Re: All Politics is Local: Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Columns - Rasheeda Bhagat
The battle for Maharashtra
Though the anti-incumbency mood in Maharashtra is palpable, what can
still help the ruling combine return to power is the listless mood in
the BJP and the son-versus-nephew battle in the Sena, says RASHEEDA
BHAGAT.
In the race…The NCP chief, Mr Sharad Pawar; the MNS chief, Mr Raj
Thackeray; and Mr Bal Thackeray’s anointed successor and son, Mr
Uddhav Thackeray.
While campaigning for the Maharashtra Assembly elections to be held on
October 13 might be lacklustre, its outcome promises to be interesting
as it will affect the fortunes of several big leaders from the State,
beginning with the Nationalist Congress Party chief, Mr Sharad Pawar,
who once aspired to become the Prime Minister.
Infighting and factionalism in the NCP has only got worse after its
comparatively poor showing in the Lok Sabha polls in which the
Congress fared much better. This has resulted in the NCP, which many
people forget had secured more seats than the Congress in the 2004
Assembly elections, having to accept the role of the junior partner in
the Congress-NCP alliance.
But things are not hunky-dory in the Congress stable either.
Dissidence in the party is rampant, led by the rebellion of Mr Sunil
Deshmukh, two-time MLA and minister in the outgoing government.
Furious that the party ticket for his seat — Amravati — was given to
President Ms Pratibha Patil’s relatively inexperienced son, Mr
Rajendra Shekhawat, he filed his nomination as an independent from the
same constituency, raising the banner of revolt.
While the NCP and the Congress are plagued by dissension, the
Opposition BJP-Shiv Sena camp has nothing to cheer about either. After
a series of disasters at the national level, the rank and file of BJP
has been demoralised and the state unit was forced to toe Sena’s line
on alliance and seat-sharing. The BJP leader, Mr Gopinath Munde,
managing to get three nominations for his family members — including
his daughter, Pankaja, and niece, Poonam Mahajan (daughter of Pramod
Mahajan) — has not gone down well with local party leaders.
Battle of cousins
On the dissension front, the Shiv Sena’s plight is worse and harsh
accusations have been traded between the Sena chief, Mr Bal Thackeray,
and his anointed successor and son, Mr Uddhav Thackeray, on the one
hand, and the acerbic Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief, Mr Raj
Thackeray, on the other. While Mr Bal Thackeray has launched vicious
attacks against nephew Raj accusing him of a hidden agenda to help the
Congress-NCP combine return to power, Mr Uddhav has accused his cousin
of attempting to divide the Marathi vote.
Ironically, Mr Raj Thackeray’s one-point agenda seems to be to ruin
all chances of cousin Mr Uddhav occupying the top seat at the
Mantralaya. There is no longer any doubt on who will be Chief Minister
if the Sena-BJP alliance wins. Mr Raj has never lost sight of the
reason he left the Sena — which was rebellion against Uncle Balasaab’s
decision to anoint son Mr Uddhav, and not him, as his successor. But
Mr Uddhav Thackeray can become Chief Minister of Maharashtra only if
the Sena-BJP combine clears the 145 mark in a House with 288 seats.
The MNS has fielded as many as 145 candidates, the bulk in the Marathi-
dominated areas of Thane and Mumbai where the young Marathi electorate
seems to favour Mr Raj Thackeray’s vitriolic attacks against North
Indians for taking away jobs meant for the sons of the soil.
Clearly, the nephew and not the son has inherited the acerbic style of
the Sena chief and many Shiv Sainiks are panicking that if the
comparatively sober Mr Uddhav doesn’t add some chatpati bhasha (fiery
language) to his election rhetoric he will miss the bus to Mantralaya
not only this time, but for all time.
Battling anti-incumbency
The widespread feeling, even outside the Sena-BJP camp and in the
general public, is that there cannot be a better time than this to end
the 10-year rule of the Congress-NCP combine. As would happen in any
State which has seen two successive terms of the same government, the
anti-incumbency mood in Maharashtra is palpable.
Forget steep run up in food prices, and water and power shortages, the
Mumbai terror attacks are fresh in public memory. Many citizens feel
that it was the State government’s failure at two levels —
intelligence and operational capability — which led to the carnage.
But what can still help the ruling combine to return to power is the
listless mood in the BJP and the son-vs-nephew battle in the Sena.
Also, for the first time the Shiv Sena has seen dissidence and
unhappiness over the party nominations resulting in the vandalism by
Sainiks at the house of senior Sena leader, Mr Manohar Joshi. Some
Shiv Sainiks even marched to Matushree, Mr Bal Thackeray’s residence,
and demanded to know why deserving candidates had been ignored this
time. Surely, this must have shocked the leader who ruled his party
with an iron hand.
But what is worrying him most is that if there is a fractured verdict,
Raj’s MNS will most likely support the Congress-NCP and help it form
the government. On his part, the MNS chief keeps reiterating that he
will support anybody who is ready to follow his agenda on Maharashtra
and Marathis!
Do or die for Pawar
For Mr Sharad Pawar too, this election is crucial and the NCP’s
performance will determine not only his role at the Centre but the
continuance of the NCP as a separate political outfit. He is
increasingly under pressure to merge the NCP with the Congress; the
demand first started in June when Mr P. A. Sangma met the Congress
President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, and apologised to her for raising her
foreign origin issue. It was on this issue that he, Mr Tariq Anwar and
Mr Sharad Pawar parted company with the Congress and formed the NCP.
In the last couple of weeks, Mr Pawar has had to issue several denials
about the NCP merging with the Congress. But as a ruling alliance
partner he is accountable to the electorate for their woes, not the
least being the problems faced by farmers. Launching his campaign in
Vidarbha last week, Mr Pawar blamed the erstwhile Sena-BJP government
for the power crisis in the State by its “flip-flop on the Dabhol
power project”.
While the project was conceived during Mr Pawar’s term as chief
minister, the BJP-Sena government scrapped it when it came to power,
not only triggering the power crisis, but also scaring away foreign
investment from Maharashtra, he charged.
As the worsening agrarian crisis and farmer suicides are sensitive
poll issues in this agri belt of western Maharashtra, Mr Pawar lauded
the UPA government’s “historic decision” on the Rs 71,000-crore farm
loan waiver and reduction in farm loan interest rates from 12 to 7 per
cent, and promised further reduction to 4 per cent.
For an election-weary nation, the run-up to the Maharashtra election
is a non-starter. The Congress, of course, hopes to breathe some life
into its lacklustre campaign by getting Ms Sonia Gandhi and Mr Rahul
Gandhi to address a few meetings in the State over the week. Meanwhile
in Amravati, where the sitting MLA and Congress rebel, Mr Sunil
Deshmukh, is challenging the official candidate, Mr Rajendra
Shekhawat, the latter’s woes are growing.
The Amravati Mayor, Mr Ashok Dongre, ordered that all posters of Mr
Shekhawat’s mother be removed from the constituency, resulting in the
son sulking: “Is it a crime to be the President’s son? I have worked
very hard to get where I am.” He has requested Mr Rahul Gandhi to
address a meeting in Amravati.
(Response may be sent to rash...@thehindu.co.in and
blfee...@thehindu.co.in)
...and I am Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Munde tries to play down MNS threat
6 Oct 2009, 0628 hrs IST, ET Bureau
MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) may have ruffled Shiv
Sena but BJP national general secretary Gopinath Munde feels the 17-
party Republican Left Democratic Front (RLDF) would more than offset
MNS damage by hurting Congress-NCP.
Mr Munde, BJP's campaign leader for the assembly polls, claimed on
Monday that the Third Front would get 12-14% votes away from Congress-
NCP as against a 4% dent in the BJP-Sena votes that the MNS was likely
to make. However, Mr Munde’s optimism has overlooked the fact that
MNS’ state-wide 4% vote has little bearing on its damage potential in
the Mumbai-Thane-Pune belt, where it polled more than 20% votes in the
recent Lok Sabha polls.
In addition, Congress-NCP was fighting a serious rebellion in the
ranks with as many as 120 rebels in the fray against official
nominees, Mr Munde said. He conceded that even the BJP-Sena too were
facing rebellion but it was restricted to only 7 to 8 seats out of
288.
"The current political situation is comparable to the 1995 assembly
polls in Maharashtra, when Congress lost because of large-scale
rebellion. Rebellion will ensure that the transfer of votes from
Congress to NCP or vice-versa will not take place," Mr Munde said.
In 1995, Sena-BJP had polled 29.5% votes, which gave them 133 seats,
Mr Munde recalled. The saffron combine roped in Independents to form
the government. Asked if a post-poll situation similar to that in 1995
would mean BJP-Sena may have to take support from Independents, Mr
Munde said the alliance would get a clear majority.
He referred to elections held in other states during the last two-
three years, pointing out that the electorate had voted against a hung
assembly. "As many as eight states have showed this trend and here the
performance has also mattered," he said.
The BJP leader argued that several factors would go against the 10-
year-old Congress-NCP rule. Anti-incumbency, price rise, corruption,
energy shortage, and a deplorable law and order situation were only
some of them, he said. Mr Munde claimed Congress-NCP had failed to
justify their return to power in the Lok Sabha elections five months
back.
"Not even a point on the 100-day agenda outlined by the prime minister
has been achieved. People gave them more seats in Maharashtra than BJP-
Sena with some expectations but they have not fulfilled those
expectations," Mr Munde said.
Mr Munde ridiculed the Congress-NCP manifesto accusing the combo of
copying 13 agendas from the 21-point manifesto of BJP-Sena alliance.
"If they can't think of something original even after ruling the state
for ten years, why would the people trust them again," he asked. But
keeping the manifesto season alive, Mr Munde promised BJP-Sena, if
voted to power, would cut allocations already budgeted for different
departments to find Rs 2,000 crore to fight drought.
chhotemianinshallah
CM calls Raj a frog, Uddhav equates him with a rat
STAFF WRITER 12:38 HRS IST
Mumbai, Oct 6 (PTI) As far as calling names goes, campaigning for the
October 13 Maharashtra Assembly elections seems to have reached a new
low, with key players in state political arena calling rivals names,
including those of animals.
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan called MNS chief Raj Thackeray a 'frog'
during a press conference in his hometown Nanded recently.
"Raj Thackeray and other opponents are like frogs which appear on
ground during the monsoon and start croaking," Chavan said.
Chavan is the latest in the long line of leaders who have used
colourful language to deride opponents, the most visible practitioners
of this 'art' being estranged Thackeray cousins.
Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray equated Raj to a
"contractor working on commission for the Congress-NCP combine".
Sid Harth
Muzaffarpur/Mumbai, October 6, 2009
Court issues arrest warrant against Raj Thackeray
PTI
A Bihar court on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant against Maharashtra
Navanirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray for allegedly making hate
speeches against Biharis with a directive to the Mumbai Police
Commissioner to execute it and produce the MNS chief on November 2.
In Mumbai, Police Commissioner D Sivanandan said necessary action will
be taken in accordance with law once they receive the directive.
The warrant was issued by Sahab Kaushar, first class judicial
magistrate, Muzaffarpur, after he took exception to non-compliance of
the order of the court by Mr. Thackeray to represent his side on
previous dates. Mr. Kaushar ordered that Thackeray be produced before
the court on November 2.
The MNS, which had spearheaded a controversial campaign against north
Indians, said it would react only after seeing the warrant copy. “We
have not received any such warrant and would not comment on it unless
we read it,” party general secretary Nitin Sardesai said.
Sudhir Ojha, a senior advocate, had on February 2, 2008 filed a
complaint under section 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke
breach of peace), in the court of the then Chief Judicial Magistrate
(Muzaffarpur) J K Sinha seeking legal action against Mr. Thackeray.
Mr. Ojha alleged that Mr. Thackeray had on Janaury 31, 2008 statement
made “uncharitable, insulting and hate speeches against the Biharis.”
Mr. Thackeray had also insulted the ‘Chhath’ festival, he alleged.
Mr. Sinha had then transferred the case to the first class judicial
magistrate.
Sid Harth
Nanded, October 6, 2009
People area aware of opponents’ ‘hollow claims’: Sonia
PTI
PTI Congress president Sonia Gandhi being garlanded by Chief Minister
Ashok Chavan and other leaders at an election rally in Nasik on
Tuesday. Photo: PTI
People of Maharashtra are aware of ’hollow claims’ by the opposition
parties and will once again vote Congress-NCP combine to power,
Congress president Sonia Gandhi said here today.
“Maharashtra people are alert. They know who is making genuine
promises and who is making hollow claims. They will once again bring
Congress-NCP to power in the state,” Ms. Sonia said, addressing a
rally for the October 13 Assembly polls, at this Sikh pilgrimage town
in Marathwada region.
“What does the opposition have to do with development?” Ms. Sonia
asked, alluding to the Shiv Sena-BJP saffron alliance. .
“They don’t talk about public interest but only foment hatred for
their political interests,” she added.
“We want a Maharashtra where every person can live in peace and
harmony and participate in the development process,” Sonia said,
appealing voters in the nine Assembly constituencies of Chief Minister
Ashok Chavan’s home district Nanded to vote for Congress-NCP-RPI
(Gawai) alliance.
The UPA government took various initiatives for farmers, specially
those from Maharashtra, the Congress president said. .
“There is a new light in the lives of farmers after the Government
announced Rs 71,000 crore loan waiver,” she said.
Congress is fighting for the welfare of weaker sections of society,
including Dalits and women, Ms. Sonia said. Loans at cheaper interests
have been made available to ‘our sisters’, she said.
“We have increased support prices of foodgrains,” the Congress
president said.
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, christened after
Mahatma Gandhi, has been taken to all districts in the country and has
been a success, she said.
Nanded, an important religious destination, has been included in the
National Urban Renewal Mission and funds allocated for its
development, she said. Soon, Nanded would be a slum—free town, the UPA
chairperson said.
Recalling the contribution of Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru and Lal
Bahadur Shastri in the freedom struggle, Ms. Sonia said these leaders
worked for progress and development of generations to come.
chhotemianinshallah
Sabotage fear stalks Cong
SANJAY K. JHA
New Delhi, Oct. 7: Beneath the veneer of alliance, a common manifesto
and joint campaign lie the thorns of animosity and distrust between
the Congress and the NCP.
Congress leaders now realise that the bitter bargaining for seats is
nothing compared to the landmine Sharad Pawar has laid on the ground:
inputs sent to the high command suggest that over 45 rebel candidates
troubling the official nominees enjoy the blessings of the ally.
Many Congress leaders feel that the main challenge the party is facing
is the possibility of internal sabotage by the Pawar camp. Most rebels
who pose a real threat to Congress candidates are powerful NCP
leaders.
The Congress leadership itself was keen to whittle down Pawar’s
influence in the state but could not dream up such an elaborate plan
to hurt the NCP candidates on the field. Congress leaders who openly
talk about the need to restrict the NCP to 30-35 seats admit they
don’t have a statewide action plan to achieve the target.
A Congress leader told The Telegraph: “This is true we face sabotage
and we cannot match Pawarsaheb’s artful tactics. If both the partners
play this game of undercutting each other, this becomes a dangerous
game. This could also help the rivals beyond our imagination. We
should keep our fingers crossed.”
Adding to the Congress-NCP woes is the savage rise in the prices of
essential commodities. “This has definitely caused voter apathy, if
not a strong anti-incumbency. Our sympathisers who are opposed to the
Shiv Sena-BJP also don’t feel like voting us back to power. It is
gradually becoming difficult,” another leader said on phone from
Mumbai.
He added that the only reason the Congress-NCP combine would still be
back in the saddle was the growing clout of Raj Thackeray’s
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). “Raj will give us raj,” he said.
Raj has become such a menace for the Sena that both Bal Thackeray and
Uddhav have concentrated their energies on tackling him. This is
helping the Congress-NCP as the Sena and the BJP have not yet kicked
up too much dust on the performance of the government in the past 10
years.“They already had the disadvantage of not having a projected
leader who could be seen as an alternative chief minister and now they
don’t have an engine to pull their campaign. We would have definitely
faced difficulties if the campaign was focused on matters of
governance, instead of Raj,” a Maharashtra Congress leader said.
Raj has created a situation in which the Sena-BJP is struggling in
most of the 75 constituencies in the Mumbai-Thane-Nashik region.
Congress leaders won’t be surprised if the Sena-BJP fails to win
lesser seats than the MNS in this region.
While the hardcore Marathi votes are likely to split vertically, the
Congress is hoping to squeeze past the post on the strength of
consolidated votes of outsiders (mostly north Indians) and Muslims.
The non-Marathi-speaking voters play a decisive role in the Mumbai-
Pune-Thane region.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP lashes out at Cong in Haryana
STAFF WRITER 13:11 HRS IST
Sonepat, Oct 8 (PTI) BJP in Haryana today blamed the "wrong economic
policies" of the UPA for the price rise and claimed this trend would
continue if the Congress returned to power in the state.
BJP national general secretary and incharge of party affairs in
Haryana, Vijay Goel, told reporters the Congress advanced the poll in
Haryana because it was aware that prices would further rise in the
coming months.
Dubbing the present government in the state as "a government of
announcements and scams," the BJP leader asked the people to vote for
the BJP candidates if they are fed up with the "false promises and
announcements" as well as "scams" of the state government.
He regretted that UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi did not mention at all
the price rise issue during her election tour to the state.
bademiyansubhanallah
Uddhav is CM face of Sena-BJP
Anita Saluja
First Published : 07 Oct 2009 01:38:00 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Uddhav Thackeray is the Chief Ministerial face of the Shiv
Sena- BJP alliance. An understanding has been reached between the Shiv
Sena and the BJP in Maharashtra that if the saffron alliance manages
to wrest power from the Congress- NCP, Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray
and BJP veteran L K Advani will make the declaration. In the Thackeray
versus Thackeray poll battle, Uddhav is expected to neutralise Raj
Thackeray’s MNS impact on the electorate in the run-up to the
Maharashtra Assembly polls on October 13.
Sources said though earlier there was an understanding that the party
which wins larger number of MLAs to the Assembly will get the chief
ministership, this time around the party has already given up its
claim on Chief Ministers’s post, much before the elections. The Shiv
Sena is contesting 169 seats and BJP 119 seats in the 288-member
Assembly. In the 2004 elections, the Sena had contested 171 and the
BJP 117 seats. The alliance had jointly bagged 119 seats, compared to
the Congress-NCP tally of 139.
According to the BJP poll managers, the difference between the Shiv
Sena-BJP and the ruling Congress- NCP is less than three per cent vote
during the recent Lok Sabha polls.
In the Lok Sabha polls, while the Sena-BJP led in 122 Assembly
segments, the Congress-NCP led in 128 Assembly segments. Against this
backdrop, the electoral battle is expected to be a close call.
The saffron camp feels that the Third Front factor could prove to be
the game-changer in Maharashtra. The Third Front, comprising of RPI,
Peasants and Workers Party (PWP), SP, JD(S) and the Left Front
accounts for at least 5 percent vote, which was earlier with the
Congress- NCP and it could make a dent in the ruling front vote base,
helping the Sena-BJP combine.
The strong presence of nearly 100 rebels of the Congress-NCP in the
fray is also expected to prove to be advantageous to the Sena-BJP. The
rebels and the Third Front would only cut into the Congress-NCP vote
base. The BJP feels that in Vidharbha, Marathwada and Northern
Maharashtra, which accounts for 160 of the 288 Assembly seats, it will
do well. While the Western Maharashtra (Pune, Satara, Sangli,
Kolhapur), accounting for 60 seats is the NCP stronghold, it is the
Mumbai-Thane region with 60 seats which will be the real battleground
Sid Harth
Support to MNS a 'passing phase', says Khurshid
STAFF WRITER 21:16 HRS IST
Mumbai, Oct 9 (PTI) Support to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) comes
from a section of people who represent the Shiv Sena kind of ideology
and it is merely a "passing phase", Union Minister and Congress leader
Salman Khurshid said today.
Asked at a press meet here about the sizeable votes garnered by the
Raj Thackeray-led party, especially in Mumbai, in the Lok Sabha poll,
he said some phenomena are difficult to explain in a hurry in a
democracy.
It is not easy to explain in a press conference as to why some forces
rise when they should not or why some good people lose an election, he
said.
"There is always a preferential confusion to which Mumbai is no
exception. A certain section of society is programmed to think in the
Shiv Sena ideology.
bademiyansubhanallah
UPA's 10 Most Powerful People
TOI Crest 10 October 2009, 11:06am IST
Power lists are always a contentious affair. Rating the country's
finest sportspersons, richest businessmen or blockbuster filmstars is
relatively easy. But, as with beauty, measuring power is a minefield
of subjectivity. And when it comes to a power list of politicians and
bureaucrats, it can get really slippery. There are those who love to
flaunt the trappings even when they lack the real thing, and those who
control the levers while staying in the shadows.
TOI Crest canvassed a cross-section of people whose business takes
them tramping through New Delhi's corridors of power:
parliamentarians, both of the UPA and the Opposition, senior
bureaucrats, business tycoons and lobbyists. After considerable
sifting and filtering, a list emerged. We deliberately excluded the
troika of Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi - to name them
is to state the obvious. And although Pranab Mukherjee's place in the
pecking order of influence was also a given, we've kept him in.
And the Ten Most Powerful People in this UPA regime (in alphabetical
order) are: Ahmed Patel, A K Antony, Anand Sharma, Digvijay Singh,
Jairam Ramesh, Mamata Banerjee, M K Narayanan, P Chidambaram, Pranab
Mukherjee and T K A Nair.
Since a complete consensus on such a list is impossible to hope for -
already we can hear accusations of omission and commission - we use in
our defence the wisdom handed down by the American judge, Potter
Stewart. When asked to define pornography, Judge Stewart said that it
was hard to define, but "I know it when I see it." With power too, you
know it when you feel it.
THE GO-TO GUY
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee
In 1980, Pranab Mukherjee disregarded Indira Gandhi's advice and
fought an election from West Bengal. He lost. He was readying for the
wilderness when something happened. On the way to Rashtrapati Bhavan
for the swearing-in of her new cabinet, Mrs Gandhi asked her private
secretary R K Dhawan for the list of ministers for one last check. She
turned on Dhawan - Why isn't his name here? - and promptly added
'Pranab Mukherjee' in her own writing. The story tells you a great
deal about the man's indispensability. Sharp as a stick, and blessed
with a photographic memory for facts and figures, the workaholic
minister wears out officers much younger than him. Up every morning
before six o'clock , he's on the treadmill that his son bought him, in
sweatshirt, tracks and sneakers for an hour (he used to walk at
Talkatora stadium until he was advised not to for security reasons).
The workout is followed by two hours of puja complete with Sanskrit
shlokas. At 9.30 am sharp he's at North Block. He works through the
next 12 hours, with just 60 minutes of shut-eye in his ante-chamber in
the afternoon. Back home, he meets people at the office attached to
his 13 Talkatora residence: Congress and CPM workers from West Bengal,
Mamata Banerjee, Amar Singh (when the Samajwadi Party boss was in
better health), the warring brothers of a business empire. From 11 pm
until midnight, he buries himself, eagerly, in his files. At Cabinet
meetings, he is easily one of the best prepared in the room.
At 74, Pranab babu brings not just political wisdom but much-needed
ballast to the UPA government. He is trouble-shooter-in-chief,
repository of institutional memory, respected strategist, and for all
practical purposes, the No. 2 man after Manmohan. At the end of almost
every Cabinet meeting, the PM turns to Mukherjee for his views. He was
the constant and credible face of New Delhi - and indeed India - in
the hard days and weeks following the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. He headed
the government when the PM was recuperating from heart surgery. In
short, he is a minister for all seasons and all reasons. He can be as
watchful as a tiger in the political undergrowth, both persuasive and
stern while handling tricky situations, and capable of hammering out a
consensus when none seems possible. Equally, he doesn't suffer fools
gladly and is known to lose his patience easily - Mamata , who holds
him in high regard, is believed to have once complained, "Even my
parents didn't scold me as much as you do. You do it on the phone and
in front of the entire Cabinet."
His detractors never let anyone forget that Pranab once deserted the
party and floated a splinter Congress. Or, that for a brief moment, he
seemed interested in succeeding Indira Gandhi. That he was overlooked
as a presidential nominee last time testifies to the strength of the
campaign against him. It didn't help that the Left, at that time in
the UPA tent, was keen to have him as President.
And yet, it is a measure of his importance that after the last Lok
Sabha election, Sonia Gandhi ensured that Pranab was given finance
even though Manmohan may have preferred Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
If there's one thing Mukherjee has not forgotten, it is that he was
virtually No. 2 to a person of Indira Gandhi's stature. For a man who
delights more in history and philosophy than in modern technology (he
still can't send an SMS), it's these things that memories are made
of.
HOME GUARD
Home Minister P Chidambaram
There was never much doubt about P Chidambaram's efficiency or
intelligence. But he still manages to impress with the sheer
versatility of his range. As finance minister, he delivered more than
one dream budget - the Rs 60,000 farmer loan waiver last year was a
huge vote mop - and cut quite a dash at Davos. As home minister, he is
said to have licked North Block into shape, with a handpicked bunch of
young officers who are not just capable, but his eyes and ears as
well. His diplomatic and legal skills have proved enormously useful in
his 26/11 dossier offensive against Pakistan. Old ministry hands say
there's a stark - and welcome - contrast from the time of his
predecessor, Shivraj Patil.
Chidambaram was drafted into government by a Rajiv Gandhi eager to
induct a new crop of professionals to break the stranglehold of old
"power-brokers" on the party. Born into the upper crust of Chettinad ,
the dapper, articulate lawyer with an MBA from Harvard Business School
slotted in perfectly. Several assignments and a rich haul of
experience later, the 64-year-old minister has earned his spurs as a
deft trouble-shooter after his handling of the food-for-oil scam which
splattered Natwar Singh, then foreign minister, as an alleged
beneficiary of Saddam Hussain's largesse. The oil slick threatened to
spread to the Congress, but Chidamabarm marshalled the resources
available to the economic investigative agencies to build a fool-proof
case for the leadership.
