Naik and his uncle VP Naik.
Once bitten twice shy. After a poor show in the Bihar elections and being publicly insulted by the RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav for spoiling the alliance prospects as Cong could win only 19 seats against 70 contested, the Congress party seems to have gone soft in its seat-sharing talks with the DMK Supremo MK Stalin in Tamil Nadu. Against its original demand for 54 seats, the Congress has quietly settled for 25 legislative seats. And for the by-elections, the party is pleased to get the Kanyakumari Lok Sabha seat. It is learnt that Rahul Gandhi does not mind playing second fiddle as his only objective is to counter the BJP-AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. Rahul, who has visited Tamil Nadu twice in recent times, enjoys a good equation with Stalin who is very confident of the DMK-Congress win this time. Even poll-strategist Prashant Kishor is talking of DMK winning. What makes the fight interesting is the BJP’s Hindutva appeal while in Tamil Nadu it has always been the Dravidian plank for all parties. Fearing backlash, it is learnt that the BJP’s alliance partner AIADMK has advised it not to push the Hindutva agenda. Rahul is likely to campaign extensively in Tamil Nadu, sharing dais with Stalin and address crucial joint meetings. For Rahul, the idea of playing second fiddle is also to revive Congress in Tamil Nadu. Will his bet pay off? Only time will tell.
With election fever rising, poll strategist Prashant Kishor seems to be the man of the moment. Already three major political parties -– Trinamool in West Bengal, DMK in Tamil Nadu, and Congress in Punjab have signed him up. Looks like political parties woo him before they woo the voters. This is the first time Kishor has three states on his worktable. And he has already given his verdict: DMK led by MK Stalin would return to power in TN and Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal. More. He has dared to stick his neck out by saying BJP would not cross 100 seats in W Bengal. So one has to wait till May 2 for the final result. But in the past he has had a good strike rate. He shot into the limelight by ensuring Narendra Modi became the Chief Minister of Gujarat for the third time. Post that he worked closely with the BJP for the 2014 Lok Sabha election. His string of success includes the unprecedented victory of the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi for the second time; the YCR Congress win in Andhra Pradesh, and Nitin Kumar’s JDU in Bihar. But, he miserably failed his client –the Congress in Uttar Pradesh’s Assembly poll in 2017. It won only 7 seats against BJP’s 300 plus. Be that as it may, the Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has accorded him a cabinet rank. A lot is indeed riding on him. The moot point is with such diverse clients does it make him ideologically neutral or is he nursing a political ambition? It may be recalled he did take a political plunge when he joined the JDU in Bihar but it proved to be a short-lived honeymoon.
Like Alice In Wonderland, the Tamil Nadu politics seems to be getting curiouser and curiouser. It all started with Superstar Rajnikant throwing in the towel thereby dashing BJP’s hopes of making significant impact in the upcoming Assembly polls. For MK Stalin of DMK, this announcement was music to ears. But the news of VK Sasikala or ‘Chinamma’, confidante of the late J Jayalalithaa, former Chief Minister, saw both the ruling party AIADMK and the DMK pull a long face. She came out of Bangalore jail after serving four-year term, and entered the fray .So much so, Chinamma was prevented by the very people who prostrated before her from going anywhere near Jayalalithaa’s Samadhi at Marina Beach. At the same time, to keep her in good humour mediators have been holding talks with her nephew TTV Dinakaran to work out a possible merger of his party AMMK with the AIADMK so that they can fight the common enemy DMK. But in a new political twist, Chinamma dropped a bomb, announcing to stay away from politics. The DMK and the Congress spokespersons on the TV channels are saying she must have been pressurized by the BJP! Apparently, local BJP leaders have welcomed the move. In the fast changing political contours, is it advantage AIADMK? Does DMK stand a better chance minus Chinamma? And where does Kamal Hasaan’s party Makkal Needhi Maiam figure?
