From the India Gate: Bitter sweet pancakes, storm in the teacup 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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Many BJP workers in Kerala were seen distributing hot pancakes made in ghee as the new Vande Bharat train stopped at stations en route as part of a trial run. Loco pilots, who were given these along with other sweets, did not understand the 'political relevance' of pancakes. But onlookers definitely knew that it was a protest tool.
Some weeks back, CPM state secretary M V Govindan, while justifying the need for high-speed K-Rail, had said it would help women of Kudumbashree to sell home-made pancakes in markets far away from their mofussil villages and return early.
"They can leave after breakfast and return before lunch even from Koottanadu (a village 40 km away from Thrissur). K-Rail will catalyse their lives," Govindan claimed.
The irony was that these women would have had to spend close to Rs 100 to reach Thrissur to board K-Rail which boasts of a high ticket tariff. And after meeting its high ticket fare, they would be left with nothing as a packet of pancakes would hardly fetch Rs 50.
Govindan's 'strategy' was the target of ridicule on social media for a long time. But BJP workers bought pancakes to celebrate the introduction of Vande Bharat and to remind Govindan about some bitter realities.
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YOUTH HUNT
More often than not the term youth leader has been a misnomer in Indian politics. Rummage through the column mentioning age in the list of 'youth'' office-bearers to understand that this is no understatement. Most of the real youth never find a place given the tough groupism and nepotism in all parties.
But suddenly youth in the state seems to be in great demand thanks to Yuvam, a programme of young leaders to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kochi on Monday. Immediately after BJP and its youth wing scaled up the plan, other parties rushed in to stage their parody.
The Congress was the first to announce that a youth event will be held in Kochi in May and that Rahul Gandhi will address the youth. But the Youth Congress who had invited Rahul for their meeting around the same time has refused to rechristen their event as a youth meet.
They said Rahul will have to address their meeting and not the one proposed by KPCC in Kochi. Meanwhile, the Left parties are launching their version across the state where 100 questions will be asked to the PM.
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DOUBLE DUTY
When the boss decides to get maximum mileage using a double-engine government in Karnataka, all members of the party have to give enough shoulder to the wheel. BJP’s Members of Parliament from the Northeast have also been given charge of various constituencies and regions in Karnataka as the state warms up for the Assembly elections.
Water-cooler whispers in Delhi now revolve around the additional responsibility given to them by the taskmaster boss. Each of them has to fulfil tasks assigned to their respective constituencies even as they deep dive into Karnataka politics.
For, they know that the assignment is not a cosmetic strategy but one aimed at establishing ground-level connections with the voters.
They have to ensure the support of vote banks by throwing light on central government schemes and programmes aimed at uplifting the rural population.
Again, lip service won’t be enough as the boss expects a detailed report almost every day. Some of the MPs say that the amount of workload and stress Karnataka is posing is much more than what their domestic roles give.
In a jocular mood, some of them even expressed doubt about whether MP means Member of Parliament or the Member of Party.
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RETURN OF THE NETAJI
His presence normally sends a chill down the spine of the ruling party in Rajasthan. For the last few days, they heaved a sigh of relief as this prominent BJP leader was away in Delhi for treatment.
Interestingly, Netaji had sustained injuries for which he sought treatment in Delhi while leading a protest against the government. The government is worried because he continues to maintain his clout in the bureaucracy.
Before he booked his return ticket from Delhi, Netaji conveyed to his cadres that a protest over three major issues is on the anvil.
That he has a good track record for winning his struggles is making the state government naturally worried and clueless on how to combat the fresh salvos.
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SHOT IN THE LEG
A recent tweet by saffron party honcho, where an alleged voice clip of the Tamil Nadu finance minister's loose talk about illegal wealth amassed by the kin of the ruling family is heard, has set the cat among the pigeons.
Following this, there is a clamour to oust the Finance minister as he has ``revealed'' a closely-guarded family secret. The voice clip alleges that the close kin of the chief minister are clueless about how to manage the Rs 30,000-crore worth of wealth they have amassed in recent years.
BJP used the opportunity as a tit-for-tat to seek vengeance for embarrassing its president for wearing a costly wristwatch. Though he had wriggled out saying that the watch belonged to a friend, he couldn’t fully wipe the egg off its face.
Now they are fully using the leaked voice clip to attack the ruling party. Though the finance minister has distanced himself from the row, DMK leadership is totally upset. Last heard is that the finance minister will soon be replaced for his careless comments.
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STORM IN TEACUP
But this one brewing in Rajasthan doesn’t look like subsiding easily. For, the protest targeted against a senior minister in Rajasthan is being choreographed by other Congress leaders with eyes on his constituency.
The spark was the suicide of a small teashop owner from the minister’s constituency who named him and a hotel owner in his suicide note. The deceased also recorded his final words in a video. He alleged that the hotel owner, who has hence been arrested, had been trying to grab his small patch of land near his firm.
The minister’s patronage was cited as the reason for the hotel owner’s blatant efforts to oust the teashop owner. BJP has seized the opportunity. But what is worrying Congress more is the support the victim’s family is getting from its own ranks to stir the cup.
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