He is not quite a Pranab Mukherjee - or at least not yet. But like
Pranab, he comes to Cabinet meetings well prepared. Ever the master of
minutiae, he worries over every sub-clause in a legislation. As home
minister, he has cracked heads together to break down the walls that
separate intelligence agencies. Does this palpably bright politician
have any shortcomings? Perhaps, if you agree with those who say he's a
little too aware of his brightness.
RUNAWAY TRAIN
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee
Impulsive, impossible - but to her legion of followers in West Bengal,
inspirational. That's 54-year-old Mamata Banerjee - one of the
mavericks of Indian politics, and remarkably enough, for all her
whimsical ways, the future leader of "intellectual" West Bengal. The
dichotomy is resolved if you see her for the person she is - upfront
to the point of being in your face, without lipstick or foundation or
a trace of guile. What you see is what you get, which makes the little
firebrand endearing, never mind the warts.
That's probably why both Sonia Gandhi and the tetchy Pranab Mukherjee
have put up with her tantrums - although she has driven them well past
the point of exasperation. She is treated more like a reckless and
irresponsible sister, a well-intentioned bull in a china shop. Mamata
speaks her mind - often in a torrent of half-swallowed words. When the
Relief & Rehabilitation Bill was being finalised by the Cabinet, she
demanded that the government should have no role whatsoever in
acquiring land for the private sector. She almost huffed out of the
room, until the PM himself coaxed her back from the door. Only last
week, she was on the phone to Pranabda , bitterly complaining about
the Congress "betrayal" in Siliguri for teaming up with the CPM in the
mayor's election against the Trinamool nominee.
Mamata holds the veto in UPA-2. She can nix an economic reform or a
disinvestment proposal if she has strong reservations. And when it
comes to Sonia Gandhi, Mamata doesn't believe in intermediaries. In
the run-up to the recent assembly bypolls in Bengal, she went directly
to Sonia and scotched the local Congress' hopes of contesting even a
single seat. Clearly, Congress sees her as the best bet to uproot the
Left from West Bengal after 35 long years. Many are praying that she
succeeds in realising her chief ministerial ambitions and moves to
Kolkata, which is where she really wants to be.
WILD CARD
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh
Guess who powered the free trade agreement (FTA) with Asean countries?
Jairam Ramesh. Well, there's some exaggeration in this, but only a
bit. What actually happened was that when several ministers from the
south opposed the FTA at the cabinet, Manmohan Singh, who was
committed to it, was at a loss. He finally turned to Jairam. The
environment minister, who was the junior commerce minister in UPA-1,
not only made a robust pitch for the FTA, but also suggested the
mechanism for assessing its impact and that helped the PM carry the
day.
That day his colleagues, often given to dismissing Jairam as a mere
wordsmith, were forced to sit up and acknowledge that he was also a
man of substance. But the Gandhi family has always taken the 55-
yearold Jairam, with his impressive educational background (an IIT
engineer who went on to Carnegie Mellon and MIT) more seriously. It
would be a mistake to measure his importance only by the relatively
"unimportant" portfolios he has held - apart from commerce, he was the
junior minister in power. His current portfolio, environment, is
crucial to the government because of the global heat around climate
change and the attempts by rich countries to force India and China to
accept emission caps that could slow the pace of development.
Beyond ministries, Jairam has many uses - one of them is being a key
associate of Rahul Gandhi. Jairam is not just a policy wonk, he's an
implementer who can blend policy making with political compulsions. He
was one of the key people behind the winning aam admi Congress
campaign of 2004. His inputs are sought for the speeches of both Sonia
Gandhi and Rahul. His proximity to Rahul Gandhi is a source of endless
discussion among Congressmen. As environment minister, Jairam enjoys
virtual autonomy and is not scared to tread on the toes of other
ministries, or even occasionally, the PMO. For instance, he has
opposed the civil aviation ministry's site for a second airport in
Mumbai. In its latest power list, the British weekly New Statesman put
Ramesh ahead of Sonia Gandhi, calling him the "Green Giant". That, of
course, was a case of irrational exuberance. The climate hasn't
changed all that much.
TRADE GUIDE
Commerce Minister Anand Sharma
When Anand Sharma was named a Cabinet minister in UPA-2 , jaws hit the
floor. How had a political lightweight acheived this? When he was
given the plum portfolio of commerce and industry, disbelief turned to
shock. But then only those with a weak political antenna were taken by
surprise. The signs of Sharma's rise had been there for some time. For
instance, when a new CBI boss was to be appointed last year, most
people thought the job would go to M L Sharma. In fact, Sharma was
being congratulated on his impending elevation. But at the last
minute, Ashwini Kumar pipped him to the post. When power brokers made
their inquiries, they discovered that Anand Sharma's push had got
Kumar the job. Anyone who could swing such a politically sensitive
appointment, they correctly reckoned, could not be a lightweight.
Quietly, the number of visitors to his door swelled. Today, Sharma has
a very serious assignment - to navigate India through the choppy
waters of WTO. What's the secret of the rise and rise of this 56-year-
old Rajya Sabha member from Himachal Pradesh? What's helped him stay a
member of the all-important Congress durbar for so many years? His
success can be traced to his youth politics - his being Youth Congress
chief when Rajiv Gandhi was party supremo. The link has endured. His
interest in foreign policy, and his championing of the anti-apartheid
cause for the party, brought him close to Rajiv.
When he joined the foreign ministry as a minister of state in UPA-1 ,
it seemed only natural that he should escort Sonia Gandhi on her
maiden visit to China. He marked his arrival as party spokesman,
skillfully amplifying the aam admi message. When required, he displays
a pugnacious relish for scoring partisan points. Anand Sharma has, for
all practical purposes, sidelined the veteran Virbhadra Singh as the
future Congress face in Himachal. Watch out - his climb is by no means
over.
THE INSIDER
Political Secretary To Congress President Ahmed Patel
He is the ultimate insider - unswervingly loyal and ever alert to the
dangers of the spotlight. He sleeps four hours a day - between 2 am
and 6 am - and when he does, he probably dreams of politics. He gives
honest advice when it is solicited and is nothing if not discreet.
Knife-sharp, he is an astute judge of people and situations, carries
complicated messages and delivers them to the right people with the
right nuance. No wonder then, that the 60-year-old Ahmed Patel is
widely regarded as the most influential person in UPA-2 after Sonia
Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.
Patel's official designation is innocuous - political secretary to the
Congress president. It's said that since R K Dhawan, no secretary to
the Congress boss has wielded as much power. Some say his reach is
greater than even Dhawan's was. Patel's chief skill is his ability to
melt into the shadows. From there, he assesses competing scenarios,
takes decisions in consultation with his bosses, but cleverly leaves
the execution to someone else.
That Patel - handpicked by Rajiv Gandhi to be his parliamentary
secretary and Congress general secretary - derives his power from
Sonia's faith in him is a no-brainer. Party circles are certain that
Sonia runs almost all her important decisions by him. What has
strengthened the equation is that Ahmedbhai never betrays a secret or
the power that comes with such knowledge. His engaged detachment
prevents him from acquiring biases and hobby horses. For all his self-
effacement, though, he can be quite touchy.
Patel's came into politics through the taluka, but rose quickly to
enter the Lok Sabha in 1977 at the
age of 27. He must have had favourites and foes in Gujarat, but few
know who they are. His popularity with the cadre was indicated by the
huge margins he posted in the elections to the Congress Working
Committee in 1992 and 1997. In the years ahead, it will be interesting
to see how his equation with Rahul evolves and whether the bond of
trust will hold.
HIS MADAM'S VOICE
Defence Minister A K Antony
Everyone in the Congress knows Antonyji is important. But only Cabinet
members know how important. Ironically, for someone who gained
national prominence by defying Indira Gandhi in the Emergency, the 69-
year-old minister is now known to be terminally loyal to the High
Command. He rarely speaks at Cabinet meetings, but when he does - in
his understated style - everyone listens. He is his master's voice,
and to defer is wise. So, when he sounds downbeat about a proposal,
people quickly lose enthusiasm for it.
Born to a Syro Malabar Catholic family in Alappuzha district of
Kerala, Antony was nicknamed Thankachan, which means "the golden boy".
A devout atheist, Antony's reputation has been hewed in gold - his
hypochondriacal honesty in a system coated with slush, sets him apart
from the rest of the pack. In the political marketplace such probity
is seen to be of little "use" but people still flock to St Antony
because he has a hotline to Madam.
If he has one drawback, it's the glacial speed at which he takes
decisions on crucial issues such as defence purchases - generals and
admirals say he's so obsessed with avoiding any hint of taint that he
prefers to sit on his hands for as long as possible.
STEEL MAGNOLIA
Digvijay Singh, Congress General Secretary
Digvijay Singh is a quiet charmer. With his canny political sense,
feel for the grassroots, clear articulation - both in English and
Hindi - and winning smile, this former Rajput royal from the
principality of Raghogarh in Madhya Pradesh's Guna district, has
clawed his way back from political ground zero. He seemed to be down
and out after the 2003 drubbing when the Congress, under his
leadership, was reduced to 37 seats in an assembly of 230 in MP, but
has re-emerged as one of the key political generals of UPA-2.
Digvijay Singh often humorously refers to himself as a member of the
"duffer group" - as opposed to the "core group" of party notables. But
this self-deprecation only underlines his growing confidence. It
started growing when, as party general secretary, he was given charge
of Uttar Pradesh, the first family's home turf, where the party had
been reduced to a rump. Diggy Raja (as he's called) sensed scion
Rahul's instinct as well as his impatience with playing second fiddle
in this crucial state and took an aggressive stance towards seat
sharing with Samajwadi Party in the Lok Sabha polls. To show the
Congress wasn't bluffing, Diggy Raja urged the party to go solo. And
the gambit paid off big time when Congress won 20 seats.
The 62-year-old Digvijay Singh, say insiders, has hit it off well with
Rahul, and is often referred to as Gandhi Junior's political adviser.
The young leader believes, and Digvijay agrees, that there should be a
bold approach to the party's revival in areas where it has lost
influence. It's significant that Singh pushed for tough bargaining
with the NCP in Maharashtra, and if necessary, even an ekla-cholo
approach. While that has not happened, Digvijay has been asked to
manage the polls in the state and coordinate with the NCP. This
assignment is viewed by the allies as the arrival of the political
assassin with a sweet smile.
THE HAWK
M K Narayanan, National Security Advisor
When Mayankote Kelath Narayanan took over as National Security Adviser
(NSA) three weeks after J N Dixit's death in January 2005, many policy
pundits shook their heads in disbelief. This was not a job for spooks,
they said, only those with hands-on foreign policy experience (like
Dixit and his predecessor Brajesh Mishra) could truly appreciate the
intricacies of world politics and the myriad threat perceptions
emerging from an imperfect world. Mike - as Narayanan is called by
some friends - may be a great officer, they said, but his exposure was
limited to the Intelligence Bureau.
The spook proved the sceptics wrong by pursuing the nuclear deal with
the US, and helping fetch the UPA its biggest foreign-policy trophy.
Things haven't been easy for the 75-year-old former IB chief. As NSA,
he got flak after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, but once the then home
minister Shivraj Patil was axed at the altar of "accountability",
Narayanan lived to see another day. His supporters say the security
mess wasn't of his making. In fact, he's one person who in meeting
after meeting spoke of the rising jihadi threat. But then in India,
it's customary to take note of things only when they begin to hurt.
Narayanan not only has daily and direct access to the PM, but he also
enjoys Singh's confidence, mainly because of his role in bringing the
nuclear deal to fruition. As chief of the IB under Rajiv Gandhi, he
was a favourite at 10, Janpath - and the reason why he joined the
government in the first place. While the old links remain, his
importance now is largely because of his equation with the PM.
Narayanan is required to attend daily security briefings convened by
home minister Chidambaram, but he leads the discussions in the
minister's absence. His interventions during Cabinet meetings are
heard with attention.
GATE KEEPER
T K A Nair, Principal Secretary to PM
A small, bird-like man, his non-threatening demeanour hides a
cautious, calculating mind. Running the PMO in a coalition as
disparate as UPA-1 was not easy and Nair would often be called in to
handle allies. He did so with consummate professionalism. Nair has to
deal with fewer tantrums now, but his role remains just as crucial. As
principal secretary to the PM, this former Punjab cadre IAS officer
enjoys the absolute trust of his boss and serves as the link between
government and the Congress leadership, ensuring swift action on
issues of party interest.
Nair, 70, is not flamboyant like some big babus of the PMO have been
in the past. But he's better than many of them when it comes to
delivering results, often rolling up his sleeves and getting into the
micro-management of things. When the PM is on an overseas tour, and
every important sarkari functionary is out with him, Nair often stays
home to hold the fort. He keeps a low profile, leaving the more
outgoing NSA to deal with the press.
But make no mistake - Nair is neither compliant nor weak. Given his
job, Nair controls access to the PM. He commands the confidence of PMO
officials who see him as a fair and efficient boss who runs a tight
ship. His eye for spotting trouble is well known as he carefully
steers potentially incendiary position papers out of harm's way. Out
of the limelight, Nair wields vast influence on policy making and it
is not surprising that all manner of supplicants queue up for his
time. One of Nair's pet missions is to promote inter-service
camaraderie between the IAS, IPS and Indian Forest Service, especially
after the resentment caused by the sixth pay commission.
...and Iam Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
MNS sings in Urdu, Hindi and English too
Clara Lewis, TNN 10 October 2009, 10:39am IST
MUMBAI: Raj Thackeray's MNS seems to have suddenly discovered the
virtues of multi-culturalism as it campaigns for votes for an election
that may well determine its future.
Thackeray himself may refuse to speak any language other than Marathi
but his hand-picked candidates do not seem to be so confident of
winning seats in Mumbai's melting pot only on the strength of Marathi.
The city's rainbow population has forced MNS candidates to print
pamphlets in Gujarati and - hold your breath - Hindi, Urdu and
English.
Arvind Gawde is one such MNS candidate. Gawde, who is contesting from
cosmopolitan Colaba, has printed handbills in English, Hindi and
Gujarati. Gawde maintains Marathi "asmita'' must be preserved but
admits, a little sheepishly, that the people in his locality should
also know who he is and what he stands for. "There are around 40,000
Gujaratis, 30,000 North Indians, 29,000 Muslims and 70,000 Marathi-
speaking people in my constituency. These people have stayed here for
years,'' the MNS candidate said, almost echoing the logic that people
often use to counter Thackeray's Marathi-only-in-Mumbai agenda.
"These handbills are simply dropped into people's homes. They should
at least know which party I am standing from and, therefore, I have
printed a four-page consolidated handbill in English, Hindi, Marathi
and Gujarati,'' he said.
Gawde does not forget to remind you that he conducted Marathi-speaking
classes in Colaba and Bhendi Bazaar for three months when the MNS
started the Mumbai-for-Marathi agitation. But he also adds that the
response was poor.
Rajan Raje, who is fighting the election from Thane Assembly
constituency, is another MNS candidate who is using his leader's pet
hate, Hindi, in handbills. Forty per cent of the voters in this
constituency are non-Marathi.
And the party's candidates from Dahisar and Magathane, Deepa Patil and
Pravin Darekar, respectively, have followed this example, issuing
pamphlets in Hindi because of the huge North Indian community in their
constituencies.
Darekar, in fact, justified wooing North Indians: "They form a part of
my constituency and are convinced and say they are willing to support
us when I approach them and explain our party's stand,'' he said.
Shirish Parkar candidate from Vile Parle unlike his leader does not
shy from talking to his voters in Hindi.
Notwithstanding its vitriolic agitation against north-Indians, the MNS
has in the past taken up their cause. Following the death of a taxi-
driver working with MERU cabs, the MNS led the agitation for
compensation to be given to his widowed wife.
Nitin Sardesai, spokesperson for the MNS said his party was for
Marathi, Maharashtrians and sons of the soil. "But at the same time we
are not against any language. Raj has always maintained that we are
not against those who have lived in the city for generations, and
respect Marathi culture. Our candidates printing handbills in other
languages is keeping in line with our stand,'' said Sardesai.
bademiyansubhanallah
63 crorepatis in Arunachal poll fray
TNN 8 October 2009, 10:34pm IST
ITANAGAR: The poll field in Arunachal Pradesh could be one of the
richest in the country. Of the 154 contestants for the October-13
Assembly elections in this landlocked frontier state, 63 are
crorepatis. Topping the chart is Lok Sabha member Takam Sanjay's
brother, whose declared assets are worth about Rs 209 crore.
According to poll affidavits of candidates analyzed by National
Election Watch (NEW) and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), two
citizen action groups working for poll reforms, Tagar, who is
contesting from the Palin constituency on a People's Party of
Arunachal (PPA) ticket, is also one of the youngest among the aspiring
lot at 34. He has, however, studied only up to Class X. The survey
found that his business firm, M/S Reniya Enterprises, has a turnover
of Rs 158 crore at the moment.
Former Rajya Sabha member Nabam Rebia and Congress nominee for the
Doimukh Assembly seat is second in the crorepati list with assets
worth over Rs 24 crore, closely followed by incumbent chief minister
Dorjee Khandu (Rs 22 crore-plus).
Ex-minister Lechi Legi, who contested on a Congress ticket last time
but lost to BJP's Kipa Babu from Itanagar, is in the fourth position
with assets worth a little less than Khandu but also over Rs 22 crore.
This time, he has swapped parties with Babu. Gojen Gadi of Congress,
re-contesting from Basar, complete the Top-Five chart with his Rs 19
crore-plus movable and immovable property.
To put it in a descending order, those in the Top Ten list are Chowna
Mein and Kameng Dolo of Congress (both Rs 18 crore-plus), Nang Sati
Mein (Independent) at Rs 14 crore, James Techi Tara (NCP) at Rs 13
crore and Wangman Lowangcha commanding assets worth Rs 12 crore.
Poll debutante Tara, who hails from Papum Pare but later settled down
in Lohit, is pitted against sitting MLA Chowna Mein (Congress) and
three others. Missing a slot in the Top-Ten list by a whisker is Likha
Saaya, the youth face of Congress, with his assets worth Rs 9.6
crore.
In the last Assembly elections, former chief minister Gegong Apang was
the richest candidate with his Rs 9 crore-plus assets. But in the last
five years, he has only gone poorer. According to the survey, his
assets are worth Rs 7 crore and he managed to clinch the 14th
position.
Like Apang, education minister Tatar Kipa, PWD minister Nabam Tuki and
parliamentary secretary Takam Sorang were in the list of Top Five
crorepatis in the last polls, but have gone down the chart this time.
Tuki, with his Rs 6 crore-plus assets, finished 16th in the list,
while Kipa stood 22nd (Rs 3 crore-plus). Sorang, with only a plot of
land at ESS Sector Itanagar worth Rs 2.5 lakh, is not even in the Top
Hundred list.
Interestingly, most parties seem to have favoured crorepatis while
giving them tickets to contest the polls. While Congress gave tickets
to 37 crorepatis, NCP chose eight and Trinamool Congress seven. PPA
has four crorepatis in its list of 11 contestants, BJP has six of its
18 nominees and of the three Independents, one is a crorepati. JD(U),
which has fielded three candidates, is the only party that does not
have a single crorepati in its fold.
bademiyansubhanallah
UPA's other knights at the round table
TOI Crest 10 October 2009, 11:04am IST
The debonair Montek Singh Ahluwalia has become something of a fixture
on Raisina Hill. During his days at the finance ministry, he was often
spotted strolling across the road between the North and South blocks.
Today, he sits a little distance away at Yojana Bhavan but wields much
more power than he did as a bureaucrat. That's because of his
proximity to the PM.
Those privy to the Singh-Singh relationship say that for Manmohan,
Montek is the son he never had. Trust and affection run deep, a bond
shared by the PM's wife, Gursharan Kaur. If Manmohan Singh were to
believe in a coterie, Montek would have been its leading light.
Despite all this, Montek is not seen as a power player. This has to do
both with his personality as well as his style of working. His
capabilities are recognised but there's always that niggling feeling
that the Planning Commission deputy chairman is a bit short on
pragmatism . "Good on theory, weak in practicals" is the pithy
assessment. The widely held view in the Congress is that Montek is too
much of textbook person and adrift of the party's political
priorities. Yet, his access to the PM makes him a much sought-after
VIP.
If Congress has stymied Montek's mobility, the party's backing -
particularly Rahul Gandhi's - is the chief reason for the remarkable
ascent of C P Joshi. He lost the assembly polls by one vote but that
did not derail him. As a matter of fact, the loss was more than
compensated for when, after winning the Lok Sabha polls, he was not
just brought into the Cabinet but given charge of rural development -
a portfolio that is valued (a) because of its huge budgetary
allocation (b) because it holds the key to Congress's aspiration to
have a majority of its own on the back of aam aadmi support, and (c)
because it's close to Rahul's heart. Joshi's organisation-building
abilities hold the chief of the Rajasthan unit of Congress in good
stead. But what hinders the former lecturer of psychology is his
volatile temperament. Simply put, Joshi has a knack for rubbing people
up the wrong way. His jousts with the Opposition have been aggressive
enough to embarrass a leadership which itself does not believe in
giving any quarter. He will have to learn to tread cautiously in New
Delhi - a stage which favours discretion over bravado.
DMK chief M Karunanidhi remains crucial, but has lost some of the heft
he had under UPA-1 , both because of his dependence on the Congress in
Chennai and because Sonia's improved tally buffers her against the
tantrums of regional bosses. It's the same for Sharad Pawar. Indeed,
the erosion of the Maharashtra politician's base is glaringly obvious
because of the mismatch between his feverish projection as potential
prime minister and the single digit Lok Sabha tally of his NCP.
Within Congress, Kamal Nath is out of the ‘A’ List for now because of
his shift from the commerce ministry. But those who know the man know
that he can bounce back. The fact that he heads the ministry of road
transport and highways - a hot button for both the PM and Congress
leadership - can be an invaluable opportunity for a man who values his
"performer" tag.
In contrast, Prithiviraj Chavan, the MOS in the PMO, remains on the
favoured list. His being in charge of the politically sensitive
department of personnel is proof enough that he is trusted by the
Congress leadership. And while he is a full-scale minister of the
Cabinet, his perch affords him a seat at the high table and makes him
privy to very important information.
Delhi is an arena where even the mightiest politician has to reckon
with the wily set - the "permanent government". In fact, even in this
age of empowerment, many babus are supposed to be more powerful than
those to whom they report. The smarter politicians see this. Those who
don't get "house trained" without even realising it. Cabinet Secretary
K M Chandrashekhar, with his ability to work officialdom, heads the
power pack which includes home secretary G K Pillai, finance
secretary, Ashok Chawla and commerce secretary Rahul Khullar. Then,
there are others like urban development secretary M Ramachandran, Trai
chairman J S Sarma and special secretary in the ministry of petroleum
S Sundareshan who add lustre to their designations.
Attorney general Ghoolam Vahanvati and solicitor general Gopal
Subramaniam make it to the list because of their position and legal
skills. Rajeev Mathur, director of Intelligence Bureau, has won
admiration for grasping his brief quickly. The intelligence operative
who has earned the admiration of his international peers is also
appreciated in the PMO.
bademiyansubhanallah
UPA netas board economy, fly luxury
TNN 9 October 2009, 01:40am IST
NEW DELHI: Pilots of the erstwhile Indian Airlines have blown the lid
off the UPA's ongoing austerity drive which has seen ministers and MPs
making a proud show of flying economy. In a letter to the airline
management, they alleged that ``some'' ministers and MPs insisted on
an upgrade — that is seats in business class — after boarding the
aircraft on economy tickets.
Some VVIPs, the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA)
complained, even ``forcibly occupy seats in J (business) class''.
The airline, on its part, maintained that it had not come across any
such case. ``The ICPA has not cited any specific example. So the
question of taking action for something that has not happened so far
does not arise,'' said an airline spokesperson. Officials of several
airlines, however, agreed that despite the austerity drive, not many
VVIPs were comfortable flying economy class.
Steering clear of the austerity issue, the ICPA only requested airline
CMD Arvind Jadhav not to take disciplinary action against pilots by
holding them responsible for the upgrade ``if some person in power
upgraded him/herself on their own''.
After taking over, Jadhav has come down heavily on the earlier common
practice of upgrades in the Air India-Indian Airlines combine. Only
very senior level employees can travel business class and even for
other well-connected people, the economy ticket has to be of a certain
minimum fare level to be considered for upgrade.
``Many private airlines have instructions fed into their systems to
give upgrades automatically, subject to availability, to certain
powerful names from the political and bureaucratic spectrum. The
austerity drive has mainly meant loss of revenue for us as when
certain VVIPs are checked-in, we do insist on upgrading them.
Sometimes they don't accept the offer and sometimes they do. But they
all want to know if some senior party leader or UPA functionary is on
that flight before accepting the upgrade,'' said an airport official
of a private airline.
Being a government airline, IA airport staff may not be under the same
stress as their private counterparts to automatically upgrade the big
names holding economy tickets — possibly, leaving VVIPs to use their
clout on board the aircraft to seek upgrades.
``Since they are in positions of power, our commercial staff and cabin
crew are helpless as any resistance (to forcible upgrades) will lead
to an awkward situation... So, at times, keeping in mind on-time
performance and to avoid agitation of mind, we have to turn a blind
eye to (this) problem,'' said the letter written by ICPA general
secretary R S Otaal on Wednesday.
Worldwide, it is customary for airlines to upgrade commercially
important persons (CIPs) or even common fliers inconvenienced by the
airline in any way. However, the desi VIP culture has meant that
airlines have made a habit of upgrading netas and babus.
bademiyansubhanallah
Flush with slush: On the money trail
TNN 10 October 2009, 11:19am IST
Indians love the extremities of Switzerland: Bollywood romances its
snowy mountain peaks and businessmen can't go deep enough into its
bottomless bank vaults.