The Khushboo Gujarat Ki campaign run by the Gujarat Tourism since 2010 has been very effective, giving a massive boost to the number of in-bound tourists. But our Short Post Team discovered a shocking case of tourist alienation – with two Mumbai-based businessmen confiding in about a horrendous experience. It was a different khushboo when they drove down to Jaisalmer in Rajasthan from Mumbai. On return, their car bearing Maharashtra number plate was stopped by the Gujarat police at four different checkpoints. And from the word go it was mindless harassment and heaps of insult. At the first check-post, they were questioned whether they carried drugs, guns or alcohol and then asked to turn their bags upside down. At the second check-post they were asked why they did not cover the top portion of the headlights with yellow scotch tape? At the third check-post, they were fined for not wearing their mask properly inside their car. But, their real nightmare began at the fourth check-post. The cops once again rummaged through their bag and separated an empty liquor bottle. Immediately, they shouted with glee “Milee Gayo”, “Milee Gayo” (got it). Their reactions shocked these two businessmen. The cops forced one of them to sit in the driver’s seat and clicked pictures with an empty bottle on his lap. Then, they were told that now an FIR would be filed; and that they would have to pay a fine of Rs 1 lakh or else they would be jailed. Physically and mentally exhausted because of this senseless extortion the businessmen decided to loosen their purse strings and after which they were allowed to go.
Political parties in Maharashtra are known for not practicing untouchability in politics. But when it comes to the issue of protecting the State’s interest and maintaining Maharashtra’s pre-eminence as the most favoured investment destination then all political parties sink their difference and put up a show of unity. This unity is important as Maharashtra faces tough competition from other States like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka to bag big projects. A case in point is that of luring Airbus SE, a European multinational aerospace corporation, for its proposed investment of over Rs15,000 crore to manufacture 56 aircraft and helicopters in Maharashtra. Knowing the importance of Airbus’ entry into the state, the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi government has swung into action. Chief Minister and Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray has written to NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar and Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari for taking up Maharashtra’s cause with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The government has cited a site in the MIHAN project at Nagpur for Airbus’ proposed investment. Airbus is expected to join hands with the Tata Group for the proposed venture. Incidentally, Nagpur is the home city of Gadkari.
There is nothing striking about this farmer leader who has kept the Modi government on tenterhooks. It seems like he has deliberately cultivated the image of a rustic leader with a green Kisan cap, accompanied by a green-white gumchha and an unkempt beard. The 51-year old Rakesh Tikait, who holds a Master’s degree from the Meerut University, would definitely know what style is, having served in the Delhi Police department as sub-inspector till 1992 and hailing from a high profile family. He quit police force during the farmers’ agitation at Red Fort in 1993-94 and joined the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) set up by his father Mahendra Singh Tikait, a firebrand farmer leader. Political ambitions took him to contest the assembly elections in 2007 and Lok Sabha in 2014 but he lost both. With the farmers’ agitation regaining momentum (after he broke down on the national television), he has declared the agitation would continue till October 2021. His message to Modi: “We have so far talked about Bill Wapsi (Repealing the three farm laws). What will you do if the youth call for Gaddi Wapsi (removal from power)?” There is a sense of déjà vu listening to this kind of veiled threat.
If Uddhav Thackeray’s instructions to the top officials to work out a plan to have the Mantralaya function in two shifts, and his earlier appeal to the private sector to stagger their office timings come to fruition, the face of transportation, work dynamics, and work-life balance across Mumbai metro region would change. Months ago the BMC, and the Western and Central Railways had offered to rework their schedules during the lockdown itself and asked the State Government to initiate theirs. Apparently after discovering nine infections in the Revenue Department and also seeing the entire entourage of Chhagan Bhujbal hit by the virus, Thackeray set the wheels moving. But the private sector is yet to respond. Thackeray had also told the NITI Ayog about staggered work hours because it may not be within his remit to ask the Central Government offices to stagger their timings. If this does happen, overcrowding on public transport, congestion of Mumbai region’s roads would ease to an extent. But it is a complex task – ministries function in a synergy not perceived by outsiders. Also, the home to station to workplace bus connectivity has to be worked out. Else the solution could be worse than the problem. If only all this had been thought of during the lockdown! A classic case of locking the stable door after the horse has bolted.
