From the India Gate: Hunt for a beautiful face, Chote Netaji's jail visits and more

There is a lot that happens behind the scenes in the corridors of power. Opinions, conspiracies, power games and internal wrangling galore in the political space. Asianet News Network’s massive ground presence taps into the pulse of politics and bureaucracy across the country.\

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MIRROR, MIRROR…

Literally, this is the buzz within the BJP in Rajasthan. What sparked this 'who's-the-beautiful-of-us-all' murmur was the 'prediction' by a national-level BJP leader from Rajasthan.

He said the face that would become chief minister after the upcoming assembly elections would be a beautiful one. Ever since, the guess has been to match the face with a name. Loudest among the hush-hush chatter is whether the "new face" will replace former CM Vasundhara Raje Scindia. Or will this new face be another member of Rajasthan's royal family?

Ironically, the Princess has been getting a lot of congratulatory messages ever since the search for the 'Beautiful Face' started.

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FACE OFF

Another controversy about a 'face' has landed the Congress in a spot in Rajasthan. And most of them are keeping away from their social media pages.

Recently, the photograph of a person who is very close to Congress leaders emerged for the wrong reasons. He is one of the alleged masterminds behind the leaking of question papers for recruiting government teachers in Udaipur.

Police have arrested more than 60 culprits, but both the masterminds are still on the run. One of the accused has good connections with top Congress leaders.

With many photographs of the accused surfacing, BJP sensed a political possibility.

They have launched 'Yeh Rishta kya Kehlata hai' campaign to put Congress in the dock. With photos of more than 15 leaders posing with the accused emerging, Congress has been framed, literally.

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CELL WOES

The itinerary of UP's 'Chote Netaji' often includes visits to many jails in the state. For many of Akhilesh Yadav’s party colleagues are behind bars for their past deeds. But such tours aimed at building goodwill and staying connected seem to be causing hardships to jailed leaders.

Immediately after 'Chote Netaji' visits someone in jail, the inmate is allegedly targeted. Recently, Akhilesh met one of his MLAs in Kanpur jail. But the very next day, that MLA was shifted to another jail. There was a huge hue and cry. But the order was quickly issued, and none could change it.

Akhilesh had also met an ex-MLA, and his move to another jail is on the cards. At this rate, many would say a polite no thanks when Chote Netaji comes calling next time.

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DAMP SQUIB

When Jayarajans of Kannur crossed swords, many expected a fiery bout between EP and P. High drama apart, the issue seems to have fizzled out with comrades accepting E P Jayarajan’s admission that he had no share in the controversial ayurvedic resort project.

He, however, accepted that his wife and son were stakeholders. Party listened to him carefully and finally agreed that a comrade may actually have nothing to do with the multi-crore-worth investment made by his spouse and son in a project that allegedly violated even environmental rules.

Even P Jayarajan didn't press charges against EP. But all eyes are on the state committee meeting when the issue is discussed again. But exact details of what happens inside the red fort may not even be known outside.

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