The Swiss Numbered Bank Account - say it with a smirk and a shush -
has long united the old seths and the nouveau riche. Businessmen,
royals, politicians and underworld dons have steadily salted away
their 'No 2 money' in such accounts , far from taxman (and wife). Some
of this money flowed from crime, corruption and underhand business:
Drugs, gun-running , protection rackets, bribes, kickbacks, over-
invoicing , diversion of funds, 'round tripping' . The rest was more
dodgy than dirty: Tax rates during Indira Gandhi's socialist raj were
so bone-crushingly heavy and foreign exchange limits so laughably low
that the incentive to salt away money abroad was strong. Plus, Zurich
was so safe and silent, and there was no danger of footprints in the
snow. It became a running joke. Even when the not-so-rich travelled to
Switzerland, a friend would affectionately mock, "Money's safe? What's
your bank balance like now?"
Swiss bankers began to unbend only after the horror of 9/11, when
presented with evidence of terror finance being routed through their
safes. And after the global meltdown of September 2008, governments
the world over were less inclined to wink at these lockers of loot.
Neck deep in debt on the one hand and bleeding billions to bail out
wobbly banks and businesses, the US brought its boot down on tax
evaders. A number of European countries such as the UK and Germany
followed suit, prosecuting Swiss banks for sheltering tax criminals
and even arresting senior bankers in their countries. The banks got so
rattled that they advised their senior management to avoid overseas
travel.
Finally, they began to respond to specific proof of moneylaundering
and other criminal actions, but were clear that "fishing
expeditions" (roving investigations) would be sternly rebuffed.
Pressure has continued to mount since the G-20 meeting in London,
where the finance ministers of developing and developed countries
decided on concerted measures to crack down on tax havens. For it
wasn't only Switzerland that was being hunted.
Over the years, slush banking has moved (as has Bollywood) from this
charming Alpine country to newer pastures such as the Caribbean
islands (Cayman, Bahamas, Panama), tiny Liechtenstein and Luxembourg
in Europe, Dubai and the Maldives.
Every few years, there was loud talk in India of repatriating this
legendary, quick-growing black wealth either by forcing banks to
disclose the names of their Indian clients (fat chance) or by
announcing an amnesty scheme (slim chance). Cynics discount all such
noises with a standard response: "A lot of it belongs to Indian
politicians or businessmen fronting for politicians . They're not
going to open a can of worms." In the campaign heat of the 2009
general election, the BJP's candidate for prime minister, L K Advani,
vowed to pry open the accounts of Indian citizens if voted in. The
Bofors ghost - Rs 64 crore in kickbacks allegedly hidden in a Swiss
bank - was exhumed again, with Advani demanding that Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh come clean on the issue. On the back foot, the PM later
said he had already started action on getting back black money.
Switzerland, of course, promptly snubbed India's initial appeals for
cooperation.
In recent weeks, New Delhi has once again started to pressure the
Swiss authorities to share information on Indians with numbered
accounts. The finance ministry is said to have sent over 20 letters to
the Swiss, and a team of officials will visit Switzerland in the
coming weeks- but there's little hope of the Swiss breaking the
omerta, the sacred code of silence . There are indications, though,
that the Swiss might offer to pay a small "tax" on black money that
flowed from India into secret accounts - as compensation for the tax
that should have been paid in India but was evaded.
What has given Indian efforts an element of urgency are charges that
Pune-based businessman Hasan Ali Khan transacted $8 billion (almost Rs
40,000 crore) from his wife's Swiss bank account, as well as a public
interest litigation by renowned lawyer and political gadfly Ram
Jethmalani alleging that a mind-numbing Rs 70 lakh crore of Indian
money is in banks abroad and no serious effort is being done to get it
back.
Last week, solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam told a Supreme Court
bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan that the Centre would
seek to amend the double taxation avoidance treaty (DTAA) with
Switzerland and incorporate a disclosure clause forcing Swiss banks to
share information about Indians suspected of parking illegal money in
numbered accounts. The solicitor general also told the SC that the
Centre might invoke the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against
Hasan Ali and his banks. The chairman of the Central Board of Direct
Taxes, S S Moorthy, told TOI, "This December, we will begin the first
round of talks on amending the DTAA in respect of exchange of
information."
Transparency International's India chairman , Admiral R H Tahiliyani
said, "Before seeking revision of any tax treaty, the government
should ratify the UN convention on corruption. Once that's done, it
will make it obligatory for other signatory countries to share
information on tax evaders and their black money."
bademiyansubhanallah
What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Rebellion is the flavour of the season. None, be it the NCP-Congress
front or the Sena-BJP alliance, has been able to prevent the
disgruntled ticket aspirants from raising the banner of revolt. The
Congress has identified 40 to 50 rebels in the state who could do
serious damage to the Democratic Front alliance.
Resident Editor, The Times of India, Pune
P.S. You may also SMS or e-mail your views. Mail us on
mytimes...@timesgroup.com with ‘Rebel’ mentioned in the subject
line. To SMS, type MTMV, leave a space, type ‘REBEL’, leave a space,
type your comments and your name and sms to 58888. Charges applicable:
Rs 3 per SMS
Posted on Tuesday, September 29, 2009 6:26 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Religion(hinduism-caste system), inequality and injustice.
Posted by BR AMVAADEKAR @ 10/10/2009 10:26 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Lack of proper forums to voice complaints opinions and suggestions.
Allowing influential people and people in power to get away with
irresponsible actions.
Getting elected to pursue personal and selfish goals.
Delay in justice, Lack of enought opportunities.
Are all a few of the main reasons.
Posted by Petrolah @ 10/8/2009 4:00 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Economic imbalance, sex and labor exploitaion, atrocities on weaker
sections and ofcourse lack of will power in governance.
Posted by Prof. Ramesh Sinha, ND @ 10/8/2009 11:24 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uwOL4rB-go
Posted by This too funny @ 10/8/2009 1:47 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Rebellion?! The causes of rebellion could be many viz utter
dissaisfaction with personal or social circumstances. But sorry to say
although dissatisfactions abound, rebellion is a rare phenomenon in
India. It is not in the blood or genes of Indians otherwise we would
not have been ruled by Foreign Muslim rulers and then the British and
after that our own corrupt politicians. If an Indian can just pass
over an injured man on the road, normally go to work place without
initiating any protest against government's repeated failure to punish
the terrorists causing deaths & destructions in Mumbai & elsewhere,
not punish the politicians for failing to take any action against
those who insulted our Parliament and Red Fort, sit silent over not
hanging Afzal Guru, Nithari killings, wink at molestation & rape of
womenfolk just because they are not related to him THEN HOW CAN WE SAY
THAT INDIANS CAN ALSO REBEL LIKE THE CHINESE AND RUSSIANS ?? I believe
the Indians are a race of cowards and will remain as such !!!
Posted by Asim Kumar @ 10/7/2009 6:03 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Rebellion?! The causes of rebellion could be many viz utter
dissaisfaction with personal or social circumstances. But sorry to say
although dissatisfactions abound, rebellion is a rare phenomenon in
India. It is not in the blood or genes of Indians otherwise we would
not have been ruled by Foreign Muslim rulers and then the British and
after that our own corrupt politicians. If an Indian can just pass
over an injured man on the road, normally go to work place without
initiating any protest against government's repeated failure to punish
the terrorists causing deaths & destructions in Mumbai & elsewhere,
not punish the politicians for failing to take any action against
those who insulted our Parliament and Red Fort, sit silent over not
hanging Afzal Guru, Nithari killings, wink at molestation & rape of
womenfolk just because they are not related to him THEN HOW CAN WE SAY
THAT INDIANS CAN ALSO REBEL LIKE THE CHINESE AND RUSSIANS ?? I believe
the Indians are a race of cowards and will remain as such !!!
Posted by Asim Kumar @ 10/7/2009 6:00 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
When PT Usha cried today, it can be considered symbolic of total
corruption, castiesm, spineless governments ruling, and where there is
utter disregard for any decency. The utter chaos in CWG is shown when
PM has to intervene to get something working. Think of what aam admi
must undergo where it must be impossible to get something working.
Posted by CitizenIndia @ 10/6/2009 7:22 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
Because everyone want to be a leader with control and power. They do
not to share their public looting with anyone. what do you expect from
criminal, murderer,rapists and patty thives.
Posted by KRIS canada @ 10/6/2009 12:47 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
RAJ THACKREY THE BASTERED MAFIA OF BOMBAY,THE COWARD RAJ THACKREY
THINK OF HE IS SHIVAJI OF MAHARASHTRA,HE IS JUST COWARD DOG & BARKING
ONLY IN BOMBAY,IF HE HAS GHUTS TO GO CHINA BORDER WITH HIS SENA TO
FIGHT AGAINST CHINESE?EVEN HE CAN NOT GO OUT FROM BOMBAY WITHOUT
SECURTY? WAKE UP PEOPLES OF BOMBAY & KILLED HIM BEFORE HE BECOMES
ANOTHER PAPER TIGER BAL THACKREY?WHERE IS "DON DAWOOD IBRAHIM" ONE &
ONLY "DON DAWOOD IBRAHIM" CAN TEACH LESSONS TO RAJ THACKREY??? """MERA
INDIA MAHAN"""
Posted by GUL RAMANI @ 10/3/2009 5:17 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
The cause of rebellion of political parties is money and allurement
for some undue gains given to the rebels from the contending party(s).
This is done to damage the chances of the prospective candidate to
win. This strategy has proved to be very successful in bringing down
even the political big-wigs.
We, the electorate need to be more aware and conscientious to prevent
this game.
Posted by Pradeep Khan @ 10/2/2009 11:47 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
No commitment to country, only self-interest/greed/lust of pwer is
main aim of rebellion.
Posted by S C Vaid @ 10/1/2009 6:10 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
The cause of rebellion is lack of ideology, as also strong desire to
"serve the nation" to and make future generations of the netas' poor
enough to afford some minor luxuries in life, wield power to "serve
the aam admi."
Posted by Mohan Deshmukh @ 10/1/2009 3:12 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
THE REAL CAUSE OF REBELION IS THE COUNTRY BEING TAKEN FOR A RIDE BY
THE POLITICIANS AND NETAs LIKE SHARAD PAWAR AND MAYAWATI. THEY ARE
ONLY TWO EXAMPLES OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE REALLY THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE
PROBELMS OF INDIA. THEIR HUNGER FOR MONEY ARE POWER IS SO LARGE THAT
THEY DO NOT CONSIDER ANYTHING ELSE. WHILE THE PEOPLE ARE STARVING AND
STUGGLING TO MAKE THE ENDS MEET, THESE TWO LIVE HIGH ON THE HOG AND
MAKE FALSE PROMISES TO THE GULLIBLE PEOPLE. IT'S A SHAME THAT THESE
PEOPLE GET ELECTED AND RE-ELECTED AGAIN AND AGAIN!
Posted by NIRANJAN @ 10/1/2009 8:51 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
first of all in Cong-NCP, Sena-BJP both alliances delayed the list of
their nominees and another major cause is these parties are not
prefering new faces new social activists or workers as their
candidates. they are giving tickets to the people who are already
mla's for consecutive 4 to 5 times or more than that. its not good for
any party and those who are working since last 10 to 15 years waiting
for party nod are not getting tickets. and in frustration these people
are now in fray as rebel candidate of the respective parties. party
chief should monitor the ticket distribution and see that it is going
in proper way or right way.
Posted by sangeeta padalkar @ 10/1/2009 8:40 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
The revolt in a paqrty or united government is due to lack of
compromises and "give and take policy" of the ruling party.True
rebellion is due to stupid actions of a leader resulting in
disenchantment and disillsionment with suffering of masses.In a
democratic society if only the chief of the state or country takes
every thing t5here will be revolt.If the chief takes every thing at
the expense of even mere existence and ordinary conveniences from the
people then there will be a rebellion.
Posted by ssmoorthy @ 10/1/2009 3:28 AM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
The real cause for the rebellion is the greed and fear of politicians.
the rebels donot want to give up their seats as the status of being an
mla brings them lot of moolah. and they fear that if they are not an
mla then it will quickly eclipse them politically thereby losing the
lucrative field.
Posted by S. V. KAMATH @ 9/30/2009 7:24 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of rebellion?
The people who had worked from their School-days at the local levels,
namely grassroots,very often do not get any chance in the party
hierarchy.This may be due to favoritism,religious/ caste
considerations and I am told that even money matters! In such
situations, it is very hard to expect someone to show loyalty to the
so called high-commands!Revolting is perhaps the only way to express
one's feelings. Gone are the days of ideological politics!
Posted by Viswanath @ 9/30/2009 3:45 PM
# re: What, according to you, is the real cause of r
In Indian politics to revolt has become a fashion. For anything and
everything there are revolts from the party leaders and office
bearers. If election ticket is not given they revolt, if minister post
is not given they revolt and wherever there is no accommodation, we
can see people revolting.
The real cause for this is catching of power by becoming a minister or
some other post with authority.
This trend will weaken our democracy and it is not a healthy trend.
Whereever unnecessary revolts take place the party strength is
weakended. Those in authority should realise this in the interest of
our nation.
Posted by beegeeaar @ 9/29/2009 9:18 PM
bademiyansubhanallah
When Raj Thackeray is put on the couch
C P SURENDRAN4 October 2009, 12:34am IST
Karan Johar's, Wake Up, Sid, is being released at the wrong time. The
assembly polls are round the corner in Maharashtra. And, so, this
happens to be, more than anyone else's, Raj Thackeray's make or break
year. If Raj sends enough MLAs to the assembly, it will obviously work
to his advantage. If not, he is out for the count. Which is why he
picked on Johar in whose movie, characters refer to Mumbai as Bombay.
The Thackeray family, be it Balasaheb, Uddhav or Raj, have essentially
just one cracked plank to walk the chasm between victory and defeat:
the plank of Marathi Manoos. Local pride. Raj has always been quicker
to react to issues like Amitabh Bachchan's preferring UP to Mumbai for
opening a school, the alleged preponderance and prosperity of north
Indian construction workers in Mumbai, or the Johar controversy. But
Raj is the quicker of the Thackerays, not because he's sharper, but
also because he is more desperate.
Desperation is a sign of failed imagination. You think in terms of
resources, but not what you have, what you lack. When Raj Thackeray
formed the Maharashtra Nav Nirman Sena in 2006, one of the things he
harped on was the state's development. What he has done to harness his
party's energies in that direction is pretty much laughable. Contrast
this with the grassroots politics of, say, a Rahul Gandhi.
Raj's nightmare is that his apparently milder cousin Uddhav – and to a
lesser extent his aged uncle, Bal – might be the seen as the real
Marathi Manoos. Since most of us tend to be guided by our fears and
not by our courage, it is easy to see where Raj comes from. But fact
remians that for a young man, his politics is ancient.
It is passé to say that the politics of parochial pride pays no
dividends in a city that works to global dimensions. Johar is as
global a citizen of Mumbai as any but because his characters refer to
the city as Bombay, MNS is angered. Johar apologized to Raj with
remarkable alacrity. Sorry, Sorry. Sorry.
But the party is not happy. It now wants Johar to apologize to
"millions of Marathi Manoos at large." What, individually? It is not
clear. There are people like Raj all over the place. People whose
genius is to take offence. They expect you to say sorry before you say
good morning. Johar is likely to comply. Crores are at stake.
What Johar is really apologizing for is a state of mind that the city
once represented, at least for the middle class. As a label, Bombay,
had a more urbane association than Mumbai. It is not just the
anglicization of sound. It is a certain freedom of the mind, a feeling
that you don't have to refer to a city where you lived, worked and
died, by a name seared into your brain by politicians who care for not
much besides power. And no matter what you call the city, the lot of
the son of the soil hasn't changed much.
Raj wants his city referred to as Mumbai. He and his party are more
than free to do so. But if you, as an Indian, prefer to refer to a
part of the Union territory as the more nostalgic Bombay, surely you
are entitled to do that, election or not? Clearly not. All this proves
just one thing: This is a free country so long as you don't offend Raj
Thackeray. How sorry is that?
(The writer is a freelance journalist)
bademiyansubhanallah
Wake Up, Raj
Bachi Karkaria Wednesday October 07, 2009
Must politicians always do things just naam ke vastey? Will the
heavens fall, the lakes dry up, the reviled builder lobby concretise
the whole city, and every noble vada-pav turn into a villainous
Mcburger if a handful of film characters says 'Bombay' instead of
'Mumbai'? Does Maharashtra's pride stand or fall on a name?
Yes. Especially if it involves a Thackeray. That name, of course,
continues in its absurdly Anglicised form even as the father, son and
holier-than-thou nephew continue to make a career out of the
Marathification of everyone and his signboard.
It was scary to see Karan Johar grovelling before Raj Thackeray, not
because Karan is too superior to grovel, but because the city is.
Mumbai's self-anointed defenders should be fighting the real dragons
instead of tilting at the windmills. Chitre, Date, Quixote, all
Maharashtrians only, no?
And no, it's not only the election, stupid. The Mumbai-Bombay non-
issue is a handy headline grabber, pulled out every time that anyone
has the audacity to thus sully the honour of Marathi manoos. The
latter should object to being burdened with as trivial an insult.
Thackeray Bappa changed Bombay to Mumbai in 1997, but his nephew has
hijacked this agenda along with all things Balasahebesque. In any
case, he always saw himself as the true inheritor of his uncle's
mantle right from the days when he was a little cub gambolling near
the tiger's paws at Matoshree.
Now his lieutenants leap to their feet and start rattling their
wannabe Bhawani swords at this ersatz atrocity. Crowd us like cattle
in commuter trains, suffocate us with pollution, force us into
tenements, deprive us of varan and water, but never ever dare to
humiliate us by calling us 'Bombay'.
Did the audience rise to a man (and militant mahila) to pelt the
screen with popcorn or singdana as soon as the reviled 'B' word was
pronounced? Or had they not even noticed till the MNS hit them on the
head with a poll plank to point out this cultural molestation?
It doesn't happen only when a celeb can be turned into a sitting
Bombay duck. It happens even when a panelist in a TV discussion
commits such lese majeste. Earlier this week, i went for a TV
discussion on the forthcoming assembly elections. Having been verbally
lynched on the same anchor's show a couple of years ago, i assiduously
minded my M's and B's. But 'Tony' Jethmalani, who is patently a Bomboy
rather than a Mumbhai despite his BJP's poll alliance with the Sena,
slipped up, and immediately got it in the jugular by our MNS co-
panelist, Vageesh Saraswat.
For the record, the born-again Vageesh-bhau started life as a UP
bhaiyya, his own party's Mumbai Enemy No.1, and the 'outsider' that
even the BJP-SS combine has manifestoed to keep out. Bombay was built
by a mongrel of communities, but 'pure-bred' Mumbai could well become
the pariah of exemplary urbanisation.
As ironically, the old name would have died a natural death if its
self-anointed killers didn't keep reviving it so aggressively. Today
'Bombay' is more label than clothing. Its flag-bearers are those who
shimmied through it in the 60s; now in their own 60s, they are still
seen but not as heeded. It may remain a metaphor for all that made
this the coolest and hottest place to be, but, Karan Johar
notwithstanding, even the SoBo young have begun using 'Mumbai' as
routinely as they do 'Bombay', if not more so.
However, every time the MNS and its ilk make it into a Them and Us
issue, GenNext is class-bound to thump it back to life. The attack on
Wake Up, Sid will be yet another shot in the arm for the idea of
Bombay.
Sid Harth
EC files case against Raj Thackeray
Headlines Today
Pune, October 10, 2009
A complaint has been filed against MNS chief Raj Thackeray at a city
police station for allegedly violating the model code of conduct by
using "unparliamentary" language against ex-Union minister Shivraj
Patil during a campaign speech.
Under the direction of Election Commission observers, the complaint
has been lodged at Kothrud police station, police said on Sunday.
According to the complaint filed under various sections of the IPC,
Thackeray used "unparliamentary" language against the former home
minister during a rally here on October 8.
The party had also allegedly violated the poll code by putting up its
flags on the nearby buildings when the election meeting was held to
campaign for MNS candidate Kishor Shinde, police said.
With PTI
Sid Harth
Mumbai, October 11, 2009
Curtains down on high-pitch campaign for Maharashtra polls
PTI
PTI Congress supporters take out a rally in Sangli, Maharashtra on
Sunday, the last day of the campaigning for Maharashtra polls.
The high-pitch campaign ended on Sunday in Maharashtra for the October
13 Assembly elections which saw Shiv Sena and MNS fighting for the
same political space and the ruling Congress-NCP aiming a hat-trick.
An electorate of 7,56,34,525 will decide the fate of 3,559 candidates,
including 211 women. There are 1,820 independents, mostly rebels, in
fray.
The State goes to polls on Tuesday under the shadow of the gruesome
Naxal attack in Gadchiroli district where 17 policemen were killed in
an ambush.
Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) which polled over 12
lakh votes in the Lok Sabha elections in Mumbai, Thane, Pune and
Nashik, is seen as a major factor likely to influence the State
politics.
Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray, who toured the State
highlighting suicides by farmers and the government’s failures in
power sector, was forced to change his campaign from development
issues to the ‘Marathi Manoos’ agenda.
Raj Thackeray in his meetings attacked the Opposition, especially Shiv
Sena saying that by and large they had failed to corner the government
on its failures.
The polls, being held after the Lok Sabha elections in May this year
where the Congress performed impressively going past the 200 seat
mark, have encouraged the party in the state to go for a hat-trick.
The Congress has been ruling the state for the last ten years in
alliance with the NCP.
The Congress is contesting on 174 seats, leaving two for RPI (Gavai)
group while the NCP is contesting on 114 seats.
The Shiv Sena is fighting on 169 and the BJP on 119 seats. Though the
MNS has fielded candidates in 143 assembly constituencies, Raj
Thackeray has focused on Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik areas where he
hopes to make a dent.
The Republican Left Democratic Front (RLDF) comprising 16 political
parties, including the PWP, the CPI(M) and the Samajwadi party and
spearheaded by RPI leader Ramdas Athavale, is also contesting from all
the seats.
The Front suffered a setback after RPI (Gavai) moved out to join the
Congress-NCP bandwagon.
Generation Next of top state leaders like Vilasrao Deshmukh,
Sushilkumar Shinde and Gopinath Munde are also making their debut in
the election.
Amit, Mr. Deshmukh’s eldest son is in fray from Latur city; Pranati,
Mr. Shinde’s youngest daughter is the Congress candidate from Solapur
city central; Mr. Munde’s daughter Pankaja Palve is in fray from her
father’s bastion Parli while Poonam Mahajan, Mr. Munde’s niece and
daughter of BJP leader late Pramod Mahajan is testing political waters
from Ghatkopar west in Mumbai.
But the most high-profile of all is Rajendra Shekhawat, son of
President Pratibha Patil who is contesting from Amravati, a seat
represented by his parents earlier.
The campaigning saw UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress General
secretary Rahul Gandhi addressing election meetings across the state.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed the media in Mumbai on
Sunday.
While the ‘Thackeray vs Thackeray’ campaign focused on ’Marathi
manoos’ issue, both Sonia and Rahul stressed on development issues and
cautioned people against voting for divisive forces.
Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha L K Advani toured the state
except for Mumbai and BJP president Rajnath Singh participated in a
joint rally with Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray at Shivaji
Park on Saturday.
NCP supremo Sharad Pawar also campaigned aggressively for the Congress-
NCP candidates but did not share stage with Sonia Gandhi for any
election rally.
Sena patriarch Bal Thackeray could not actively participate in the
campaigning and restricted himself to interviews and televised address
to followers.
The “Marathi” issue dominated the election manifesto of both Sena-BJP
and Congress-NCP. Both manifestos speak of organising “Marathi week“.
The Congress-NCP even said that it will set up a legislative committee
to ensure that the work at government offices is carried out in
Marathi.
The Sena-BJP manifesto says it will set up a permanent machinery to
stop migration to Mumbai and ensure 80 per cent jobs to locals.
Sid Harth
ADAMPUR, October 11, 2009
A battle royale in Adampur
Rajesh Ahuja
A battle royale is being fought in this prestigious constituency
which is the home fief of former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal and his
clan.
Interestingly, the once powerful Bhajan Lal family has retained the
seat since the formation of Haryana in 1966.
However, political equations have been changing over the years
especially after Mr. Bhajan Lal and his younger son Kuldeep Bishnoi
left the Congress and floated their own outfit - the Haryana Janhit
Congress in 2007.
Interestingly, Mr.Bhajan Lal, who was disqualified as MLA in 2008,
managed to win from here in the May 2008 by-election with a lower
margin of 26,000 votes. In the 2005 polls, Mr.Bhajan Lal had won the
seat by a record margin of 71,000 votes.
The veteran politician, once regarded as a political strongman who
earned the sobriquet of ‘engineering defections’ failed to become the
Chief Minister in the 2005 Assembly polls.
Interestingly, Mr.Bhajan Lal, who was president of the Haryana unit of
the party during the polls, was hopeful of becoming the Chief Minister
for the fourth time as the Congress won 67 out of 90 seats. However,
Mr. Bhupinder Singh Hooda was appointed as the Chief Minister by
Congress President Sonia Gandhi.
Now, Mr. Kuldeep Bishnoi, who has been declared as his political
successor by an ailing Mr. Bhajan Lal, is determined to become the
Chief Minister. So winning from here has become crucial for him.
The Congress has fielded former Union Minister Jai Parkash, who at one
time was a close associate of the Chautala clan. Interestingly, Mr.
Jai Prakash who had been elected as Congress MP from Hissar in the
2004 Lok Sabha polls, lost to Mr. Bhajan Lal in the May 2009 polls.
The candidates fielded by other parties have become inconsequential as
the main contest is between the Bhajan Lal clan, which has always
depended on the Bishnoi vote bank, and Mr. Jai Prakash, who is a Jat.
The Congress is harping on development carried out in the State by the
Hooda regime and the so-called neglect of the region by the Bhajan Lal
clan.
The INLD has fielded Rajesh Godara, a close relative of the Chautalas,
but is regarded as a “dummy candidate’’ by some political observers.