Nitin Raut, Maharashtra’s power minister, had come to invite Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to attend a wedding reception to be held by his family. When the subject of the quick spreading Covid surfaced in the conversation, the minister announced that he was cancelling the reception. Uddhav had cited it as cooperation in fighting the virus and asked the public to fall in line. But it’s a fact that the CM’s warning that only the mask-less public defying Covid protocols would force another lockdown in Maharashtra hasn’t found immediate traction. Other leaders seem to be entirely on another page. Thousands thronged the streets as the convoy of Minister Of State For Forest Sanjay Rathod reached Pohradevi temple in Washim district on 23rd February. BJP leader, Dhananjay Mahadik’s son’s wedding in Pune on 22nd February not only had 1,000 guests (prescribed limit being 100) but was also graced by two men of eminence in politics — Sharad Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis. To be generous, these two worthies may not have known that the protocols were being ignored. And it was a day prior to Pawar’s tweet that informed that he was cancelling all public events. Reportedly, the Pune city police has booked Mahadik and two others for violation of Covid norms. In a related development, the State’s Food & Civil Supplies Minister Chhagan Bhujbul who attended wedding of NCP MLA Saron Ahire along with Pawar has tested positive.
Once, the Congress was ideologically different from the Shiv Sena. It disapproved of the Sena’s aggressive style of politics — though it couldn’t exactly stop the saffron party. The Congress would often complain about the alleged street violence of the Shiv Sena and the MNS – and their penchant for public warnings. After partnering with the adversary to form the Maharashtra coalition government, the Congress seems to have soaked in Sena’s methods. Its newly appointed chief Nana Patole has announced that if the two actors — the Big B and Akshay Kumar — do not tweet against high petrol price (as both had tweeted against price rise during UPA-2 regime), they would not be “allowed” to shoot the films they act in nor will their films be screened. Exactly the methods of the Sena in the past and a practice which the MNS continues to follow. The Congress, hurting at the status of being a junior partner in Maha Vikas Aghadi where the third party is the assertive NCP, wants to be seen as being muscular and has learnt how to: by being like the Sena. Interestingly, Patole, as Speaker of the Assembly, was in a constitutional position and ensured the Assembly functioned under Democratic rules. What a transformation by Patole overnight!
A fierce ding dong battle is playing out in West Bengal and Maharashtra. In WB, Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee have been at loggerheads from Day One. During the Lockdown, the Governor wrote to Didi why she was deliberately breaking all the curfew protocols recommended by the Centre. A few days later she asked the Governor to refrain from summoning senior officials without her knowledge. Recently, when BJP President JP Nadda’s convoy was attacked, the Governor told Mamata “Don’t play with fire.” This verbal duel continues unabated. Hopefully, things should cool down after the state elections in April-May this year. In another battle, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari — who administered the oath of office to the Devendra Fadnavis-Ajit Pawar government which lasted for three days — is taking on Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar. Pawar took pot-shot at the Governor for having time to meet film star Kangana Ranaut but not the farmers. Also, the recent controversy around the Maharashtra governor being denied permission to use state plane has added to the bitterness. Now an editorial in Sena’s mouthpiece Samna says the Governor is acting like the BJP puppet and should be called back by the President. This tug-of-war battle brings to fore the old debate whether the Governor’s Office should be abolished.
This one is interesting. Veteran Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad retired from Rajya Sabha as the Leader Of Opposition on February 15, 2021. All politicians in the house praised his outstanding contributions. In his farewell speech, Azad shocked and surprised a whole generation when he said he was among the fortunate people who never went to Pakistan. “When I read about the circumstances in Pakistan, I feel proud to be a Hindustani Muslim,” he said. His remarks on visiting Pakistan comes as a sharp contrast to the Secular Fundamentalists like Mani Shankar Aiyar who would have lost count of how many times they visited Pakistan. And Iyer’s interaction with the Pakistani media would often leave many in India stunned and embarrassed, especially when he told Pakistanis: “The first and the foremost thing is to remove Modi (Modi ko hatana hoga). Only then can the talks (between India and Pakistan) move forward.” On the other hand, Azad has always been a picture of grace and dignity, urging all to build compromises and understanding instead of reinforcing antagonism.
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.