It is being said in political circles that the INLD which wants to
settle scores with its former leader Sampat Singh, who recently
defected to the Congress, has entered into a “secret’’ arrangement
with the Bhajan Lal clan. Mr. Sampat Singh has been fielded by the
Congress from Nalwa, a neighbouring constituency of Adampur while the
HJC has fielded Jasma Devi, the wife of Mr. Bhajan Lal, against him.
According to insiders, the INLD cadres would support Mr. Bishnoi in
Adampur and Ms. Jasma Devi in Nalwa. In return, the HJC would ensure
the victory of the Chautala clan in Ellenabad and Dabwali.
chhotemianinshallah
Most criminal records among Sena candidates
Abhay Khairnar / DNA
Sunday, October 11, 2009 2:37 IST
Although Maharashtra is a progressive state, 28 per cent of the
candidates who are contesting the Assembly elections have criminal
backgrounds. The Shiv Sena tops this list with 64 per cent candidates
with criminal records followed by BJP and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena,
according to the data presented by the Maharashtra wing of the
National Election Watch (NEW) -- an umbrella group of more than 12,000
NGOs.
The data is based on an analysis of the affidavits filed by 2,069
candidates (out of total of 3,559 candidates) from 288 constituencies
in 35 districts before the Election Commission.
On the wealth front, 22 per centcandidates out of 2,069 are crorepatis
with the Nationalist Party topping the list and accounting for 74 per
cent of the wealthy candidates. Out of 112 candidates, 83 candidates
were from the NCP with properties of more than Rs1crore.
The NEW is working on electoral reforms and improving democracy and
governance in India, said co-coordinator for Maharashtra Election
Watch Ajit Ranade. "This data is being released to inform voters about
candidates. It is based on the affidavits of 2,069 candidates (out of
total 3,559) from 288 constituencies in 35 districts. All the
candidates from the major political parties are included in it, Ranade
said.
Out of 2,069, 588 candidates were found with criminal records. All the
political parties were found to have fielded candidates with criminal
records.
While the Sena topped the list with 64 per cent candidates with
criminal records (98 out of 153), BJP followed with 58 per cent (66
out of 114 candidates). While the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has 81
out of 141 candidates with criminal records, the NCP was found to have
40 out of 112 candidates with such a record. 34 per cent of Congress
candidates have a criminal background (56 out of 164 have a criminal
history).
Half of the candidates from the Sindudurg district have criminal
records and interestingly more than half of the candidates from the
district are also crorepatis. On the education front, 36 per cent
candidates (738 out of 2,069) are at least graduates. Congress and NCP
topped the list in graduate candidates with 57 per cent of their
candidates being at least graduates. BJP follows, with 50 per
centgraduate candidates.
bademiyansubhanallah
Hooda will lead next Cong govt: Sonia
TNN 12 October 2009, 01:47am IST
JHAJJAR/CHANDIGARH: On the last day of campaigning for assembly
elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi focused on farmers’
welfare, development and participation of common man in government and
assured that the incumbent, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, would lead the next
Congress government in Haryana.
‘‘Congress is a political and social force. What have INLD and BJP
done for you? Have they given any big loan waivers to farmers? Don’t
fall prey to their false promises,’’ she said. ‘‘We can’t sit idle
when farmers are burdened with debt. Our farm loan waiver scheme has
written off Rs 71,000 crore,’’ she told the gathering. Notwithstanding
Congress’s high-pitched poll rhetoric, the ruling party in the state
appears close to a simple majority in the 90-member assembly after the
elections on Tuesday. Punters are betting on the party getting between
47 to 52 seats whereas the Congress’s main challenger, INLD, led by
former CM Om Prakash Chautala, could get close to 20 seats.
Other significant players like Kuldeep Bishnoi-led Haryana Janhit
Congress (HJC) and BJP appear comfortable only on five seats apiece.
BSP which got 15% votes in last the Lok Sabha elections on the hope of
Mayawati becoming the PM appears certain on only two seats. These
figures have been arrived at on the basis of information from Central
and state intelligence agencies as well as field reports by TOI
reporters. BJP president Rajnath Singh was quoted as saying that the
state was heading towards a hung assembly and that the party could
think of supporting a non-Congress government.
Congress, which was ahead in 59 seats during the Lok Sabha elections
getting around 43% votes, has lost some steam due to a local anti-
incumbency against MLAs and bad choice of candidates. Ticket
distribution left almost 30 rebels in the field with at least 10
posing serious problem to party candidates.
On the other hand Chautala’s aggressive and well-oiled media campaign
has ensured that his rallies pulled the largest crowds — beating even
Opposition stalwarts like PM Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul
Gandhi. Sonia’s naming Hooda as Congress’s next CM was inspired by the
belief that not doing so would have led the state’s 25% Jat voters to
Chautala.
chhotemianinshallah
'BJP, Left Ignore Disconnect Between Two Indias'
Shimla | Oct 13, 2009
Hitting out at opposition BJP and the Left parties, Congress general
secretary Rahul Gandhi today said these parties were focusing on a
certain section of the people while ignoring the rest.
"This is the biggest fault in the views of both BJP and the Left
parties," Rahul Gandhi told reporters at the start of his one-day tour
of the hill state.
"Totally ignorant of the fact that almost 60 per cent of the country's
population fell in the category of have-nots, the BJP was obsessed
with the urban population and taking cue from a TV advertisement
coined the slogan 'India Shining' in 2004 general election which
boomeranged on them," he said.
"They still continue to ignore the majority section of deprived living
in underdeveloped villages," Rahul said.
About Left parties, the young Gandhi said they want India of
opportunity to collapse and concentrate only on the have-nots.
The need of the hour is to strike a "balance" between the two Indias,
he said adding this was the aim of his visits to rural areas and stay
in the huts of downtrodden.
"My political opponents laugh at me when I visit a poor in his shanty
house...But it is necessary to do so to know about them and their
problems to bridge this wide gap between the two Indias," the Amethi
MP said.
About various schemes launched by the UPA such as NREGA, farmer loan
waiver and preparation of Universal Identity Card, he said these were
aimed at bridging the gap between the haves and have-nots.
Rahul also charged the Right-wing and the Left-wing parties with
living in the past and dwelling mainly on issues of the past.
"Some of the views of both BJP and the Left parties are almost 1000-
year old," the young Gandhi, flanked by Union minister Virbhadra
Singh, leader of the opposition in HP assembly Vidya Stokes, PCC chief
Kaul Singh Thakur and AICC secretary and in-charge of NSUI and MP
Minakshi Natrajan, said.
"BJP is obsessed with Pakistan's founding father Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
The saffron leaders are debating about him in public. I do not wish to
spare even a minute to discuss about Jinnah," he said.
Instead of "whiling away" time on some past event, we instead should
focus on issues which could brighten the future of the poor and the
downtrodden, he said.
"People suffering from hunger and other problems want to know about
what we plan for them to better their future," he said adding this was
his guiding principle in politics.
My father (late Rajiv Gandhi) had said only 15 paisa out of one rupee
of developmental fund reaches the needy...We need to end this
irregularity, he added.
In reply to a question, he refuted the perception that regional
parties have occupied political space of the Congress.
After addressing Congress leaders and workers at Rajiv Bhawan, the
state Congress headquarters, Rahul left for an open discussion with
youths at HP University.
Sid Harth
High commodity prices become key issue in Haryana polls
13 Oct 2009, 1800 hrs IST, Madhvi Sally, ET Bureau
CHANDIGARH: 42 year old Sant Ram a mason in the Pinjore tehsil of the
Panchkula district in Haryana has only one wish this Diwali. He wants
the yellow card given to Below the Poverty Line family to avail
essential commodities at subsidised rate.
With a monthly income of Rs 3,000 the mason has been facing the pinch
with the increase in prices of commodities. “I believed that the
government will do something and reduce the rates. Months have passed
by but nothing has happened. I have stopped having tea as can’t afford
sugar. How long will this spell continue?” he asks.
Mr Ram has been attracted by the subsidised moong sabut dal which is
being given to BPL card holder at the rate of Rs 54 per kg compared to
the market price of Rs 65 a kg in the wholesale. Also a BPL card
holder has got an increase in the quota of sugar this month as
festival quota. A ration card holder can now get 4.2 kg sugar
additional to 2 kg they are allotted at the rate of Rs 13.50 per kg.
The wholesale rate according to Food and Supplies department of Sugar
is Rs 31 per kg.
The rising commodity prices are one of the crucial issues in the
ongoing assembly elections in Haryana. Even as opposition parties talk
about giving 25 kg wheat free of cost per month to families below the
poverty line, the ruling Congress government spoke of giving the
highest price of sugarcane to farmers (Rs 160-170 per quintal).
Opposition party The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) chief & former
Chief Minister Chaudhary Om Parkash Chautala as part of the election
manifesto announced to give minimum support price for wheat at Rs 1400
and sugar cane to be Rs 250.
The election promises are to announced and not implemented says a
progressive farmer from Karnal Kamaljeet Singh. “The government
policies have led to such a scenario of increase in price of
commodities. Farmers left sugar cultivation as returns were very less
and mill owners were exploiting them,” he said.
As on date the rate of wheat and rice were stable and have not
increased in the past fortnight in Haryana. In Hisar rice was being
sold at Rs 1,800 to Rs 2,000 per quintal. Wheat prices were at Rs
1,100 per quintal and sugar was ruling at Rs 3100 per quintal. Traders
expect prices to be stable and don't foresee a likely fall.
High prices of pulses and vegetables are an issue of concern for the
common masses. Gram dal is the cheapest dal being sold at Rs 3200 per
quintal in Hisar, followed by Urad whose rates were varying at Rs 5300
in Karnal and Rs 6100 in Hisar. Toor Dal was being sold at Rs 7200 to
Rs 8000 per quintal. Potato prices have remained firm at Rs 14 per kg
for local varieties and Rs 25 for Himachal varieties. Prices will fall
in November when the new crop arrives.
Onion prices have increased in the past one week and are currently
ruling at Rs 25 kg. Less supply form southern India is a reason being
quoted by traders. Seasonal vegetables currently arriving from within
the state are being sold at Rs 30-40 per kg including cauliflower,
okhara, capsicum etc.
chhotemianinshallah
Ruling alliance in the lead, exit polls show
Sena-BJP trail as Raj's party fails to impress
By Pamela Raghunath, Correspondent
Published: 00:00 October 15, 2009
Mumbai, Maharashtra: Exit poll projections have predicted the Congress-
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) combine having a clear lead in the
Maharashtra assembly elections with the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance
trailing even as Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)
emerging with a negligible number of seats.
A far better turnout at 60 per cent for the state and 52 per cent for
Mumbai, an improvement on the 41 per cent during the Lok Sabha
elections this year in the city, has given a whole new variety of
numbers for the assembly polls, the results of which will be known on
October 22. The CNN-IBN-Lokmat exit poll has forecast 135-145 seats
for the Congress-NCP, 105-115 for the Sena-BJP, 8-12 for the MNS and
25-35 for the others in the 288-member assembly. This is almost the
same as in 2004 when the two allies got 140 seats, very close to the
magical number of 145 required for a simple majority.
The only difference this time is that the Congress is expected to get
a higher number of seats — 75 to 85 while the NCP will bag 55 to 65
seats. Projected for the Sena are 55-65 seats and BJP 45-55 seats
whilst the MNS, fighting the assembly elections for the first time,
will fare poorly, after all the noise made on the Marathi manoos issue
by its leader Raj Thackeray.
Giving the Congress-NCP far higher gains of 171 seats is Live India's
exit poll that has predicted just 85 seats for the Sena-BJP alliance,
17 for MNS and 15 for others. On the other hand, Star Maaza's
predictions project 125 for the Congress and NCP, 119 for the saffron
allies, 18 for Raj's party and 26 for the rest.
Victory for congress
The Congress party is set to win outright in Haryana and Arunachal
Pradesh, according to exit polls.
Thanks mainly to a splintered opposition, the Congress is expected to
sweep Haryana and win in Arunachal Pradesh, the northeastern state
which has been in the news because of Chinese claims to the
territorry.
The Star News expected the Congress to win 57 seats in the 90-member
Haryana house and retain power.
After voting, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda declared:
"The Congress will sweep this elections." The Hooda government got the
previous assembly dissolved seven months before its term was to end
and sought fresh mandate.
In Arunachal, Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu and two more Congress
members have been elected unopposed.
chhotemianinshallah
Advantage Congress in India
15 October 2009 Elections to the three state legislatures in
Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh on Tuesday were the first
major test for India’s two leading parties, the Congress and the
Bharatiya Janata Party, barely four months after the General
Elections.
Exit polls indicate that the Congress, the incumbent party in all
three legislatures, is likely to return to power. Official results
will be declared only on October 22. A Congress victory in all three
states will be a psychological boost for India’s grand old party, and
will further strengthen its hold over the United Progressive Alliance,
which is at the helm in Delhi. The Congress has been facing a dilemma
in recent years — should it seek the support of regional parties, or
contest elections on its own?
Rahul Gandhi, who represents the younger generation in the party — and
is a scion of the Gandhi-Nehru family — has been pushing for the
latter course of action, seeking a revival at the grassroots level.
His strategy of not seeking tie-ups with regional partners in Bihar
and Uttar Pradesh paid handsome dividends for the Congress in the
general elections.
A somewhat similar strategy was adopted in the run-up to the elections
to the three state assemblies, where the party’s junior partners –
especially the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra – were given
warning that the Congress would, if pushed to the wall, prefer to
battle on its own. If the Congress finally emerges the winner in all
three states, many of its allies across India will have to prepare for
tough negotiations in the months ahead.
For the BJP, a party that is facing an existential crisis, the
election results are likely to result in further demoralisation.
Maharashtra and Haryana are two important states where the party has
had a strong presence in the past and where it was hoping to return to
power with the help of allies. In Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena-BJP
alliance stood a good chance of replacing the Congress-NCP government,
a regime that has been in power for 10 years, but with nothing much to
show in terms of performance. But factionalism within the BJP and the
emergence of the Maharashtra Navnriman Sena, a parochial and anti-
migrant version 2.0 of the Shiv Sena, has stumped the
saffron
partners.
The exit polls also indicate that though the Congress may emerge as
the single-largest party in Maharashtra, it will have to seek the help
of not just loyal allies such as the NCP, but even of independents and
perhaps some of the smaller parties in the third front.
Younger and impatient leaders such as Rahul Gandhi might push for
going it alone in future elections, but a lot of work remains to be
done for the Congress to really emerge as a dominant party across
India.
bademiyansubhanallah
What the taxi driver couldn't tell me
Ranjona BanerjiMonday, October 12, 2009 22:35 IST
It is incumbent upon journalists, every now and then, to try and gauge
the mood around them. Without wanting to give the professional game
away, this has been known to involve only family members, sometimes
restricted to just one spouse.
One editor I knew based the assessment on her three-year-old nephew.
The more adventurous will include the travel writer's staple -- the
taxi driver. This gent (it is usually a gent) is globally acknowledged
as a pop philosopher, a psychobabble interpreter and a barometer of
popular opinion. Driving up and down city roads apparently make you an
expert on human behaviour.
However, chauffeurs who work for one boss are usually not accorded
this status. They mix in rarefied circles (memsaabs, babalogs, maids
and such). Then occasionally, someone will commission a survey and the
agency will speak to 122.5-odd people (this is a statistical exercise
which mere mortals are not supposed to question). Their answers will
be distilled into percentages and so you will learn that 42.8 per cent
of the population believes that rabbits live on the moon and 7.8 per
cent are not sure.
To make a long story short, how does one figure out the mood of the
nation this week? There's the election mood in Maharashtra, Haryana
and Arunachal Pradesh and the pre-Diwali mood.
For Maharashtra, the cabbies feel that it is the Congress-NCP again,
so do family and friends and as it happens so do the surveys. The
general sense seems to be that the Lok Sabha pattern where the
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena skewed the picture for the Shiv Sena and
the BJP will be repeated. The most reliable meter here might be the
bookies -- after all they have money to lose -- and they're on the
Congress-NCP too.
So if you're backing the wrong horse, don't put too much money on it.
That leaves the other two states and to be honest, no taxi driver
spoken to had any clue. This includes Maharashtrians and North
Indians, so all one can conclude is that one (that is I) cannot hazard
a guess when the "don't know" category touches 100 per cent.
The Congress, however, thinks that it is winning in Haryana even
though second terms have no historical precedent and are therefore a
statistical no-no. The opposition however is in a bit of a tattered
state and hey, there are always benefits to be accrued from NREGA. The
story's similar in Arunachal -- the Congress looks the strongest and
the opposition's a mess. This pop analysis is based on newspaper
reports so it is likely that local spouses, taxi drivers and random
people on the street have voiced their opinions to someone.
That leaves Diwali. Now this is a real leaves-you-stumped question.
Are people buying or not buying? A newspaper supplement recommended
for its readers to buy a pair of earrings worth Rs2.5 lakh. Yes, these
had diamonds called baguettes which I'm guessing have nothing to do
with French bread. Also suggested was a watch for Rs63 lakh. Is it
fair to assume that the readership of this publication can afford this
stuff or would like to afford it?
"Shopping" though is now a word in every Indian language and it is a
national pastime. No cabbie had been consulted here, but it is likely
that shopping may soon beat cricket as our favourite sport. Therefore,
why should we stop this Diwali? Remember when government emporia would
offer a 10 per cent rebate and then add a 10 tax? Many of these Diwali
sales might be something like that. Some shops never remove their
'sale' stickers all year long, but at this time of the year, we can
see them better.
For the salaried middle class which had to suffer salary cuts this
year, though, Diwali is a dreaded time. The domestics expect and
deserve their bonuses (plus the baksheesh to everyone else) but you're
not going to get any. So the only thing to do is hide your wallet and
weep. And before that, just check with spouse, cabbie, neighbour and
vote for somebody.
chhotemianinshallah
UPA ahead in Maharashtra, Haryana: Exit Polls
TNN 14 October 2009, 09:53am IST
An unexpectedly high 60% voter turnout in Maharashtra, a higher 68%
turnout in Haryana and an even higher 72% in Arunachal Pradesh in
Tuesday’s UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi at an election rally.assembly
polls may have political pundits arguing about what that implies, but
exit pollsters are sanguine — the UPA was the winner at the end of the
day.
For Maharashtra, all three exit polls available at the time of writing
projected a hung house with the Congress-NCP combine clearly ahead of
the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance, effectively suggesting that the UPA would
form the next government in the state.
In Haryana, there was a consensus among pollsters on the Congress
getting a near two-thirds majority, while none of the pollsters did an
exit poll for Arunachal.
The CNN-IBN poll projected that the UPA would win 135-145 seats in the
288-member Maharashtra assembly, almost exactly the same as the 140
won in 2004. But the Congress is estimated to bag 75-85 seats compared
to the NCP’s 55-65, decisively shifting the balance within the
coalition.
The same poll gave the Sena-BJP alliance 105 to 115 seats with the
Sena getting between 55 and 65 seats and the BJP 45-55 seats. Raj
Thackeray’s MNS was projected to win 8-12 seats, which implies that it
may have been the game spoiler for the NDA, while others will win
25-35 seats according to this poll.
The Star News poll had fairly similar estimates at the alliance level,
but an even more decisive edge for the Congress within the UPA. It
gave the Congress 89 seats, the NCP 48, the BJP 51 and the Sena 62,
leaving 12 for the MNS and 26 for others.
CVoter, which conducted a syndicated exit poll for several media
groups, did not give a party-wise breakup. It projected the UPA as
winning 127-139 seats and the NDA as bagging 106-118. The MNS, in its
estimate, should finish with 9-17 seats and others with 24-36.
If these predictions were to come true, the Congress-NCP combine would
be pulling off quite a political feat — getting a third term after
providing, from all accounts, unremarkable governance in Maharashtra.
Such a verdict would also show up the sorry state of the BJP-Sena
combine which could not exploit this to its advantage.
In Haryana, Star News gave the Congress 57 seats in the 90-member
assembly, while CVoter gave the party between 57 and 65 seats. INLD is
set to emerge as the clear opposition, according to the two polls,
Star giving Chautala’s outfit 18 seats and CVoter 13-19 seats. Bhajan
Lal’s party is projected by Star to win 9 seats and by CVoter to get a
much lower 2-6 seats.
Both polls indicate that the BSP's ambitions in Haryana may have to
wait a while, with Star giving the party just two seats and CVoter
between one and five seats. Others are given three seats by Star and
2-7 seats by CVoter.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/5122153.cms
Readers' Opinions Comment
UPA ahead in Maharashtra, Haryana: Exit Polls
vivian,houston,says:congress please save my dear mumbai and make it a
safe place for all indians to stay together here and fight to end any
political mischief by shiv sena or whatever sena who only hold the
city to ranson for useless reasons. people have trusted and voted for
you, its time for you to deliver back the good will to the people of
mumbai.
[14 Oct, 2009 1257hrs IST]
Omkar,Pune,says:It is very glad thing for me & all maharashtrian
people that UPA govt will be again there. They developed maharashtra
very well in most of things.But it is very bad thing that they were
not able to solve the problem of electricity.BUt UPA are always better
than the oppositers.
[14 Oct, 2009 1235hrs IST]
Asif Khan,Mumbai,says:It is funny that even after a huge anti-congress
outcry, people are still voting for the super corrupt congress. This
is like the voting in Iran, a forgery perhaps! Something is definitely
wrong in India that Congress wins despite of non-performance and
defeats on all sides. Shame!India not worth living now
[14 Oct, 2009 1112hrs IST]
Kaustubh,Pune,says:As you can see, the % of voting this time is much
less. In Mumbai around 22%, in Raigad around 31%....this shows that,
the people are not ready to accept this democracy.. the Indian
Democracy has to be changed....there should not be these many options
to choose.....this only shows that leaders have much diversity in
their thoughts.....how can they improve the system? India needs
educated leader....there has to be educational criteria for
Leaders..... think on it..
[14 Oct, 2009 1003hrs IST]
narayana,muscat,says:It just means that India's bad times destined
since 1947 is going to contuinue. Unless this most corrupt, dishonest
rulers disappear, there is no hope for India
[14 Oct, 2009 0947hrs IST]
JM,New York,says:BJP and Sena are yet to get the message: In India
your hindutwa and "hate-madrasi" idea will not work any more. This is
a 21st century India, not the an India of stone-age. Get this into
your head and make necessary changes if you desire a survival.
[14 Oct, 2009 0943hrs IST]
Sharad,US,says:For non marathi manoos it would have been better to
have these trouble creators shiv sainiks or MNS come to power. Atleast
they would be quite and let them live in peace. Now with UPA forming
govt, they will continue torturing and harassing non marathi manoos
folks there.
[14 Oct, 2009 0818hrs IST]
uddhav dahiphale ,mumbai,says:I think result projected by media and
actual will differ.There is possibility of change in numbers.It is
difficult to say as to which alliance wii form the Goverment.
[14 Oct, 2009 0805hrs IST]
Amar,San Jose Calif.,says:UPA can't be ahead in Maharastra at least,
in Haryana it was the work done by Hooda, it is his personal
achievement, and the Italian learnt it when they lost everywhere in
India except Haryana (Gujarat, Himachal assembely elections) and they
used less tampered E.V.M.s in that elections to check the ground
situation, and Haryana gave positive results, they had ample time in
general elections so they helped Hooda whole heartedly. but it was
only Hooda's personal achievements, and you know Om Parkash Jindal a
big industrialist of India offered any sum of money to Janardan
Dwivedi (Haryana incharge at that time) not to make Bhajan Lal as CM,
so he accepted 25M $ worth of INR and made Hooda CM. hooda's father
was a freedom fighter. and you are very well aware that no freedom
fighter can have millions of dollars. Now a days this is real picture
of Kangresiye. Pawar, Deshmukh Chawhan are eating the poor men's
bread. How is itr possible they return to power after 26/11 attack
which prices of food items are rocket high farmers are commiting
suicide, no electricity in urban areas, there is no reason of
returning to power. Do you think tampering E.V.M. will work every
time. You are murdering democracy
[14 Oct, 2009 0755hrs IST]
chhotemianinshallah
BJP braces for blows from MNS in Mumbai seats
Dhaval Kulkarni
Posted: Friday , Oct 16, 2009 at 2306 hrs
Mumbai:
Karunanidhi and his silencePolitics Peace prize for Obama!Have I
become a ‘Screenager’? Already smarting under its reverses at the
national level, the BJP expects a jolt from the Raj Thackeray-led MNS
in some Mumbai seats in the Assembly polls, too.
“There can be no two opinions that there is an undercurrent of support
for the MNS. My opinion is that they may not get less votes than they
got in the Lok Sabha polls. They may increase,” said a BJP functionary
from North Mumbai.
He added that in Assembly seats where the Shiv Sena had not put up a
candidate and let the BJP contest, there was a likelihood of the
Marathi voters and a section of the Sena cadre and voters gravitating
towards the MNS.
The BJP leader pointed to the Kandivali (East) Assembly segment, where
the MNS fielded Vinod Pawar and made an issue of the BJP and Congress
candidates, Jaiprakash Thakur and Rameshsingh Thakur, being non-
Maharashtrians.
“The MNS raised this issue well,” he admitted, adding that the
situation would be similar in constituencies in North Mumbai, where
the BJP had not put up any candidate of Marathi origin.
A BJP leader added that they expected to win five seats, including
Dahisar (Gopal Shetty), Charkop (Yogesh Sagar), Malabar Hill (Mangal
Prabhat Lodha), Mulund (Sardar Tara Singh) and Ghatkopar East (Prakash
Mehta), while the results in Ghatkopar West (Poonam Mahajan Rao),
Bandra West (Ashish Shelar), Colaba (Raj Purohit) and Malad (R.U
Singh) seats would depend on the extent to which the votes of the
opposing candidates was divided.
While the BJP expects the MNS to cut into its votes in the urban areas
like the Mumbai-Thane belt, it hopes the Republican Left Democratic
Front (RLDF), a conglomeration of Left parties and Republican Party of
India (RPI) factions, will play spoiler for the Congress-NCP in
Vidarbha and Marathwada, which has a strong Dalit base.
The BJP and the Sena had together won 30 seats in the Nagpur and
Amravati divisions in 2004, and a MLA from Vidarbha said they expect
to win more than 34 seats from the region now. “The Republican Party
will be a major factor in Marathwada and Vidarbha,” he added.
A BJP MLA from Marathwada, too, added that they were likely to improve
their 2004 tally, due to anti-incumbency and the presence of the RPI
in the fray.
He added that the presence of the RLDF in the fray would help swing
some votes away from the Congress-NCP to the advantage of the Sena-
BJP. However, he added that improper selection of candidates in some
constituencies could hurt them in the polls.
bademiyansubhanallah
Intel report: Sena-BJP will not cross 100 seats
Nikhil S Dixit / DNA
Friday, October 16, 2009 2:48 IST
Mumbai: Intelligence Bureau (IB) has predicted that the Shiv Sena-BJP
combine will barely touch the 100-seat mark in the just-concluded
elections to the Maharashtra assembly, thereby ruling out any chance
of a saffron alliance government.
The bureau has predicted that the Congress and Nationalist Congress
Party (NCP) would return to power, even though it will require the
support of independents, rebels and the Third Front to prop them up
for a stable dispensation. The Congress-NCP combine will bag 137
seats, the bureau has soothsayed along the lines predicted by various
exit polls.
But the element of surprise is the massive decline it predicts for the
BJP in the state. According to IB estimates, the BJP will not be able
to cross 35 to 40 seats which is a huge decline from its previous
tally of 56 seats which they got in the 2004 assembly elections. The
Shiv Sena, rebuilding itself under the leadership of executive
president Uddhav Thackeray, will win in 55 and 60 seats, according to
the bureau estimates.
It also means that the Cong-NCP combine will be eyeing the rebels who,
according to the reports, are expected to get 25 seats, or the
independents who are likely to get anywhere between 12-14 seats. The
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) is likely to bag eight to 10 seats,
suggests the report.
The results of the state assembly elections which went to the polls on
October 13 will be declared on October 22. The IB and other
intelligence agencies conduct their own survey based on the ground-
level reports of the police and other cadres.
The report indicates that that Congress will emerge as a single
largest party winning 77 seats and its alliance partner NCP 58-60
seats. The rebels, the report says, will hold the key to the formation
of next government winning 25 seats. However, the Third Front, a
conglomeration of 20 parties, is likely to make no impact and is
expected to bag just two seats.
The bureau analysis gives just eight to 10 seats to the Raj Thackeray-
led MNS. The independents will win 12 to 14 seats, says the report.
bademiyansubhanallah
Congress taps rebels tipped to be winners
PTI Thursday, October 15, 2009 16:45 IST
Mumbai: The ruling Congress in Maharashtra, tipped to emerge as the
single largest party when the assembly poll results are out on October
22, has begun sending feelers to rebels who have a strong chance of
winning.
A senior Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) functionary
said that party office bearers have already been asked to engage with
the potential winners.
"Though we do not see any major problem in forming the next government
(with the Congress-NCP combine securing a majority on its own), the
exercise has been initiated to ensure we have the numbers, just in
case we fall short by few seats," the senior functionary said.
He said the party leadership has identified a few rebels who stand a
chance to win but declined to name them.
Shiv Sena-BJP alliance too is not lagging behind in the exercise to
rustle up the necessary numbers.
A senior BJP leader said, according to the party's estimates, the
saffron combine expects to get 135 seats, 10 short of the magic figure
of 145 in the 288-member state assembly.
"Independents, MNS and few members of the third front will support us
and we have already started talking to them," the BJP leader said,
pleading anonymity.Stating that the MNS would win a maximum of five
seats, the BJP leader claimed the elected representatives of thatarty
could back the SS-BJP bid to form the next government.
"If Raj Thackeray chooses not to support any side in government
formation, the MLAs may go their own way," he added.
bademiyansubhanallah
Himachal BJP Emboldened To Try Wrest Rohru From Congress
Posted by Ravinder Makhaik on Oct 19th, 2009
Shimla: With Pratibha Singh’s, wife of steel minister Virbhadra Singh,
effort to enter the Vidhan Sabha stalled for the time being, it is
perhaps BJP’s best chance to win the congress bastion Rohru, as Kushi
Ram Balnahta, the BJP candidate who has so far lost every election he
contested from here, makes one last bid.
A buoyant chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal told select media, “We
intend to win Rohru and create history.” Banking on the resentment
among Virbhadra loyalists, the chief minister says, “congress is in
disarray and BJP is going to benefit.”
As news about Pratibha Singh being denied the congress ticket spread
in the constituency on Friday, the block congress committee threatened
to resign en-mass.
Harinder Rawat, an unsuccessful applicant for the ticket, when he
reached the congress office on that day was heckled.
Vikramaditya, son of Pratibha, who had begun campaigning from the
remote region of Dodra-Kawar of the constituency, beat a hasty retreat
as it became clear that his mother was not being given the ticket.
Balnahta has fought five elections against a sitting chief minister
but lost each one of them though his vote share had been increasing
with each successive bid.
Warding off a bid by rival Davinder Busheri for the BJP ticket,
Balnahta said, “the party by banking on me and the voters wary of
having lived under a one man rule (meaning Virbhardra) are reposing
faith in me.”
Under delimitation of assembly seats Rohru is marked to be a reserved
constituency in the next general assembly election, but with it
falling vacant mid-way during this term, a bye-election offers the
best chance for BJP to storm the congress bastion.
Manjit Thakur, the young congress candidate conceded that there was
resentment among congressmen in the constituency.
“Some people are definitely disgruntled with me being the congress
candidate, but everything will settle down once steel minister
Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh campaign for me in the
constituency,” said Thakur.
bademiyansubhanallah
In Himachal Congress, BJP Steer Clear Of Dynastic Politics
Posted by Ravinder Makhaik on Oct 16th, 2009
Virbhadra’s wife denied congress ticket, Sushant’s wife BJP ticket
Newcomer Manjit Thakur faces Balnahta in Rohru, Sujjan Singh Pathania
takes on green horn Baldev Raj Choudhary in Jawali
Shimla: With Rahul Gandhi having vouched for doing away dynastic
politics in congress here three days ago, the fallout has been that
Pratibha Singh, wife of steel minister Virbhadra Singh, was denied the
ticket from Rohru, a seat that her husband retained for 19 years.
Kuldeep Rathore, state congress spokesman said that Sujjan Singh
Pathania from Jawali and Manjit Thakur from Rohru are the congress
candidates for the bye-elections being held in these constituencies.
Party president Sonia Gandhi cleared the names, a statement signed by
Oscar Fernandes, congress general secretary stated.
Strong contender Pratibha Singh was denied the ticket even though the
block congress committee (BCC) had recommended her name as the sole
candidate for the seat.
On being contacted Pratibha Singh said, “she was earlier also not keen
to contest any election but it was love of the Rohru people that had
forwarded her name for the seat.”
“I entered the fray only at their persuasion but it was for the party
high command to decide what is in the best interest of the party,” she
added.
Earlier Pratibha had declined to re-contest the Mandi parliamentary
seat in May, paving the way for Virbhadra to enter parliament and be
made steel minister.
She represented Mandi seat in the last Lok Sabha and Rohru had fallen
vacant after her husband got elected to parliament in May,
precipitating the bye-election.
Manjit Thakur, a block panchayat samiti president, is a former
Virbhadra loyalist who in defiance of BCC recommendation put forth his
application for the ticket directly before the Pradesh congress
committee.
Thakur, a green horn, faces BJP’s Khushi Ram Balnahta, making the
contest a keen one for the ruling party.
By putting up Sujjan Singh Pathania in Jawali, a four time legislator,
against new comer Baldev Raj Choudhary of the BJP for the bye-
election, the scales are evenly poised as BJP attempts to retain the
seat.
Wining on a Janata party ticket for the first time in 1977, he has
been a congress legislator in 1990, 1993 and 2003.
In Jawali, BJP by refusing the ticket to Sudha Sushant, wife of
parliamentarian Rajan Sushant and choosing a new comer like the
congress has tried to steer clear of dynastic politics as well.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP has lowered the traditional standards of Himachal politics:
Rathore
Posted by Disha Singh on Dec 5th, 2007
Shimla: Congress asks its opponents to desist from a mudslinging
campaign. Congress spokesperson Kuldeep Rathore today accused BJP for
lowering the traditional standards of Himachal politics, in reaction
to an advertisement published in newspaper by BJP for election
campaign. He said, “Resorting to personal attacks by indulging in
dirty politics is not a healthy tradition, the people of Himachal
don’t appreciate this. People will once again vote for development by
reinstating their faith in Congress policies.”
The controversial ad depicted the portraits of chief minister,
Virbhadra Singh and his wife, Pratibha Singh, Member Parliament from
Mandi amid serious accusations of corruption. The ad illustrates
Virbhadra Singh and Pratibha Singh as money passionate politicians
with currency notes in their hands while the people surrounding them
are shown in despair condition. The ad appeals the public to vote for
the BJP in a bid to bring prosperity in the state while personally
accusing the chief minister and his wife of involving in corruption.
bademiyansubhanallah
Congress, BJP nominees file papers for Kannur assembly bypoll
PTI Monday, October 19, 2009 16:32 IST
Kannur: The electioneering for the November 7 bye-elections to the
Kannur assembly constituency gained momentum today with Congress and
BJP nominees filing nominations at the District Collectorate here.
The opposition UDF nominee AP Abdulla Kutty, who recently joined
Congress after his expulsion from the CPI-M, and BJP candidate K
Ranjith filed their papers before the additional district magistrate
Vasudeva, official sources here said.
Meanwhile, UDF leaders today sought more time to file their appeal
before the State Election Commission on the fresh voters list
following allegations that bogus voters had been enrolled in revised
list.
The authorities should give more time as holding elections on basis of
hastly prepared voters list went against democratic norms, UDF
election convener Sunny Joseph told reporters here.
bademiyansubhanallah
AP Abdullakutty files nomination papers
Last updated: October 19, 2009 17:28 [IST]
Kannur, Monday, October 19, 2009: AP Abdullakutty United Democratic
Front candidate filed his nomination papers before Kannur ADM
Kunjikrishnan.
The candidature of Abdulla Kutty, expelled from the CPM for praising
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s development model, has created
fear in the red bastion as he had been instrumental in helping the CPM
make electoral inroads in the district. Abdullakutty, who had
campaigned in the April Lok Sabha election for the UDF, had joined the
Congress after the poll.
The last date for making the nominations will be October 21 and the
last date for withdrawal of candidatures will be October 24. The
counting of votes will take place on November 10.
By KOL News , Written on October 19, 2009
bademiyansubhanallah
Jayalalithaa wants Raja’s head
20 Oct 2009, 0354 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa on Monday asked Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh to sack Union IT and communications minister and senior
DMK leader A Raja after reports about the Central Vigilance Commission
(CVC) asking for a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the
allotment of 2G spectrum licenses surfaced.
The AIADMK has also asked the PM to “reign in “ DMK minister and Tamil
Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi’s elder son, MK Alagiri, whose
office wrote to the Indian envoy to Uzbekistan seeking favours for
businessmen visiting that country.
Tamil Nadu’s main Opposition party, which has been vociferously
raising the issue of alleged corruption in the allotment of spectrum
by Mr Raja as the IT and communications minister during UPA I, said
the minister had caused the nation huge losses by adopting a
“defective policy for airwaves spectrum allotment”.
In a statement released in Chennai, Ms Jayalalithaa said: “If media
reports are to be believed, Mr Raja’s misdemeanours have been referred
to the CBI by CVC for investigation. If a fair probe is to take place,
Mr Raja should be removed from Union minister’s post now”. Ms
Jayalalithaa went on to add: “Only if that is done, Manmohan Singh
will not only be doing the right thing but will also be seen as being
fair and above board”.
The alleged scam in allocation of 2G spectrum had rocked Parliament
during the UPA’s previous tenure, with the BJP as well as other
Opposition parties joining the AIADMK in making allegations of
irregularities by Mr Raja. In fact, the issue has been alive even
after the new government came to power. The Monsoon session of
Parliament saw the spectrum scam issue being raised once again.
However, with Mr Raja having strengthened his position within the DMK,
the Congress and the PM may have little say in the matter. Mr Raja’s
increased clout in the DMK is given away by his being picked over
another senior leader and former minister, TR Baalu, during portfolio
allocation after UPA II came to power.
However, with the AIADMK as well as other Opposition parties keeping
the issue alive, the spectrum scam could raise temperatures in
Congress-DMK ties if the former takes the bait of singling out Mr Raja
for the alleged irregularities.
On Mr Alagiri, Ms Jayalalithaa once again attempted to drive a wedge
between the Congress and the DMK by bringing up the letter from the
minister’s office to the Uzbek envoy.
“The letter by Alagiri's office violates communication from the
cabinet secretary which prescribes norms to be followed by officials
dealing with foreign visits, that they should not write to any foreign
embassies in India or Indian missions abroad," Ms Jayalalithaa said.
She asked the PM to "rein in his errant cabinet colleague
immediately".
The AIADMK, which had received a drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls, is
making a forceful attempt to reclaim the Opposition space after lying
low for a few months.
The party has attacked the DMK government in Tamil Nadu and the
Central government, of which Mr Karunanidhi’s party is a key
constituent, on issues such as the Sri Lankan Tamils issue and the
giving of permission to Kerala to undertake a survey for a new dam on
the Mullaiperiyar river.
bademiyansubhanallah
Kannur official files poll code violation report against Ravi
Kannur (Kerala), Oct 20
The Kannur District Collector V.K. Balakrishnan Tuesday submitted a
report to the chief electoral officer on alleged violation of the poll
code by union Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi during
campaigning last week for the Nov 7 assembly by-poll.
Balakrishnan has also filed a complaint against Congress stalwart and
Kannur MP K. Sudhakaran for threatening a government official.
Sudhakaran had last Friday alleged anomalies in the voters' list.
Ravi had at a public function last week pledged to give Rs.500,000 to
an educational institution for building a sports facility, while
Sudhakaran had alleged that more than 10,000 voters from neighbouring
constituencies were transferred to Kannur and the district
administration was keeping mum on the issue.
"I have not done anything wrong. I have several cases against me, and
one more is not going to be any problem as the CPI-M is doing
everything against me," Sudhakaran said, reacting to the news that a
non-bailable case has been registered against him.
The Congress has fielded A.P. Abdulla Kutty, who till early this year
was a two-time Lok Sabha member of the CPI-M, while the Marxist party
has fielded a heavy weight candidate in M.V. Jayarajan, who had won
from the nearby Edakadu constituency in 1996 and 2001.
Kutty was booted out of the party ahead of the May general elections
for violating party discipline.
The only time the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) has won the
Kannur seat was way back in 1977.
Since 1965 in 11 elections, the CPI-M has fielded its own candidate
only twice and on the other occasions the seat has been contested by
its allies.
In 1980 when it put up O. Bharatan and again in 2006 it put up K.P.
Sahadevan, the CPI-M candidates lost both times.
The Kannur by-election is set to see one of the most keenly contested
assembly elections.
For the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Kannur
district has been one of the strongholds for the red party.
For the CPI-M, Sudhakaran is their bogey man because in 2006 he
completed a hat trick of victories from the Kannur assembly seat. He
then rubbed the red party the wrong way by winning the Kannur Lok
Sabha seat by a huge margin this year, ending the CPI-M's success in
two earlier Lok Sabha polls.
E.P. Jayarajan, CPI-M central committee member, told reporters here
Tuesday: "The way in which Ravi campaigned has violated poll
guidelines. It is the Congress which is playing games to create
issues," he alleged.
Last updated on Oct 20th, 2009 at 14:30 pm IST--IANS
bademiyansubhanallah
Lots at stake for Delhi in today's state poll results
TNN 22 October 2009, 01:03am IST
NEW DELHI: Assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal
Pradesh hardly evoked any interest outside the jurisdictions of the
three Congress chief Sonia Gandhi during an election rally in
Maharashtra. states. But their outcome, due on Thursday, could have a
national significance, particularly if it leads to Congress retaining
power in the three states.
A 3-0 verdict after its stunning success in Lok Sabha polls will
attest to Congress's renewed ascendancy after a decade-long spell when
its pre-eminence was called into question, whet the party's ambition
to try to rule from Delhi on its own steam and strengthen its hands
vis-a-vis allies like NCP while aggravating the disarray in the BJP
and reinforcing the perception of its decline.
Conversely, an upset by Shiv Sena-BJP alliance in Maharashtra will put
a spanner in Congress's works, revive the spirits of saffronites while
nipping the perception of "national mood" favouring the restoration of
Congress domination.
The results will have important local implications as well,
particularly for players like Thackerays, Sharad Pawar and Haryana
chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
One caveat: While exit polls suggest that Sonia Gandhi's party is on
its way to secure majorities in Haryana and Arunachal assemblies, the
magic figure may elude the Congress-NCP alliance in Maharashtra. But
whether the party scores a knockout or ekes out a win on points may
not take away much from the momentum that Congress can hope for if it
finishes ahead of the Sena-BJP alliance in the Mumbai assembly
sweepstakes. A Congress sweep on Thursday, so what if it is
facilitated by a technical win in Maharashtra, will strengthen the
perception about the possible return of one-party rule at the Centre.
A boost for Congress will intensify demoralisation in the BJP, and may
escalate the factional feuding that has wracked the party since 2004.
True, it has never been much of a factor either in Arunachal Pradesh
or in Haryana. Also, the failure in Maharashtra will be more because
of the split in the Thackeray clan. But a whitewash on Thursday can
only intensify the already strong feeling of the party's continued
decline -- one of the main reasons why it could not stich up an
alliance in Mahrashtra or assert itself with Sena.
The disappointment over Congress's surge will have a bearing on the
exercise that is underway to find successors to L K Advani and Rajnath
Singh, as also on the party-RSS dynamic. RSS is unhappy with the state
of affairs in the BJP and may seek to push for a bigger say in party
affairs as the solution.
Results will mean a lot for its partner Shiv Sena as well. The
challenge that Bal Thackeray and son Uddhav face from Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena will become much more formidable if Raj Thackeray eats
into the Marathi Manoos vote bank yet again.
Maharashtra verdict will be crucial also for NCP and its boss Sharad
Pawar. Pawar suffered a major image loss when NCP failed to protect
its Lok Sabha tally in May this year, exposing the huge gap between
the Union agriculture minister's aspirations and his actual strength.
The feverish projection of Pawar as the "PM-in-waiting" annoyed
Congress leadership which is determined to avenge matters if NCP
finishes far behind.
In Haryana, Hooda is on the cusp of becoming a Subedar in his own
right if the projections of Congress win come true on Thursday. Though
indications post-poll point to a contest tougher than anticipated, the
incumbent is close to getting on to the A-list of Congress.
chhotemianinshallah
Congress party workers celebrate party's win in assembly elections in
three states. PTI Photo Photograph (1)
Cong gets two-third majority in Arunachal Pradesh
STAFF WRITER 17:27 HRS IST
Itanagar, Oct 22 (PTI) The ruling Congress today stormed back to power
in Arunachal Pradesh with a two-third majority winning 39 seats and
leading in three others in the 60-member state Assembly.
While Congress contested all the 60 seats, Trinamool Congress, which
tested its popularity for the first time in the state by putting up
candidates at 26 places, has won five seats and is leading in a seat.
The NCP, which had fielded 36 candidates, emerged victorious at six
places.
Of the 39 seats won by Congress, Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu and two
other party candidates were elected unopposed.
The results have been announced for 53 seats so far, with Congress
getting 36 seats, BJP bagging two while the others winning four seats.
The BJP had contested 18 seats.
Barring Public Health Engineering Lombo Tayeng, all ministers in the
outgoing cabinet won.
chhotemianinshallah
Congress fails to get simple majority in Haryana
STAFF WRITER 17:53 HRS IST
Chandigarh, Oct 22 (PTI) Haryana today threw up a fractured verdict in
the assembly elections with ruling Congress falling six short of the
magic figure of 46, as independents, who could play a crucial role in
government formation, won seven seats.
INLD, which has made a significant comeback, won at 31 constituencies
in the 90-member House.
With all the results declared, the Congress finished with a tally of
40 followed by INLD, whose ally Shiromani Akali Dal got one seat.
Of the remaining 18 seats, Haryana Janhit Congress-BL, a new entrant
in assembly polls, got six seats, BJP four and BSP one.
While the Congress suffered major losses conceding 27 seats it won in
2005, the INLD, led by former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala,
improved its tally to 31 from nine seats it won last time.
chhotemianinshallah
The Congress wins by default (Comment)
October 22nd, 2009 - 6:01 pm ICT by IANS -
By Amulya Ganguli
It’s been a lucky break for the Congress. The party must be thankful
that, but for a hopelessly divided opposition, it might not have made
it to the winning post in two of the three states which went to the
polls.
As much is clear in both Maharashtra and Haryana. In Arunachal
Pradesh, of course, it faced no challenge. But the outcome in the
distant northeastern state is not expected to have much of an impact
on national politics.
The Congress’ performance in the two other states, however, is bound
to cause some concern despite the formal victories. The reason is that
the party cannot ignore the disconcerting fact that in the western
Indian state, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), which helped it to
win the parliamentary polls by splitting the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) vote, has rendered the same service again.
Even then, the Congress had to struggle to reach the halfway mark
evidently because the anti-incumbency factor was working against it.
Nor is this surprising considering that drought, price rise, farmers’
suicide, the terror attack in Mumbai last November, a lacklustre state
leadership, the uneasy relations between the Congress and the
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were among the issues affecting the
ruling group’s chances.
What saved the Congress and the NCP was not only the role of the
spoiler played by the MNS, but also the absence of credible leaders in
both the Shiv Sena and the BJP. While the Sena supremo, Bal Thackeray,
is no longer his old fiery self, the hole left in the BJP by Pramod
Mahajan’s untimely death is yet to be fulfilled.
Neither Gopinath Munde nor Nitin Gadkari seems capable of arresting
the slide in the BJP’s fortunes in the state. The uncertainty in the
party about the fate of its central leaders like L.K. Advani and
Rajnath Singh must have also undermined its prospects. To make matters
worse, its ally, the Shiv Sena, has lost its sectarian plank to the
MNS, whose leader Raj Thackeray has been described by NCP leader
Sharad Pawar as more charismatic than the Sena’s working president
Uddhav Thackeray.
For the Congress, the combination of these negative factors was a
godsend. But its opportunistic dependence on the MNS means that it is
living dangerously. The Congress, of course, is not unused to such
cynical tactics. It bolstered Bal Thackeray in the 1960s to undermine
the communist trade unions in Mumbai. But it cannot be unaware that
such expediency does not enhance its prestige, especially among the
middle classes.
Besides, its unspoken links with the MNS implies that the state
government will have to go slow in the matter of booking offences
against Raj Thackeray if and when he indulges in his customary anti-
north Indian violence. That, too, will expose the Congress to
criticism.
If the Maharashtra results have brought some of the unpalatable
features of Congress politics to the fore, the Haryana outcome has
exposed the fallacies of overconfidence. When Chief Minister Bhupinder
Singh Hooda called for the elections a year ahead of schedule, he was
sure of overwhelming success.
For one, the Congress had swept the parliamentary polls last May by
winning nine of the 10 seats. For another, the opposition was in worse
disarray, at least on the surface, than even in Maharashtra.
Both the BJP and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) of Om Prakash
Chautala were down in the dumps after their severe setbacks in the Lok
Sabha elections, in which neither party could win a single seat.
When the BJP severed its links with the INLD, the Congress was even
more sure of a sweeping success. But, as always, the electorate sprung
a surprise. There was a curious resurgence of the INLD, which showed
that even a politician as unprepossessing as Chautala could not be
written off.
Although the Congress will be able to form a government in Haryana,
the INLD’s success in grabbing one-third of the seats in the 90-member
assembly means that Hooda will lose much of his earlier bluster.
The BJP must be regretting its decision to dump the INLD in favour of
Bhajan Lal’s Haryana Janhit Congress. But the fact that it continues
to play second fiddle to regional outfits in both Maharashtra and
Haryana may not worry it as much as the realisation that the
demoralisation it has been experiencing since the Lok Sabha defeat
will remain with it for the time being.
The latest setbacks mean that its central leaders will be under
greater pressure to evolve policies that have a wider appeal and sort
out the problem of the line of succession in the post-Advani period.
For the Congress, it has been a reminder that no election delivers a
final verdict. The satisfaction it felt after the parliamentary polls
must have been dissipated to a considerable extent by the latest
results, which have shown that it is winning by default. A more robust
opposition can give it a run for its money.
(22-10-2009-Amulya Ganguli is a political analyst. He can be reached
at agan...@mail.com)
chhotemianinshallah
ASSEMBLY POLLS: CONGRESS SCORES 3-0 OVER BJP IN THREE STATES
Thursday, October 22, 2009, 6:05
Initial citizen portion trends in gathering elections in threesome
states — Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh — hit
understandably indicated that the legislature is way for a threesome
null running with or without its allies against the contestant
Bharatiya Janata Party and another semipolitical rivals.
The judgement Congress-Nationalist legislature Party (NCP) is
directive in 126 Assembly way in Maharashtra. The legislature is also
doing quite substantially in Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh.
In Maharashtra, the Congress-NCP alinement appeared ordered to keep
noesis for a ordinal serial constituent with its candidates directive
in 119 of the 288 Assembly constituencies in the state.
Jadhav Bhaskar Bhaurao of the NCP has won Guhagar seat.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-Shiv Sena consortium is aweigh in 85,
Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in 13 and others in
39 constituencies.
In the Amravati seat, legislature nominee and President Pratibha
Patil”’’s son Raosaheb Shekhawat was chase behindhand band protest
Sunil Deshmukh by 2,532 votes.
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, who is directive in Bhokar constituency,
said: “This conclusion is the conclusion of Congress-NCP team.”
In Haryana, the legislature has won threesome way and has ingrained
advance in 38 way in the 90-member Assembly.
The Amerindic National Lok Dal (INLD) is directive in 23 and the BJP
in 6 and others in 17 seats.
Former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala of INLD is chase in Uchana
Kalan against Birender Singh of the Congress.
The legislature was directive in Uchana Kalan, Ambala City, Ambala
Cantt, Ferozepur Jhirka, Israna Reserve, Panipat City, Sadhaura and
Tohana.
In Arunachal Pradesh, the legislature has won 11 way and directive in
sextet in the 60-member house.
Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu and digit another legislature candidates
hit already been elected unopposed.
Sid Harth
Poll defeat shows BJP losing national stature: Cong
IANS 22 October 2009, 07:21pm IST
NEW DELHI: A jubilant Congress on Thursday said the assembly poll
results showed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was "losing its
national
stature" and that people are increasingly aligning with the Congress
across the country.
"The election results in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh
have shown that the Congress is the only party working for the welfare
of the people. For the BJP, it is not down... but almost out of the
national political scene. It is losing its national stature," said
party general secretary V Narayanasamy.
Narayanasamy, the minister of state for Parliamentary Affairs, told
IANS that the Congress win was an indication that people supported the
policies and programmes implemented by the state and the United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre.
"This is a mandate given by the people for the able leadership of
Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
general secretary Rahul Gandhi," said Narayanasamy, who is also the
All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of
Arunachal Pradesh.
The ruling Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance is poised to
win 148 seats in the 288-member Maharashtra assembly, while the party
has swept the 60-seat Arunachal Pradesh assembly elections as widely
expected. However, in Haryana it is six seats short of majority in the
90-member assembly.
bademiyansubhanallah
Assembly polls 2009: No BJP raj without “Raj”
Posted by Santosh Joy on Thursday, October 22, 2009
The talk in BJP circles is that the only way to beat the Congress
party’s winning rally in Maharashtra is to come to some kind of
understanding with Raj Thackery and his outfit the Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena or MNS.
The BJP was Routed in the state assembly polls, and party leaders are
now openly advocating the importance of being with Raj Thakary. An
internal assessment of the party has concluded that atleast 30 seats
were lost to Raj Thackery and there now seems to be a revived effort
to make the point known to Shiv Sena and Bal Thackery.
“It is Raj Thackery who has the charisma and legacy of Bal Thackery,
he is a natural leader,” said a senior party leader requesting the
journalists around not to quote him as the BJP-Shiv Sena reality was
still in force.
Another discussion in party circles is how Raj changed his campaign
strategy of attacking Congress vigorously during the last two days of
the election campaign. “There was a word around that Raj was trying to
go with Congress. To puncture the propaganda, Raj played the card of
mimicking Sonia Gandhi in the rallies. That’s the trait of a true
politician,” said another party leader.
When confronted with the query that when can the party probably think
of snapping ties with Shiv Sena and go with the MNS, he said,”atleast
not till Balasaheb (Bal Thackery) is alive.”
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP Leader LK Advani. Photo Courtesy: AFP.Advani equates situation in
Maha to 'Lalu's Bihar'
Sun-Oct 11, 2009
Mumbai / Press Trust of India
Describing the Congress-NCP government in Maharashtra as inefficient
and corrupt, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Lal Krishna Advani on
Sunday urged people to throw it out of power in October 13 assembly
polls.
Speaking at an election rally, Advani said that during the last 10
years, Congress-NCP government made huge losses and had done to the
state, what Lalu Prasad Yadav did to Bihar.
"In a democracy," he said people have the right to elect new
government or continue with the present regime and people had suffered
a lot due to the corrupt and inefficient policies of the Democratic
Front government.
"I have seen anger and resentment against the government. Rural and
urban people are suffering, farmers are committing suicide.
Maharashtra, the state once ahead in industrial development is now
lagging. The state has been facing load shedding for 12-18 hours each
day," he said.
Citing the example of Gujarat, Advani said that there is no load
shedding in any village of the state.
The Congress-NCP government used money and atrocity as Lalu Prasad
Yadav did in Bihar, he said and added that during Emergency, Congress
jailed many leaders, but after the emergency it was defeated.
Lambasting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, he said, "Manmohan Singh has
promised that he would control rising prices of essential commodities,
but he failed in checking the price rise. Where there is corruption,
there is price rise.
Corruption is the cause of price rise and the Prime Minister had
failed to check the corruption."
The senior BJP leader praised Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
saying that he was not only a warrior but also a good and honest
administrator.
bademiyansubhanallah
Cong to decide Maha chief ministership: Pawar
Thu-Oct 22, 2009
New Delhi / Press Trust of India
NCP leader Sharad Pawar on Thursday said it was for the Congress to
decide the chief ministership virtually dismissing his partymen's
demand for rotation of the post.
"Congress will decide...," was his response to a query whether Ashok
Chavan will continue to be the CM if the Congress-NCP combine was
voted to power.
NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal had advocated
rotation of the post of chief minister in the state like in Jammu and
Kashmir recently. He, however, today said it was his personal opinion.
To a query on what was the single biggest factor for the impressive
show of Congress-NCP, Pawar said the leadership of Shiv Sena-BJP did
not succeed in inspiring the confidence of the voters.
Noting that mature voters in Maharashtra have rejected the leadership
of Uddhav Thackeray and did not take him seriously, Pawar said, they
(voters) do not trust them "to deliver the goods".
"Congress-NCP has done well... We have received extremely good
response in rural Maharashtra. Of course in urban areas also," the
Union Agriculture Minister said.
Indicating that there would be no problem from the NCP in government
formation, Pawar said, "we want a stable and result oriented
government and a good relationship between the two parties."
Pawar said the farmer community "seem to be supporting" them because
of Manmohan Singh government's policy at the national level and its
implementation by Congress-NCP government in the state.
"There should not be any problem to form the government," he added.
Asked if the NCP could have contested more seats, he said the
performance of the party was not well in the Lok Sabha elections
indicating the reasons why the NCP contested on lesser number of seats
than last time.
NCP fielded its candidates at 114 seats this time against 124 in 2004,
while Congress contested 174 seats, ten more than last time.
To a query whether the party would ask for the deputy chief minister's
post, he said "that is an understanding. There is nothing new in it."
Pawar said the party was encouraging new leadership and younger
leaders and dismissed reports that rebel candidates are winning in the
state in large numbers. "Official candidates are performing well...,"
he said.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP Flag.BJP blames EVMs for defeat, backtracks
Thu-Oct 22, 2009
New Delhi / Press Trust of India
BJP on Thursday sought to blame "manipulation" of EVMs for its poor
performance in assembly elections in three states but later
backtracked saying there could be other reasons for the party's
defeat.
BJP election in-charge for assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana and
Arunachal Pradesh, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said manipulation of Electronic
Voting Machines had led to Congress victory in these elections.
"The EVMs have become Electronic Victory Machines for the Congress. In
Maharashtra, we received reports that in 73 constituencies, 600 votes
had been cast in one hour. Similarly, in Haryana, 300 votes were cast
in one hour in 47 seats," Naqvi said.
The senior BJP leader maintained that not only his party but other
political parties had raised doubts about the credibility of EVMs.
"How can five votes be cast in one minute," he asked.
When asked if EVMs were manipulated in the past in states like
Chhattisgarh and Gujarat where the BJP had won, Naqvi said, "Don't
look at the results but at the credibility of EVMs."
However, soon thereafter he retracted on his statement, ostensibly
after being pressurised by the party higher-ups.
"I would request you not to look at these assembly elections from the
point of view of EVMs alone. Once all the results are announced, we
will analyse the reasons for the party's performance," Naqvi said.
When asked if he was back-tracking on the issue under pressure, Naqvi
said, "We will take up the issue of EVMs with the Election Commission.
The technical question is still there."
The BJP vice-president said the ordinary workers of the party had
laboured hard during the polls.
"We fought these elections on the issue of price rise, corruption,
lack of law and order, farmers' suicide and bijli, sadak, paani
(power, roads and water)," he said.
bademiyansubhanallah
Cong supporters celebrating victory
Thu-Oct 22, 2009
New Delhi / Press Trust of India
As trends indicated a Congress victory in all the three states which
went to polls, AICC headquarters in New Delhi reverberated with drum
beats and bursting of crackers as party supporters started celebrating
the 'win'.
Impromptu dance to the tunes of drum beats by Congress supporters
carrying party flags could be seen since morning in front of the
headquarters on Akbar Road and the adjoining 10 Janpath, the residence
of party President Sonia Gandhi.
Anticipating a Congress victory as indicated by the exit polls, the
party supporters had gathered even before the first result was
officially announced.
Carrying placards with photographs of Sonia Gandhi, AICC General
Secretary Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra, the supporters shouted
slogans and danced on the streets holding the traffic on the busy
Akbar Road.
They distributed sweets amongst themselves and also to the
mediapersons who were present there.
A 'Vijay Rath' (victory chariot) was brought in front of the entrance
of 10 Janpath and supporters hailed Gandhi for providing a leadership
which led to victory first in the Lok Sabha polls and then in the
Assembly elections in the three states.
A steady stream of visitors met Gandhi to congratulate her for the
success of the party in the elections.
Sid Harth
BJP loses, but has Cong won?
Vinod Sharma, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, October 22, 2009
First Published: 23:59 IST(22/10/2009)
Last Updated: 00:00 IST(23/10/2009)
Barring the cakewalk in Arunachal Pradesh, the Congress has little
reason to rejoice over its showing in the October 13 assembly
elections, the results of which were declared on Thursday.
A divided Opposition helped it buck anti-incumbency in Maharashtra.
But in Haryana, it seemed to have bucked defeat despite its number of
seats coming down by 27.
The Congress’s tally of 40 in the 90-member Haryana assembly is way
below the 67 it held in the previous House.
On the final count, it was three less than the aggregate score of Om
Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Bhajan Lal’s
Haryana Janhit Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which
went alone this time. Politically, the INLD’s claim of the combined
Opposition having won 50:40 didn’t look exaggerated.
Imagine the Congress’s plight had the Opposition not been divided
before the elections. “It would have been a rout,” admitted a leader
who lost his assembly seat. The crowded race, made five-cornered by
the Bahujan Samaj Party, was a “barely disguised blessing”, he said.
Yes, but only a part blessing. If Bhupinder Singh Hooda continues as
chief minister, he’d lack the aura of a clear winner.
He ceded so much ground that Chautala, his principal opponent, more
than tripled his previous tally of nine.
Even Bhajan Lal and the BJP registered gains in the hung assembly.
It remains to be seen whether the Congress will make a pitch for power
with the support of Independents or by patching up with party renegade
Bhajan Lal? As the single-largest entity, it has the first right to
invitation by the governor -- a factor that can tilt the balance when
the numbers don’t seem to add up.
For the present, it is Bhajan Lal’s and the independently elected
legislators’ movement of fame and opportunity.
But no such arithmetic or calisthenics are needed in Maharashtra,
where the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (Congress-NCP) combine
is set for a third consecutive term. And for that, it has to thank the
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s (MNS’s) Raj Thackeray, who crippled the
Sena-BJP challenge in a neat repeat of the Lok Sabha polls. “We gained
from the
division of the anti-incumbency vote between the MNS, the Republican
Left Democratic Front and the BJP-Shiv
Sena,” a top Congress functionary said.
The losing side blamed the MNS for ensuring the Congress-NCP victory.
But Shrish Parkar, a close aide of Raj Thackeray, justified his
leader’s spoiler tactics as an investment for the future.
“What division of votes,” he asked. “We are here to do politics. We
aren’t the Shiv Sena’s bonded labour.”
A double defeat this for Raj’s cousin Uddhav Thackeray?
Sid Harth
Renewed mandate for Cong in Maha, Arunachal; Haryana shocks
Varghese K George , Hindustan Times
New Delhi, October 22, 2009
First Published: 12:28 IST(22/10/2009)
Last Updated: 02:09 IST(23/10/2009)
The Congress did not win as much as the opposition parties lost. But
it has the mandate now to push ahead with its agenda on education,
climate change and disinvestments.
The first round of assembly elections after the 15th general elections
in May endorsed the Congress and showed the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP), the principal opposition, continuing its downward slide.
The Congress is set to retain power in all three states that voted on
October 13 — sweeping Arunachal Pradesh, narrowly winning Maharashtra
in alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and holding on
to Haryana with a new partner, having failed to win a majority on its
own.
With Thursday’s results, Congress and its allies are in power in 14
states and Union Territories, BJP and its allies in nine, and others
in the remaining seven.
The results also reinforce the trend of voters returning incumbent
governments — in elections after 2004, at least nine governments in
big states have retained power while an equal number lost power, a
decent 50 per cent.
This will be the third Congress-led government in a row in
Maharashtra, the fourth in Arunachal Pradesh and the second in a row
in Haryana, a state famously untrusting of incumbent governments
since it was formed in 1966.
The fresh bout of public support could accelerate the new thrust that
the Congress is attempting in policies related to education, climate
change and disinvestments, since it returned to power in May with a
decreased dependence on alliance partners.
The Congress could get more assertive in its dealings with partners.
“The results show the people’s trust in the party to govern and in its
ability to take decisions in national interest. This will energise the
organisation and strengthen the UPA government,” said Digvijay Singh,
AICC general secretary and Maharashtra in charge.
However, there are signs of trouble for the Congress in the victory.
The party did not face a formidable opposition in any of the three
states.
In Maharashtra its victory was in part due to Raj Thackeray cutting
into BJP-Shiv Sena votes, campaigning on a parochial agenda.
But it’s the BJP that should be the most worried about the Maharashtra
results, where it failed to take advantage of the shrinking support
for the Congress-NCP combine.
“Anti-incumbency vote got divided in Maharashtra and in Haryana, where
we contested alone to build our party.
“We have to introspect honestly, overcome our weaknesses and learn to
speak in one voice,” said BJP spokesman Ravishankar Prasad.
In contrast, in Haryana, the Congress seems to have substantially
eroded its base since May when it had 41.8 percent against Indian
National Lok Dal (INLD)’s 15.8 percent.
While the INLD made a dramatic comeback, the Congress is in need of a
new a friend.
Arunachal Pradesh continued with the May trend when Congress had more
than 50 per cent of the votes.
Sid Harth
Chautala back in business, with a bang
Hitender Rao
Chandigarh, October 23, 2009
First Published: 00:27 IST(23/10/2009)
Last Updated: 00:29 IST(23/10/2009)
Rising from the ashes like a Phoenix would be the apt aphorism to
describe the performance of Om Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok
Dal (INLD) in the Haryana assembly elections. Orchestrating a grand
political revival, the INLD has emerged as the surprise package,
winning 31 of the 90 seats in the assembly on its own.
The INLD was down in the dumps with nine seats after the assembly
elections in February 2005 and failed to win any seat in the Lok Sabha
elections in May. In this election, no one gave the party an outside
chance of getting anywhere close to the double digit mark. But the
INLD proved its detractors horribly wrong by scripting an incredible
performance. The win will also breathe new life into the rank and file
of the party.
The icing on the cake for the party has been the twin wins for INLD
supremo Om Prakash Chautala from Uchana Kalan and Ellenabad and an
impressive victory for his elder son, Ajay Singh from Dabwali.
The party swept the politically critical Jind district, winning all
five seats and wrapping up four of the five seats in Sirsa district.
An ecstatic Chautala did not waste any time announcing that his outfit
and other non-Congress parties would jointly stake claim to form the
next government. “If all the Opposition parties and Independents come
together, we will have the required numbers to form the government,”
Chautala told presspersons here on Thursday.
He said the INLD was in touch with all non-Congress parties and
Independents and would soon approach the Governor to stake their
claim. “People have given the Opposition the mandate to rule the state
and not to sit in the Opposition this time. The Congress has lost the
moral authority to form the government.”
The debacle in the Lok Sabha elections saw the INLD losing all the
seats it contested. It also witnessed desertions by a string of top
leaders such as Sampat Singh, Kailasho Saini and Sushil Kumar Indora.
Then came the parting of ways with the BJP just before the assembly
polls. After all this, the INLD was written off and looked set to fade
into oblivion. Its cadre looked demoralised and its leaders
perplexed.
So what brought about the turnaround? Poll pundits said the INLD’s
comprehensive win in the Jat heartland of Jind and impressive
victories in the Sirsa, Kaithal and Bhiwani districts indicated a
shift of Jat votes from the Congress to the INLD.
Along with this was the early launch of the campaign, a skillfully
managed poll and media campaign piloted by Chautala’s younger son,
Abhey Singh and its now-or-never attitude.
To a certain extent the INLD has also benefited from the faulty
distribution of tickets by the Congress and its own very fair
allocation of party nominations based solely on merit.
Sid Harth
Cong slips in Haryana
Navneet Sharma, Hindustan Times
Chandigarh, October 23, 2009
First Published: 00:24 IST(23/10/2009)
Last Updated: 00:26 IST(23/10/2009)
Voter in Haryana on Thursday delivered a fractured verdict, triggering
frantic parleys by the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)
for forming the government.
The Congress is six short of a simple majority but is within striking
distance of power with 40 seats in the 90-member assembly. It can
still form the government but with the help of others.
The key to power rests with former CM Bhajan Lal’s Haryana Janhit
Congress (HJC), which has won six seats, and seven Independents.
Top central leaders of the Congress were in touch with Lal and his son
Kuldeep Bishnoi, besides the Independents.
Om Prakash Chautala’s INLD is not far behind with 31 seats. Partner
Shironmani Akali Dal has won one seat. Chautala has also thrown his
hat in the ring, claiming support of the Independents.
“People have voted us to power and not for us to sit in the
Opposition…,” he said.
The kingmakers
The INLD will have to bring the HJC (BL) on its side with other non-
Congress parties and most of the Independents for a shot at power. The
Congress, on the other hand, is five short of the halfway mark and
could do with support from the HJC (BL) alone or all the Independents
or both.
Though the Congress leaders appear confident of bringing Lal on board,
it’s not good news for Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Lal and
his son Kuldeep Bishnoi are opposed to his continuation and are learnt
to have conveyed it to the Congress. They have also sought two cabinet
berths including the post of deputy CM.
Lal had led the Congress to power in the state in the 2005 polls, but
Hooda got the top job.
Lal and Bishnoi then rebelled and floated HJC two years ago. “Our
options are open. I have called a meeting of the party MLAs in Delhi
tomorrow to decide our strategy,” Bishnoi told HT on Thursday.
Cong miscalculation
Hooda and his strategists, who had opted for early polls after the Lok
Sabha triumph, were hoping for a smooth ride benefiting from their
“Number One Haryana” campaign, a splintered opposition contest and the
absence of any obvious anti-incumbency factors.
They have now been left fumbling. The party has not only fallen short,
many of its top leaders have lost.
Barring the three districts of Rohtak, Sonepat and Jhajjar, the party
has slumped in most other areas.
The presence of a large number of disgruntled party leaders as rebels
hurt the official nominees in about a dozen constituencies.
INLD comeback
On the verge of being written off after its poor showing in three
successive elections followed by desertions, the INLD has sprung a
surprise. Chautala is not only bounced back but has also regained
support among the Jats in Jind, Kaithal, Fatehabad and some other
areas.
The party has also won seats in different parts of the state, besides
doing exceptionally well in Jind and Sirsa districts.
Sid Harth
In battle for states, dynasty wins
Dharmendra Jore and Ketaki Ghoge, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, October 23, 2009
First Published: 00:18 IST(23/10/2009)
Last Updated: 00:19 IST(23/10/2009)
Political dynasties seem here to stay despite recurrent criticism that
they deny other eligible party workers an opportunity to grow. In this
assembly election, more than a dozen seats went to son and daughters
of influential politicians.
All political parties, but especially the ruling Congress and
Nationalist Congress Party combine, fielded politicians’ relatives.
But voters are discriminating, choosing only those among these who are
worthy, said Surendra Jondhale, a political analyst.
“I don’t think people vote blindly,” he said. “They want to see fresh,
young faces, so most of these youngsters get a chance. Somebody like
Praniti Shinde wins also because of the work she’s done in the
constituency while Ganesh Naik’s son or Gopinath Munde’s daughter won
because their parents nurture their constituencies so strongly.”
As expected, Amit Deshmukh (33), son of Vilasrao Deshmukh, former
chief minister and union heavy industries minister, won his father’s
Latur seat.
Praniti Shinde (29), daughter of Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar
Shinde, retained Solapur for the family.
The controversial Amravati seat in Vidarbha that hogged the limelight
went to President Pratibha Patil’s son Rajendra
Shekhwat despite a tough fight put up by two-term legislator and
minister of state Sunil Deshmukh.
The Congress had fielded a host of second-generation politicians,
recommended by Rahul Gandhi, such as Prashant Thakur (Panvel), Nilesh
Parvekar (Yavatmal), Sangram Thopte (Bhor), Rajiv Satav (Kalamnuri)
and Yashomati Thakur (Teosa), all of who won by handsome margins.
Of the lot, Rajubaba Awale, son of state Congress executive president
Jayawat Awale and Shekhar Shende (Wardha), son of deputy speaker of
Assembly, Pramod Shende, lost.
The voters of Arvi in Wardha rejected a two-term generation-next
Congressman Amar Kale (Arvi). They chose a BJP candidate over him.
In neighboring Deoli, Himachal Governor and ex-MPPC chief Prabha Rau’s
nephew Ranjit Kamble scored a hat trick.
Negative voting cost NCP minister of state, Rana Jagjitsinh Patil, his
Osmanabad seat to Omraje Nimbalkar because of his father Padamsinh
Patil’s alleged involvement in Omraje Nimbalkar’s father’s murder.
In the NCP, Pankaj Bhujbal, son of deputy chief minister Chhagan
Bhujbal, won his seat as did Sandeep Naik, son of environment minister
Ganesh Naik.
Both father-son duos were elected and will be seen in the state
assembly. From the BJP, senior leader Gopinath Munde’s daughter,
Pankaja Munde-Palave, won from her hometown, Beed. Shiv Sena’s Abhjit
Adsul, son of Amravati MP Anand Adsul won from Daryapur.
But Munde’s niece and daughter of BJP’s slain leader Pramod Mahajan,
Poonam Mahajan-Rao, lost to an MNS dark horse in Ghakopar (West) in
Mumbai.
Sid Harth
Congress may retain CMs in three states
BS Reporter / New Delhi October 23, 2009, 0:23 IST
As the Congress held its fort in the key industrial states of Haryana
and Maharashtra and strategically important Arunachal Pradesh, the
three incumbent chief Ministers — Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Ashok Chavan
and Dorjee Khandu — are likely to retain their place in the new
governments.
But while the two chief ministers in Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh
are sitting pretty, pressure is mounting on Hooda as the party has
failed to reach the simple majority mark of 46 seats in the 90-seat
Haryana Assembly.
The Congress managers privately admit that they had expected a much
better result in Haryana, given a weak Opposition alliance, after Om
Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), former Congress CM
Bhajanlal’s Haryana Janhit Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) failed to forge a pre-poll alliance.
According to top Congress sources, party president Sonia Gandhi was
not in favour of changing the chief ministers on account of the
‘continuity factor’. Five months ago, during the formation of the
second United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre,
Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh gave a lot of weight to this
continuity issue and reinstated the same faces in key portfolios like
P Chidambaram (Home), Pranab Mukherjee (Finance) and A K Antony
(Defence).
This time, too, after winning the ‘prestige battle’ in three states —
the first series of Assembly elections after the Lok Sabha polls — the
incumbent CMs are all set to get another chance to rule the state.
“Why should incumbent CMs be removed when the party has returned to
power?” said a top minister of the Central government.
Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, however, appeared
to be trying his luck for the CM’s chair today as the Congress-NCP
alliance is set to retain power.
bademiyansubhanallah
I have performed: Ashok Chavan
(Source: IANS)
Published: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 at 13:45 IST
F Prev Next LNew Delhi: Hitting back at union minister and his
predecessor Vilasrao Deshmukh for refusing to give him credit,
Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan said the Congress party's
performance in the assembly polls this time was better than that in
previous elections.
"The performance of the Congress is better" than the previous assembly
polls, Chavan said. Political analysts say the Congress-NCP alliance
could end up with some 140 seats in the 288-member Maharashtra
assembly.
When the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) alliance fought
elections in 2004, the party finished second by winning 69 seats, two
less than the NCP. Chavan took over from Deshmukh as chief minister
after the Mumbai terror attacks last year.
Reacting to Deshmukh's remark that Chavan's performance as chief
minister could not be judged as he got "hardly got six months" to
govern the state, Chavan said his dispensation had taken "major
decisions" in whatever time it had got.
"As a leader of the Congress party and as the leader of the
legislative party of the Congress and NCP together, I have led the
government... last eight, nine months I have performed," Chavan told a
TV channel.
"People have voted for the performance of the government, people have
voted for the leadership of (Congress president) Sonia Gandhi," Chavan
said. "She sent me as the chief minister," Chavan said and added that
she would decide who would be the next chief minister.
Deshmukh had said the new Congress legislature party and its high
command would choose the next chief minister.
Deshmukh, who was forced to quit the chief minister's post after the
terror attack in Mumbai last year, said his "stand was vindicated by
the people of Maharashtra".
Chavan also ruled out taking the support of Raj Thackeray's
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), which was on track to bag at least
four seats and was leading in another dozen-odd seats around the
state.
"We have nothing to do with the war between the Shiv Sena and MNS," is
how Chavan dismissed the issue.
The Congress-NCP coalition has had three different chief ministers in
the last two terms -- Vilasrao Deshmukh, then Sushilkumar Shinde,
followed by Deshmukh again and the present incumbent Chavan.
bademiyansubhanallah
Who is the next Maharashtra CM?
Published by: Amit Tiwari
Published: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 at 10:46 IST
F Prev Next LNew Delhi: After winning the assembly elections 2009 3-0,
the battle for next Maharshtra Chief Minister has begun. However, the
Congress High Command will meet today to take the final decision in
this regard.
Incumbent Chief Minister Ashok Chavan is the frontrunner for the Chief
Minister's post. Ashok Chavan should be awarded with the post as he
managed the coalition and power very well in short tenure of nine
months.
After the results, Chavan didn't miss a chance to project himself as
CM but also said that it is the high command who will decide the name.
However, former Maharshtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh dismissed
the speculation regarding his name for the race for post but said that
his policies were major factor to bring back the coalition in power
for the third-time in a row.
He never missed an opportunity to praise his tenure as well. He
skipped the question when asked Chavan's role in the victory.
He further said that he was very much happy with the post at Centre
would stay in Delhi.
He played major role in ticket distribution and poll campaign but
party high command is looking in a fix to reappoint him as Chief
Minister. Deshmukh's appointment as CM could disturb the political
equation within the party.
Narayan Rane is the next name for the post. Rane had raised the revolt
in past against Chavan's appointment. However, Rane knows that he
can't be promoted to top post and Congress will also not take the risk
to anger the Maratha lobby after appointing him as CM.
bademiyansubhanallah
Bal Thackeray blames people for pushing state into 'hell'
(Source: IANS)
Published: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 at 10:51 IST
In an editorial in the Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna, which expressed
the party's shock and anguish over its rout in the 2009 assembly
polls, the Sena chief and the newspaper's editor wondered what were
the great achievements of the Democratic Front government in the past
10 years that made people to vote for it.
"There was corruption, load-shedding, Maoist terror which killed
policemen, suicides of thousands of farmers, Mumbai terror attacks,
etc," Thackeray noted in the editorial.
The results of the assembly elections held Oct 13 gave the Congress 82
seats and the NCP 62 -- totalling 144 in the 288-member assembly. The
opposition alliance got a drubbing with only 90 seats, the Shiv Sena
getting 44 and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 46. The Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena (MNS) got 13 seats.
Thackeray blamed the people for the defeat of the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) saffron alliance and for bringing back a
"naalayak" (useless) government.
Comparing the latest elections to the Mahabharata, in which truth had
triumphed, Thackeray said the only difference was that in this
electoral Mahabharat the Kauravas (untruth) had emerged victorious.
"If the people re-elect the Narakasura for the third consecutive time,
what can we say," he said.
He hit out at the Congress for adopting the old British policy of
divide and rule and said the party had split Marathi votes to capture
power.
It did not spare even the independents, rebels and the Third Front who
were hoping to make it big in case of a hung assembly, the editorial
said. In many cases, it seemed to aid the defeat of good candidates,
with the hope that it would benefit in the ensuing "horse-trading".
"Unfortunately for them, since the Congress-NCP has secured a clear
majority, the horses (of this lot of independents, rebels, etc) shall
remain in the stables," Thackeray pointed out sarcastically.
He even ticked off Republican Party of India (RPI) leader Ramdas
Athavale, who led the 19-party Republican Left Democratic Front
(RLDF). Many of the parties could not win a single seat in the Oct 13
elections.
bademiyansubhanallah
Final results of assembly elections
(Source: IANS)
Published: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 at 22:26 IST
F Prev Next LNew Delhi: The Election Commission of India has declared
the final results of the Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunchal Pradesh
assembly elections.
Arunachal Pradesh:
Seats: 60
Bharatiya Janata Party - 3
Indian National Congress - 42
Nationalist Congress Party - 5
All India Trinamool Congress - 5
Others - 5
Haryana:
Seats: 90
Bahujan Samaj Party - 1
Bharatiya Janata Party - 4
Indian National Congress - 40
Haryana Janhit Congress (BL) - 6
Indian National Lok Dal - 31
Shiromani Akali Dal - 1
Others - 7
Maharashtra:
Seats: 288
Bharatiya Janata Party - 46
Communist Party of India (Marxist) - 1
Indian National Congress - 82
Nationalist Congress Party - 62
Samajwadi Party - 4
Shiv Sena - 44
Others - 49
bademiyansubhanallah
Election results clinch wings of many political bigwigs
Published by: Sudhir Kumar
Published: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 at 22:18 IST
New Delhi: Results of assembly polls are shockers for many political
big-wigs as they have bitten dust in the arena of elections. Prominent
among those who lost the elections are Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam,
NCP leaders Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil and Surup Singh Naik.
The NCP candidate defeated Kadam in the Guhagar constituency of
coastal Konkan. Former deputy chief minister and NCP candidate
Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil couldn't protect his Pandharpur bastion in
Solapur district. He was trounced by Swabhiman Paksha's candidate
Bharat Bhalke.
Samajwadi Party candidate Sharad Gavit emerged victorious in Navpur of
Nandurbar by defeating NCP candidate Surupsingh Naik. The result of
Akkalkot assembly constituency was a bolt from the blue to Siddharam
Mhetre as Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Siddharamppa Patil showed
him door.
BJP candidate Krishna Khopde won against Satish Chaturvedi in Nagpur
East. Vasant Gite of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) succeeded in
winning Nashik Central seat. He defeated former minister Shobha
Bachchav.
BJP candidate Sudhakar Deshmukh won Nagpur West seat. He shattered
dream of minister in outgoing cabinet Anees Ahmed to reach the
assembly. NCP candidate Shashikant Shinde defeated former state
revenue minister Shalinitai Patil in Koregaon.
Shiv Sena candidate Omraje Nimbalkar won Osmanabad seat by defeating
NCP candidate Rana Jagatsinh Patil. Ram Kadam of MNS won Ghatkopar
West seat by defeating Poonam Mahajan, niece of senior BJP leader
Gopinath Munde.
Former ace cricketer Vinod Kambli lost his maiden off the ground poll
battle. He was a candidate of Lok Bharati. MNS candidate Mangesh
Sangle defeated Kambli in Vikhroli seat of north-east Mumbai.
bademiyansubhanallah
Many big losers in Maharashtra polls
(Source: IANS)
Published: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 at 20:23 IST
F Prev Next LMumbai: Shiv Sena's Leader of Opposition Ramdas Kadam led
the pack of prominent personalities who lost out in the 2009
Maharashtra assembly elections.
Kadam lost to the Nationalist Congress Party in the Guhagar
constituency of coastal Konkan.
He was not alone. There were many other big names from different
parties who could not win or retain their seats this time.
The NCP lost its former deputy chief minister Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil
in Pandharpur (Solapur district), to a little-known candidate Bharat
Bhalke of Swabhiman Paksha.
Former NCP minister Surupsingh Naik was trounced by Sharad Gavit of
Samajwadi Party (SP) in Navpur in Nandurbar.
Minister in the outgoing cabinet Siddharam Mhetre was trounced by
BJP's Siddharamppa Patil on Akkalkot seat in Solapur.
Another powerful leader belonging to a family of politicians, Madan
Patil was trounced in Sangli by BJP's Sambhaji Pai.
Former Congress minister Satish Chaturvedi lost to BJP's Krishna
Khopde in Nagpur East.
Former minister Shobha Bachchav lost to Vasant Gite of Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena (MNS) in Nashik Central seat.
Minister in outgoing cabinet Anees Ahmed lost to BJP's Sudhakar
Deshmukh in Nagpur West seat.
Sada Sarvankar, Sena's legislator turned rebel, who contested on a
Congress ticket, lost to Mahrashtra Navnirman Sena's Nitin Sardesai in
Mahim, Mumbai.
Former Congress minister and senior leader Rohidas Patil lost to
Sena's Sharad Patil from Dhule Rural seat.
Former state revenue minister Shalinitai Patil, wife of former chief
minister Vasantdada Patil, who stood as an independent, lost to NCP's
Shashikant Shinde in Koregaon.
NCP's minister of state Rana Jagatsinh Patil lost to Shiv Sena's
Omraje Nimbalkar from Osmanabad.
Farmer widow, Bebitai Bais lost miserably to Wamanrao Kasawar of
Congress in Wani; the sitting Shiv Sena legislator was defeated in
what became a direct contest between the two parties.
Poonam Mahajan, niece of senior BJP leader Gopinath Munde, was
trounced by Ram Kadam of MNS in Ghatkopar West seat.
Former ace cricketer Vinod Kambli contesting on a Lok Bharati ticket,
was trounced by MNS' Mangesh Sangle, in Vikhroli seat of north-east
Mumbai.
Independent and green activist Vivek Pandit trounced the strongman of
Bahujan Vikash Aghadi, Narayan Mankar in Vasai seat of Thane district.
Sid Harth
For crorepati candidates, money no ticket to poll success
23 Oct 2009, 1409 hrs IST, TNN
NEW DELHI: Being loaded definitely helps at poll time but it does not
guarantee victory , if assembly elections 2009 are anything to go by.
Preliminary analysis suggests that crorepati candidates were evenly
poised at the hustings and their substantial assets played little role
in deciding their political destiny.
For instance, according to data analysed by National Election Watch,
in Haryana, a majority of candidates were crorepatis. Of the 489
candidates, a staggering 251 had declared assets worth more than a
crore. Among those who top the list are Haryana Janhit Congress’s
Mohit followed by Congress’s Vinod Sharma who won from Ambala City.
While Mohit’s assets came to a whopping Rs 92 crore, it could not
secure him a seat while Sharma won. Of the top 20 candidates analysed,
10 won while the rest lost the election.
The situation was the same in Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh as
well. In Maharashtra, 22% of candidates were crorepatis, that is 461
of 2,069 candidates had assets over Rs 1 crore. NCP topped the list
with 74% of its candidates being crorepatis, followed by Congress with
63% and BJP with 52%. Eleven of the top 20 crorepati candidates won
while nine lost. The total assets of all candidates in Maharashtra
amounted to Rs 2,542 crore with an average of Rs 1.2 crore per
candidate.
The wealthiest candidate in Maharashtra was Abu Azmi, Samajwadi Party
candidate from Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar constituency, with assets of Rs
126 crore. He was followed by Shiv Sena’s Sureshkumar Bikamchand Jain
from Jalgaon Urban with Rs 79 crore and Congress’s Rajkumar Sumermal
Bafna from Malabar Hill with 34 crore.
The trend continued in Arunachal with 10 crorepati candidates winning
and the rest losing. Of the 151 candidates contesting elections in the
state, 63 had declared assets of over a crore that is about 41.72%.
The richest candidate was Takam Tagar representing People’s Party of
Arunachal for Palin constituency. His assets totalled Rs 209 crore. A
distant second , paling in comparison with assets worth Rs 24 crore,
was Congress’s Nabam Rebia who won from Doimukh constituency with
6,752 votes.
Sid Harth
Raj Thackeray succeeds in halting march of cousin Uddhav
23 Oct 2009, 1209 hrs IST, TNN
MUMBAI: Assembly poll debutant Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s chief Raj
Thackeray on Thursday took Mumbai by storm when his party nominees
mauled Shiv Sena candidates in their heartland — the contiguous
Lalbaug-Parel-Dadar-Mahim area.
For well over three decades, the three assembly constituencies of
Parel, Dadar and Mahim were held by the saffron Maratha chauvinist
Shiv Sena. In the wake of delimitation , the three constituencies were
merged into two and renamed Sewri and Mahim. In Mahim, MNS nominee
Nitin Sardesai defeated Sena’s Aadesh Bandekar and Congress candidate
Sada Sarwankar, a Sena man who had defected to the Congress a day
before filing the nomination. In Sewri, MNS nominee Bala Nandgaonkar
defeated sitting Sena MLA Dagdu Sakpal by a margin of over 6,000
votes.
After the Congress-NCP , which won 20 seats in Mumbai, the MNS, using
more strident tactics and stronger Maratha rhetoric, has now emerged
as the second largest party in the metropolis: it won six seats, while
the BJP won five, the Sena four and the Third Front one. In fact, the
MNS has delivered a double whammy to the Sena in Mumbai. Not only has
it bested Uddhav Thackeray’s Sena, it has also ensured the defeat of
Sena-BJP candidates in 11 of the 36 constituencies in the city. In
effect, the saffron combine lost 30% of the seats in Mumbai because
the MNS played a spoiler. Had the MNS not been a factor, the Sena-BJP
combine would have swept Mumbai, winning 26 of the 36 seats on offer.
‘‘ When Raj Thackeray set up the MNS more than a year ago, his main
goal was to halt the forward march of his cousin Uddhav Thackeray.
From the outcome of the Lok Sabha and assembly polls, it is clear that
the task has been achieved, since the Sena has been relegated to the
fourth position,’’ a senior MNS leader told TOI.
The MNS also made inroads into traditional Sena territories in the
suburbs such as Dombivli, Thane and Ovala-Majiwada, where its
candidates ended up as runnersup . The BJP won four seats — Dombivli,
Ulhasnagar, Bhiwandi (rural) and the adivasi segment of Vikramgadh.
The NCP, which had contested in nine assembly seats, won in five,
including Mumbra-Kalwa, Airoli, Belapur, Mira-Bhayander and Murbad. Of
the 24 constituencies in Thane, the Sena won five seats — Thane, Kopri-
Pachpakhadi, Ovala-Majiwada, Ambernath and Shahapur.
Significantly, in view of a simple majority for the Congress-NCP,
although Raj Thackeray did not emerge as a kingmaker as expected
earlier, he has successfully taken over the Sena’s agenda on the sons-
of-the-soil and is now projecting himself as an alternative to Sena
executive president Uddhav Thackeray.
When Raj Thackeray damaged the prospects of the saffron combine during
the Lok sabha polls, Sena-BJP leaders had stated that it was a
temporary phase and that the MNS would put up a flop show in the
assembly polls, but his rivals have been proved completely wrong. In
fact, both Uddhav Thackeray and BJP’s Gopinath Munde did not take note
of the big response to Raj’s election rallies across the state.
Sid Harth
MNS poaching leaves Tiger endangered
23 Oct 2009, 0336 hrs IST, Ashish Agashe, ET Bureau
MUMBAI: On its facade, an ageing Bal Thackeray gestures, asking people
to do something. But the nonchalant passers-by on the busy traffic
junction in central Mumbai’s Dadar are disinterested. In many ways the
desolate appearance of Shiv Sena Bhavan on Thursday speaks volumes
about the four-decade-old party and the bleak prospects of its
resurrection.
The tiger may not have succumbed, but is severely wounded after being
mauled by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in its urban citadels. In the
Mahim constituency (where Sena Bhavan, the party HQ, stands) MNS
candidate won with a handsome 22,000-votes lead over a TV anchor put
up by the Sena and the very locality where the Sena was born, and
flourished, is now witnessing the party’s undoing.
The sons-of-soil plank which was Sena’s raison d’etre has been
hijacked by MNS, founded by Mr Raj Thackeray after his cousin Uddhav
was appointed as the official successor by Mr Thackeray senior. To the
dismay of the local population, Marathi pride still continues to be an
issue in spite of Sena’s over 40 years of existence. Sena’s current
performance is a severe set back from the 62 seats it had bagged in
the 2004 assembly polls.
Adding insult to the injury is BJP’s tally. Sena’s total is three
short than the BJP’s 47 and puts its claim over the leader of
opposition post in jeopardy. Meanwhile, Sena’s leader of opposition in
the 11th assembly Ramdas Kadam has himself not been able to win the
election from the Guhagar seat in Konkan which had become a matter of
prestige.
The strategy of making inroads into the hinterland, a forced move due
to the advent of MNS on the scene, seems to have failed for Sena. Only
eight of their candidates have been able to win in Vidarbha while in
Marathwada its only seven. Sena rebels like Suresh Jaiswal, who won
the Aurangabad central seat, inflicted considerable damage to the
party’s prospects here.
If the showing in the hinterland was bad, Mumbai is worse. Sena, which
controls the city civic body, won only four of the 36 seats in the
metropolis, finishing fourth. Congress has won maximum seats in the
city followed by MNS and BJP.
Elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation are due in early
2012 and results like these severely dent the Sena’s hold. With an
annual budget of over Rs 13,000 crore, BMC is the final straw that is
keeping some life in the organisation for the last ten years since its
out of power at the state level.
The result poses a serious threat to the relevance of the party in
Maharashtra’s political arena and the party will have to do some
serious thinking.
Sid Harth
NCP to support Congress from outside in Arunachal
STAFF WRITER 17:7 HRS IST
Itanagar, Oct 23 (PTI) Having won five seats in Arunachal Pradesh
Assembly elections, NCP today said it will provide an outside support
to the Congress, which has retained power with two-thirds majority.
NCP state unit chief and former home minister L Wanglat told PTI that
the results were below expectations as the party had thought to win at
least 15 to 20 of the 36 seats it contested. "The solace was that in
22 seats NCP candidates came second.
"Winning the state capital seat and trouncing Congress stalwart Gegong
Apang shows NCP's strength," Wanglat said.
Asked if NCP would play the role of an opposition party or support
Congress from outside, Wanglat said "Congress and NCP are coming
closer elsewhere and we will go for the same spirit here.
Sid Harth
Deshmukh meets Sonia, denies being in race to be CM
STAFF WRITER 15:36 HRS IST
New Delhi, Oct 23 (PTI) Amid reports of over half a dozen leaders in
the race for the post of Maharashtra Chief Minister, Union Minister
Vilasrao Deshmukh today met Congress president Sonia Gandhi but
maintained he not was in contention for the top job.
"No question of it. I am a minister at the Centre," Deshmukh said when
asked to comment on the reports that he was also staking his claim for
Maharashtra Chief Minister's post.
He said that the party's Central leadership and MLAs will decide the
issue of leadership in the state.
About his meeting with Gandhi, Deshmukh said he had come to
congratulate the party president for the election victory in
Maharashtra.
Mumbai Congress chief Kripashankar Singh, who also met Gandhi
separately, made a similar statement regarding his meeting with the
Congress president.
"Thank You," he said in lighter vein when asked about reports about
him also being in the race.
Sid Harth
Thackeray blames Gen Next for Sena's performance
STAFF WRITER 13:56 HRS IST
Mumbai, Oct 23 (PTI) Shiv Sena patriarch Bal Thackeray today
attributed the party's poor show in assembly polls in Maharashtra to
the young generation's ignorance about the "travails" it went through
for the state.
"The young generation is stranger to the history of Maharashtra and
the Sena's fight for Marathi cause. They have ruined Marathi unity in
just a day," Thackeray said in an editorial in party mouthpiece
'Saamana' today.
"The 105 martyrs of Samyukta Maharashtra movement would feel the grief
of Sena's defeat because they know what hardship Sena has gone through
for Marathi people. Youths are not aware of it," Thackeray said.
Blaming the youth for voting out Sena, Thackeray said "they do not
know the power of saffron flag and history has repeated as Marathas
lost the Battle of Panipat due to traitors," he said.
bademiyansubhanallah
National / Opinion Web | Oct 22, 2009
PTI
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda being offered sweets by
his wife Asha Hooda
Haryana
A Twist In The Tail
Apart from its over-confidence -- even arrogance -- and the bête noire
Om Prakash Chautala's INLD, Congress had its own Raj Thackeray
equivalent in Haryana: the Bhajan Lal clan
Chander Suta Dogra
“If the Congress gets less than 40 seats in Haryana, there will be a
twist in the tail,” said a bureaucrat, keeping a close watch on the
election results, alluding to the many challengers which chief
minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is facing from within his own party.
The party has got just that but the twist has come not so much from
within its own ranks but bête noire Om Prakash Chautala of the Indian
National Lok Dal (INLD) who has defied all poll predictions to notch
up an impressive improvement over just 9 seats which he won in 2005 --
even though he is far short of the halfway mark of 45 seats, having
won just 32.
More importantly, he has already turned the heat on Hooda by stating
that he too is a contender to form the government. The Congress with
the help of 7 independent legislators or one of the smaller parties
like Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) led by former Congressman Bhajan
lal, will easily be able to form the government, but Chautala has now
emerged as a formidable opposition. And given Haryana’s murky politics
and culture of ‘aya rams and gaya rams’, it portends a rocky time
ahead.
Chautala has not only won from both the constituencies which he
contested ie. Ellenabad and Ucchana Kalan but has also trounced
Hooda’s finance minister Birender Singh. His elder son Ajay Chautala
has won from Dabwali. The party is now eyeing Bhajan Lal’s HJC as also
the independents. Chautala’s game plan will be to prevent these two
entities from supporting the Congress so that his party gets the
second call from the Governor.
For Hooda’s it’s a tough time. His gamble to go in for early assembly
elections (seven months ahead of schedule) just because the Congress
put up a spectacular performance in the Lok Sabha winning 9 out of 10
seats did not pay off too well. His detractors within the party will
be snapping at his heels and he has quite a few of them now. The
carefree days of a free run to rule the state too are over. He will
definitely have to pull up his socks and provide a more efficient
government this time around, if he wants to keep his head above
water.
Worse, Chautala’s good showing is evidence that the all important Jat
vote which Hooda was hoping to consolidate around him hasn’t really
given up its loyalty to the legacy of Devi Lal which INLD holds.
Despite a conscious effort to cultivate a pro- Jat image and thereby
emerge as a leader of this dominant community, Hooda’s cherished
desire to achieve this status has become elusive once again with this
election.
'Aisa pehli baar hua’ was the Congress’s election jingle, as it talked
about the Hooda government’s development initiatives. As it turned
out, the massive deployment of men and machinery which was working for
the last many months could not disseminate the message properly. Or it
could be that the people, fed up with poor governance and rising
corruption, were just not in a mood to listen to it
The Bhajan Lal clan too enters the assembly as an independent
political formation, the HJC. It has won six seats and Bhajan Lal’s
son Kuldeep Bishnoi who has worked hard at the new party has won from
Adampur. His mother Jasma Devi though could not win against Sampat
Singh from Nalwa. With both the Congress and the INLD eyeing its
legislators, the HJC gains in importance. Much will depend on how the
wily though infirm, Bhajan Lal plays his cards.
Many used to describe the Hooda government with its absolute majority
as a staid, even dull dispensation where spectacular development
initiatives were not an urgency, nor was the party enlivened up by any
major factional wars.
All that is set to change.
bademiyansubhanallah
National Web | Oct 21, 2009
West Bengal
Calcutta Corner
Cracks are already beginning to show in the Congress-Trinamool
Congress (TMC) alliance in West Bengal. ut their pet hate remains the
CPI(M). And the feeling is quite mutual
Dola Mitra
Cracks in the Alliance
Cracks are already beginning to show in the Congress-Trinamool
Congress (TMC) alliance in West Bengal. Earlier this month Mamata
Banerjee was furious when Congress councillors of the freshly elected
Siliguri Municipality took the help of their CPIM counterparts to keep
the TMC from grabbing the Mayor’s seat. And this after contesting the
elections together against the Left and wresting it from the Communist
party after 28 years. After election results were declared and just
before the Mayoral vote, the Congress reportedly circulated a written
appeal asking for votes for its candidate Gangotri Dutta. The Left,
ever eager to effect a split in the alliance, complied. So the 15
Congress votes and the 17 Left votes went to the Congress candidate
leaving TMC’s Mayoral candidate Gautam Deb with only its own 14 votes
and that of the one TMC-backed independent candidate’s votes.
But the winning pre-poll tie-up, which brought the Communists to their
knees in the 2009 Parliamentary Elections, was showing signs of strain
even earlier. In August an ugly spat broke out between the two parties
over seat-sharing. Both parties had announced that they wanted to
field their own candidates to contest the assembly by-polls taking
place in the Sealdah and Boubazaar constituencies. But that would
split the votes, allowing the Left to make a clean sweep. Initially
members of the state Congress argued that it is their party and not
TMC which should field candidates from these two seats because it was
Congress that held the two seats before the sitting MLAs – Sudip
Bandyopadhyay and Somen Mitra – vacated them to run for parliament.
TMC, on the other hand, had argued that the vacancy was created when
these two Congress candidates defected to the TMC side and contested
the parliamentary elections on TMC tickets. Banerjee’s logic was that
as individuals the two former MLAs had considerable clout in these
areas, and, since they now belonged to TMC, they brought over the
support of their voters to TMC. For a couple of indecisive days
neither party was willing to give in and each named two candidates who
would contest the two seats. Finally the ‘one and one’ solution was
floated and the All India Congress Committee Chairman Keshav Rao
announced that each party would take one constituency. But an adamant
Banerjee said nothing doing. She wanted both seats. Then Congress
President Sonia Gandhi intervened by holding a meeting with Banerjee
and conceded. After all, no one wanted the union railway minister to
walk out with her 19 MPS.
Who is Big Brother?
But while the Congress High Command in Delhi may be trying to play it
safe by a balanced give-and-take with Mamata Banerjee, the state unit
of the Congress is clearly disgruntled with the way that TMC is
conducting itself. “We will adhere to the decision of the High
Command,” Subrata Mukherjee, Working President of the Pradesh Congress
Committee told Outlook. “Still, it must be remembered that the
Congress party is a potential force in the state and has an identity
of its own.” He pointed out that the Sealdah and Boubazaar seats had
been held by Congress for over 40 years. West Bengal Congress
Legislative Party leader Manas Bhuniya also expressed his
disappointment that Congress could not contest the two assembly seats.
Speaking to Outlook, he said, “We respect the decision of the High
Command. There is the issue of the 20 MPs. Also it is important to
come to a compromise to ensure that the anti-Left votes are not split.
But the way that TMC refused to give up even one seat is an indication
that they have defied the basic principal of the alliance. They have
destroyed the very spirit of the alliance.”
Many see the stunt pulled by the Congress councillors in Siliguri as a
sort of revenge. The question that keeps coming up is: Is there a
threat to the survival of the Congress-TMC alliance (read, the UPA
government)? Mamata Banerjee has reiterated time and again that the
question of pulling down the government is not on the table. She avers
that the alliance is intact. She insists that the differences that
have been surfacing are minor and can be and have been ironed out.
TMC’s Partha Chatterjee, leader of the opposition in Bengal, told
Outlook that “these issues do crop up but they get settled. But one
thing is for sure, In Delhi, the Congress is Big Brother. In Bengal,
Trinamool Congress is Big Brother.”
Didi? Dada? Dadu? Dida?
Whatever problems the TMC might have with the Congress, their pet hate
remains the CPI(M). And the feeling, apparently, is mutual. Which is
okay for them, but the average Calcutta denizen would really
appreciate it if the politicos could keep their squabbles out of the
way of our daily lives. Every time a TMC or CPI(M) member feels
disparaged by the other camp, they feel the need to retaliate by
imposing some major public nuisance on the rest of us. Sample what
happened on Diwali Eve: TMC MLAs, led by opposition leader Partha
Chatterjee stormed into the secretariat building and squatted in front
of Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya’s office demanding his
arrest. They claimed that after the CPIM’s defeat in the parliamentary
elections, the party supporters had unleashed a reign of terror on the
opposition (a reference to the violence that has erupted all over
Bengal in which many political activists from each party have been
killed). The latest provocation, according to the TMC, was the arrest
of several of their party workers in Hooghly at the behest of former
CPI(M) MP, Anil Basu. This (the secretariat siege) was around 1:30 in
the afternoon. At 4:30 pm, they were still there. They could not be
persuaded to discuss the matter in the chamber of the Chief Secretary
(or to leave). Subsequently, they were arrested and forcefully
removed.
The CM later told reporters that he had ordered the removal because he
could not allow the corridors of the secretariat to be turned into a
‘circus ring’. Police explained that the MLAs were arrested under 151
of the Cr.Pc. They had been charged with violating prohibitory orders
in place around the CM’s office and in the corridor outside, both
protected areas. Though they were released shortly after being brought
before a magistrate on the same evening, mayhem had spread throughout
the city of Calcutta like wildfire with TMC supporters putting up road
blocks at strategic locations in protest against the arrests.
Even on ‘normal’ days commuting to and from work is a nightmare in
Calcutta, with a sea of cars, buses, taxis, autos, rickshaws,
bicycles, pedestrians, street hawkers, all jostling for space on the
city’s congested roads. On top of that, traffic is regularly crippled
by countless processions ranging from political rallies to parades and
religious festivities. If a car breaks down, traffic gets thrown out
of gear for hours. So imagine the kind of chaos that ensues when
suddenly main traffic arteries and intersections get barricaded
indefinitely.
On the eve of Diwali , tens of thousands of people were stranded on
the streets of Calcutta. Those out shopping for Diwali gifts. Those
going home after a tiring day’s work. Those going to and from the
airport (I was stuck at the airport for two hours waiting to be picked
up). Even hospital bound ambulances couldn’t get through. (An
ambulance carrying a woman named Rupali Ghosh who had suffered a heart
attack that was being rushed from Howrah to a Calcutta hospital was
stuck at Howrah Bridge and reportedly not allowed to pass). An
exasperated taxi-driver summed up the mood of the city that evening
with this question: “Why us, Didi? What have we done? We have only
voted for you. Is this how you pay us back?” Seriously, can’t all the
acrimony be contained within the Assembly chambers? Does it really
have to spill out on to the streets and make life unbearable for the
rest of us? Is this too much to ask? Is anyone listening? Didi? Dada?
Dadu? Dida? Anyone?
Jai Ma Kali
Kali Puja marks the official end of the festive season, which began
exactly a month ago on the day of the new moon. The immersion
processions to the Ganga and other bodies of water, usually in the
darkness of night, are something to witness. Larger than life and
blacker than death, the idols of the Goddess Kali, formidable in her
posture of ‘tandav nritya’ or ‘dance of destruction’…moves swiftly
through the streets of Calcutta, mounted high on trucks and other
vehicles. Her ‘kharga’ or sword – which is held up by one of her four
arms – flashes against the sky. But if the Calcutta immersion
processions leave you awe-struck, Kali Puja immersion processions in a
little town called Shantipur in West Bengal’s Nadia district will
leave you spell bound. On the night of the immersion, large groups of
men speed down the streets to the river (Ganga), brandishing lit
torches…a tradition believed to have been around for a few hundred
years, from a time when the area was under the control of notorious
dacoits who had worshipped the Goddess with extravagance.
In Black & White
Flipping through the black and white pages of a new coffee table book
on Calcutta’s heritage buildings and crumbling ruins was a bit like
taking a walk down a misty memory lane and then suddenly stepping
straight into a shrouded side street and getting lost. Getting lost in
a maze of secret passages in ancient fortresses. Lost in the haunted
corridors of abandoned administrative buildings. Lost climbing up
twisted wrought-iron staircases in old colonial mansions that catch
the scary sunlight light streaming in through large forgotten windows.
And lost in the stories and the histories that bring these images
alive. White and Black: A Journey to the Centre of Imperial Calcutta,
published by Niyogi Books, released last week, is a book of bold black
and white photographs of the city’s ruins in which photographer
Christopher Taylor captures the present as though it were the past. It
is also a book of bold black and white prose in which Soumitra Das
uses the printed word to transform Calcutta’s familiar streets and
buildings into spaces of history. Of poetry. Of mystery.
bademiyansubhanallah
Support without strings welcome: Hooda
TNN 24 October 2009, 04:28am IST
NEW DELHI: Buoyed by the backing secured from seven independent MLAs,
Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Friday rebuffed the bargaining posture of
Haryana Janhit Congress by saying that Congress would welcome any
unconditional support.
"If somebody gives unconditional support, they are welcome. No
conditions. Anybody who is ready to give support, we will take," Hooda
told reporters.
The decision of independents to support Congress in a late-night coup
on Thursday did the trick as it paved the way for the party to form
the government without political blackmail. By Friday morning, the
seventh independent, too, came to Congress fold, forcing HJC to drop
the ante.
Kuldeep Bishnoi quickly piped down from his hard-bargaining posture of
last night to say that his six MLAs had decided to be in the
government. He did not mention any conditions.
Once again, Hooda had bested the Lals, irrespective of whether he
continued in the top job or not.
It began tough for Hooda on Thursday morning. As results pricked the
Congress hopes of a landslide in Haryana, the figures also delivered a
narrow space for Hooda to manoeuvre. Congress was left six short for
majority mark with 40 MLAs while there were seven independents, one of
BSP, four of BJP and six of HJC.
With BJP out of equation, Congress either had to make up with renegade
Bishnoi or net all the independents.
The demand from HJC was obvious. Sensing an opportunity to avenge the
humiliation of Hooda having denied father Bhajan Lal the CM's chair in
2005, Bishoi apparently conveyed that he wanted the CM replaced
besides seeking the Deputy CM's post for himself.
While the reported demand sent a wave of jubiliation in anti-Hooda
camp in Congress, it was a jolt for the chief minister.
The scene changed with the efforts Hooda made in the hunt for
independents. After the seven independents pledged their support, HJC
suddenly found itself redundant.
Early morning, PCC chief Phool Chand Mulana called on the governor to
stake claim on behalf of the party, clearing INLD-plus-others type of
combination out of power possibilities. Congress left no time in
taking the second step by scheduling the CLP meeting for evening in
Chandigarh following a short meeting between party chief, her
political secretary Ahmed Patel and general secretaries BK Hariprasad
and Prithviraj Chavan.
Bishoi, apparently left twiddling his thumbs and staring at a long
spell in Opposition, make a conciliatory statement, saying, "My MLAs
have approved the idea of supporting the government. And the decision
on whom to support has been left to me," he told reporters.
It was once again Hooda who, by netting the six MLAs, snatched victory
from the jaws of the Lal family.
bademiyansubhanallah
MNS gives Congress-NCP their third Raj in Maharashtra
Prakash Joshi, TNN 23 October 2009, 01:16am IST
MUMBAI: In the lead-up to the Maharashtra polls, many had wondered
whether Raj Thackeray would help Congress-NCP in as big a way as he
did in the MNS chief Raj Thackeray addresses an election rally. LS
polls by eating into the Sena votebank yet again. By Thursday noon the
suspense was over. Congress-NCP were cruising back to power as Shiv
Sena citadels in Mumbai and Thane crumbled under Raj's assault. By
evening, the Congress leadership might as well have sent the Sena
rebel a "thank you" note.
In a result that has wide-ranging implications for state politics, the
loser's story is almost as important as the winner's. If the ruling
combine beat the incumbency blues, the 144-90 scoreline was the clap
of doom for the Sena-BJP camp. To add to Sena's woes, BJP crept ahead
with 46 seats to its 44.
The revenge drama has seen Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena
demolish Sena's prospects by not only splitting the "Marathi" vote but
emerging as the second largest party in Mumbai with six seats and a
staggering 23.35% of the city vote.
MNS polled 5.7% of the state's vote, eating into Sena and possibly NCP
bases. While Sena was the worst hit, losing 3.7% of its support since
May, the Raj effect may have dented others, particularly NCP, which
lost 2.4% of its vote.
Raj Thackeray's appeal has begun to spread, and he could emerge as the
key non-Congress force in days to come. As far as the Congress is
concerned, it remained virtually unscathed, having suffered a dip of
mere 0.1 % in its vote. Significantly, in contrast to Sena, BJP
actually saw a marginal gain of 0.3%.
Emboldened by its improved numbers Congress is raring to seek a
drastic revision of terms of trade with the NCP, and is likely to seek
more portfolios, as well as the important ones it had to cede to
Sharad Pawar last time.
The third straight loss to Cong-NCP may well be aging Sena supremo Bal
Thackeray's waterloo. In an election where he could not campaign, his
son and successor Uddhav Thackeray has been dealt a heavy blow.
Chances of a patch-up seem bleak and Uddhav faces the risk of more
migrations to MNS. An isolated leadership style, a coterie and MNS's
success in tapping the anger over poor or average governance has seen
Sena's vote shift away.
The Raj effect has seen Congress stage a smart recovery with 82 seats.
The scene at CM Ashok Chavan's residence was ringing with the sound of
crackers while a handful of camera crews kept lonely vigil at
Matoshree, Thackeray's residence .The young men on motorcycles zipping
around with MNS flags completed a telling picture of how the power
equations have changed.
Congress is now set to drive a hard bargain with NCP and may want to
reallocate key portfolios like home, finance, irrigation and
education. With MNS playing a decisive role in 60 Mumbai-Thane seats,
Congress has also reasserted itself in Marathwada and Vidarbha
regions. Sena continues to lose ground in Konkan where it has been
weakened by Narayan Rane's exit.
In the final count, Congress secured 82 and NCP 62, just one short of
a simple majority of 145. Sena bagged 44, BJP 46, MNS 13, Third Front
8 and others 33. In the 2004 polls, Congress had got 69, NCP 71, Sena
64, BJP 54 and others 30. This time there were as many as 30
independents.
As was evident, Congess retains the CM's chair. NCP boss Sharad Pawar
who also now faces some tough questions on NCP's future and leadership
said induction of young faces had helped the Democratic Front counter
anti-establishment factors. The discreet support offered to MNS,
changes in CM and deputy CM after 26/11 as well as BJP's infighting at
the nationallevel are seen to have been critical.
The post-26/11 changes saw Pawar shifting Dilip Valse Patil then
energy minister to finance and Jayant Patil from finance to home
department. These changes helped blunt the opposition's attack. Both
Congress and NCP rebels were blessings in disguise as votes that would
have gone to the Opposition were trapped by these rebels.
Congress is expected to hold a meeting of the Congress Legislature
Party (CLP) soon. In a unity show, CM Ashok Chavan, MPCC president
Manikrao Thakare, MPCC president Kripashankar Singh, Union ministers
Sushilkumar Shinde and Vilasrao Deshmukh and Narayan Rane addressed a
joint press conference in the evening.
When some questions were directed at Rane, Deshmukh said, " This is
basically a press conference by the party to thank voters. Rane may
speak in another press conference."
Chavan is hopeful that in view of the good performance in Lok Sabha
and Assembly polls, he would be allowed to continue in office. His
optimism is not completely misplaced as indications suggested that the
central leadership might continue with him. After the 2004 assembly
elections, Shinde was replaced by Deshmukh despite the fact that
parties are usually wary of replacing a Dalit CM. However, he was seen
to have paid the price for NCP emerging ahead of Congress.
NCP state president R R Patil is also all set to convene a meeting of
his party's legislature party to elect a new leader. It is to be seen
whether Pawar continues with Chaggan Bhujbal as deputy CM.
bademiyansubhanallah
Sena versus Sena: MNS mauls parent in own den
TNN 23 October 2009, 04:47am IST
MUMBAI: Assembly poll debutant Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's chief Raj
Thackeray on Thursday took Mumbai by storm when his party nominees
mauled Shiv Sena candidates in their heartland —the contiguous Lalbaug-
Parel-Dadar-Mahim area.
For well over three decades, the three assembly constituencies of
Parel, Dadar and Mahim were held by the saffron Maratha chauvinist
Shiv Sena. In the wake of delimitation, the three constituencies were
merged into two and renamed Sewri and Mahim. In Mahim, MNS nominee
Nitin Sardesai defeated Sena's Aadesh Bandekar and Congress candidate
Sada Sarwankar, a Sena man who had defected to the Congress a day
before filing the nomination. In Sewri, MNS nominee Bala Nandgaonkar
defeated sitting Sena MLA Dagdu Sakpal by a margin of over 6,000
votes.
After the Congress-NCP, which won 20 seats in Mumbai, the MNS, using
more strident tactics and stronger Maratha rhetoric, has now emerged
as the second largest party in the metropolis: it won six seats, while
the BJP won five, the Sena four and the Third Front one. In fact, the
MNS has delivered a double whammy to the Sena in Mumbai. Not only has
it bested Uddhav Thackeray's Sena, it has also ensured the defeat of
Sena-BJP candidates in 11 of the 36 constituencies in the city. In
effect, the saffron combine lost 30% of the seats in Mumbai because
the MNS played a spoiler. Had the MNS not been a factor, the Sena-BJP
combine would have swept Mumbai, winning 26 of the 36 seats on offer.
"When Raj Thackeray set up the MNS more than a year ago, his main goal
was to halt the forward march of his cousin Uddhav Thackeray. From the
outcome of the Lok Sabha and assembly polls, it is clear that the task
has been achieved, since the Sena has been relegated to the fourth
position," a senior MNS leader told TOI.
The MNS also made inroads into traditional Sena territories in the
suburbs such as Dombivli, Thane and Ovala-Majiwada, where its
candidates ended up as runners-up. The BJP won four seats —Dombivli,
Ulhasnagar, Bhiwandi (rural) and the adivasi segment of Vikramgadh.
The NCP, which had contested in nine assembly seats, won in five,
including Mumbra-Kalwa, Airoli, Belapur, Mira-Bhayander and Murbad. Of
the 24 constituencies in Thane, the Sena won five seats — Thane, Kopri-
Pachpakhadi, Ovala-Majiwada, Ambernath and Shahapur.
Significantly, in view of a simple majority for the Congress-NCP,
although Raj Thackeray did not emerge as a kingmaker as expected
earlier, he has successfully taken over the Sena's agenda on the sons-
of-the-soil and is now projecting himself as an alternative to Sena
executive president Uddhav Thackeray.
When Raj Thackeray damaged the prospects of the saffron combine during
the Lok sabha polls, Sena-BJP leaders had stated that it was a
temporary phase and that the MNS would put up a flop show in the
assembly polls, but his rivals have been proved completely wrong. In
fact, both Uddhav Thackeray and BJP's Gopinath Munde did not take note
of the big response to Raj's election rallies across the state.
...and I am Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Saffron allies fight over leading opposition
Prafulla Marpakwar, TNN 24 October 2009, 04:54am IST
MUMBAI: A day after it lost the crucial assembly polls to the Congress-
led Democratic Front (DF), the saffron combine was at the risk of
heading for Shiv Sena leader Udhav Thackeray and BJP chief Rajnath
Singh along with candidates at a joint election rally at in Mumbai. a
split over the issue of which party will get the post of the leader of
the opposition in the lower house. In fact, the BJP has also started
talk of tying up with the MNS so the party can have its own leader of
the opposition.
As per the understanding between the Shiv Sena and BJP reached over
one-and-a-half decade ago, the post of CM or leader of the opposition
would always be allotted to that party which won more seats.
Accordingly, in 1995 polls, since the Sena secured more seats than the
BJP, the Sena got the CM's chair. In subsequent polls, the post of
leader of the opposition was always given to the Sena since it secured
more seats.
But now the BJP has secured more seats than the Shiv Sena—46 to the
former and 44 for the latter. BJP has staked its claim to the post of
leader of the opposition, but the Sena has opposed this by pointing
out that the BJP's Pandurang Phundkar is already leader of the
opposition in the legislative council.
"We don't agree with the Shiv Sena's argument. If the Sena plays foul
tricks, we will not hesitate to knock on the doors of MNS leader Raj
Thackeray to secure his support and ensure that the BJP gets the post
of leader of the opposition," a senior BJP leader told TOI on Friday.
The BJP leader said that in the upper house several groups of
legislators had come together to form an alliance and, on the basis of
a joint letter signed by opposition members, the BJP's Phundkar was
nominated leader of the opposition.
"The Shiv Sena must honour the agreement, otherwise the alliance will
collapse over the post of the leader of the opposition," he added.
chhotemianinshallah
Raj, Hooda, Maya & ‘other’ lessons
Shankar Raghuraman & Atul Thakur , TOI Crest 24 October 2009, 12:47pm
IST
How did the Congress that led in 59 out of 90 assembly segments in
Haryana during the parliamentary polls just five months ago lose so
much ground so fast? For that matter , why did the BJP-Shiv Sena
combine in Maharashtra finish so far behind the ruling coalition when
the difference between the two alliances was just 10 seats in May?
While a week may be a long time in politics, the dramatic electoral
shifts in the two states need some explaing.
Maharashtra, to begin with. While it’s true that Raj Thackeray’s MNS
did the Congress-NCP coalition a big favour by playing spoiler in and
around Mumbai, Nashik and Pune-Baramati , that doesn’t fully explain
the decline of the opposition combine. After all, the MNS had played
much the same role in the Lok Sabha polls and has only slightly
improved its vote share from 4.1% to 5.7%.
Actually, MNS hasn’t been the real difference between then and now.
The real damage has been done by “others” in terms of splitting the
anti-incumbent vote. In every region barring Vidarbha, the vote share
of the
smaller parties and independents has gone up sharply since the Lok
Sabha polls, (although in the Konkan belt, the 18.5% jump in the vote
share of the also-rans is largely because of the Peasants & Workers
Party of India (PWPI) benefiting from an understanding with the
Sena.)
It’s not at all unusual for smaller regional outfits to poll more
votes in a local election than they do in the LS poll. But, in
general, they would tend to eat into everyone’s vote, the two big
allainces included. In this case, however , in almost every region the
Congress-NCP alliance kept its vote share more or less intact
(although between the two there seems to have been a redistribution),
but the Sena-BJP partnership lost major chunks in almost every region.
The interesting and glaring exception to that rule is in the Mumbai
region. Here, the Congress and NCP put together saw their vote share
dropping precipitously by 6.2%. Yet, the loss of seats to the ruling
coalition was restricted to just seven. The reason again, wasn’t just
the MNS. Yes, the MNS did raise its vote share by 1.4%, but “others”
mopped up an extra 3.7%. Thus, much of the loss to the Congress-NCP
did not translate into a gain for their prime rivals.
Turning to Haryana, the Congress vote share dropped from 41.8% in May
to 35.1% this time round, a fall of 6.7% in less than six months. A
similar comparison for the INLD or the BJP would be misleading, since
the two were partners in the parliamentary polls but each contested
almost all the seats in these assembly elections. It is nevertheless
revealing that the combined vote share of the two rose from 27.9% to
34.8% or 6.9%, which more or less mirrors the fall in the Congress
vote.
These figures suggest two things. First, that the credit that was
given to chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for his party’s sterling
performance in the Lok Sabha polls — winning nine of the state’s 10
seats — seems to have been substantially if not entirely misplaced. It
seems the May vote was for a UPA government at the Centre and the INLD
lost out in the process.
Secondly, the assumption that BSP gains at the expense of the Congress
and when it loses ground, the Congress would regain that vote needs to
be questioned. In Haryana, the BSP’s vote share has plummeted from
15.7% to 6.7%, but none of that seems to have gone to the Congress.
Instead, it has shifted to other regional outfits. In other words,
instead of hurting Congress by doing well in May, Mayawati may have
taken away a substantial chunk of the anti-Congress vote.
chhotemianinshallah
Diwali unlimited -
ASSEMBLY POLLS
Congress ponders setback in Haryana even as it is celebration time in
Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh
By Dnyanesh Jathar
There was jubilation in the Congress headquarters, with the customary
sweets doing the rounds, as the results of the Assembly elections in
Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh came in on October 22.
However, the celebrations had a tinge of concern over the party’s
performance in Haryana, where it barely managed to scrape through. The
victory has come as a shot in the arm for the Congress, which was
plagued with a string of defeats in Assembly elections till not so
long ago.
It was an extended Diwali for Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan.
“Didn’t I tell you so?” said Chavan over cell phone to a party
colleague, as it became clear that the Congress-NCP alliance would
comfortably form the next government.
One of the first to congratulate Chavan was Union Energy Minister
Sushil Kumar Shinde, whose daughter Praniti won from Solapur Central
by 30,000 votes. Relief and satisfaction were writ large on Chavan’s
face.
At the time of going to press, the Congress-NCP tally stood at 144
seats in the 288-member Maharashtra Legislative Assembly (the Congress
won 82 and the NCP 62). In the opinion poll conducted by THE WEEK, the
Congress-NCP was predicted to win 136-152 seats. What spoiled the
chances of the Shiv Sena-BJP was Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman
Sena, which won 13 seats (the survey prediction being 8-16 seats). The
Sena-BJP combine has been reduced to 90 seats, down from 116 in 2004.
According to Chavan, it was a victory of ideals and secularism,
represented by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, over politics of
communalism played by the Shiv Sena and the BJP. While everyone had
expected the Congress to emerge as the single largest party, the
performance of the NCP was a surprise to the Congress leadership.
“All the damage control has been done by Pawar saheb and Ajitdada
[Sharad Pawar’s nephew]. Ajit even managed to ensure victory of his
favoured rebels against the party’s official candidates,” said a
Congress activist and close aide of Shinde. One such case is that of
former deputy chief minister Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, who lost in
Pandharpur. He lost to NCP rebel Bharat Bhalke, who reportedly had
tacit blessings of NCP leader R.R. Patil and Ajitdada.
The Congress ministers who lost include Ravi Patil, Surupsinh Naik,
Madan Patil, Shobha Bachhav and Anees Ahmed. Ramesh Bang and Rana
Jagjit Sinh Patil were the NCP ministers who lost.
A buoyant NCP is now demanding that the chief ministership be shared
on a rotation basis between the two parties. Senior NCP leader Chhagan
Bhujbal was one of the first to raise this demand. But Congress
leaders like Chavan, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Shinde and Manikrao Thakare
want the post to remain with the party. Thakare said that NCP chief
Sharad Pawar had made it clear that the chief minister would be from
the Congress.
The performance of the Shiv Sena-BJP combine was so poor that it could
not even win the Assembly segments where it had taken a lead in the
last Lok Sabha elections. The BJP won 46 seats and the Sena 44.
Opposition leader Ramdas Kadam lost in Guhagar to the NCP’s Bhaskar
Jadhav, his former Sena colleague.
“Their poor showing has a lot to do with the saffron alliance’s
failure to convince voters that they are indeed the alternative. It is
also a result of the Shiv Sena’s ideological confusion—whether to
remain a Hindutva party or whether to advocate the cause of Marathi
Manoos,” said political analyst Prof. Deepak Pawar.
Sena-BJP leaders, however, were quick to blame the MNS. According to
BJP national general secretary Gopinath Munde, the MNS won 13 seats by
polling 5-6 per cent votes, which should have gone to the Sena-BJP
combine.
Former Lok Sabha Speaker Manohar Joshi of the Sena said the defeat was
unexpected. Now the two parties in the saffron alliance may fight over
the post of opposition leader. Since it won two seats more than the
Sena, the BJP is likely to stake claim for the post. The Sena may not
budge, as two independents have won with its support.
The performance of the MNS was the most interesting outcome of this
election. It won six seats in Mumbai while the Sena won four and the
BJP five. The MNS also got two seats in Thane district, three in
Nashik city and two more in rural Maharashtra.
MNS leader Raj Thackeray said his 13 MLAs would set an example of how
the opposition should function. The Republican Left Democratic Front
(the Third Front) managed 11 seats, four of them going to Mulayam
Singh’s Samajwadi Party.
In the Congress-NCP, the two top contenders for the post of chief
minister were Chavan and Deshmukh. Shinde indicated that he was not
interested in it. Narayan Rane is effectively out of the race as very
few of his supporters have won this time. According to sources, the
Congress leadership might back Chavan.
In Haryana, the results belied predictions of poll pundits that the
Congress would romp home. The Congress government led by Bhupinder
Singh Hooda had opted for an early election to cash in on its stunning
performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections, winning nine out of the
10 seats.
But Haryanvi voters behaved differently this time. The Congress could
win only 40 seats in the 90-member Assembly. It had won 67 seats in
2005. Even the state party president and four cabinet ministers bit
the dust, and the party was six seats short of simple majority. The
Indian National Lok Dal of Om Prakash Chautala, which had been written
off, rose from the ashes. It improved its tally from nine to 31 seats.
Hooda asserted the Congress would form the next government. But, the
INLD had no plans of quietly watching him return to the office. The
ball was in Governor Jagannath Pahadia’s court.
Chautala, who won from Uchana Kalan and Ellenabad, thundered that the
Congress had lost its mandate, with 50 seats going to non-Congress
parties. “The party should follow the example set by Rajiv Gandhi who
opted to sit in the opposition despite the Congress being the single
largest party in the Lok Sabha in 1989,” said Chautala.
As Hooda and Chautala were trying to strengthen their flocks, in the
land of “aya Lal, gaya Lal”, political defections and horse-trading
could return after about 15 years. The ‘value’ of the seven
independent MLAs was heading north. Also, the instability and a jumbo
cabinet seemed likely to plague the next government.
The only options left to Hooda was to woo independents, mostly
Congress rebels, and break the Haryana Janhit Congress, which won six
seats. The party, led by former chief minister Bhajan Lal, became
vulnerable, as Chautala and Hooda eyed its MLAs. Sources, however,
said the HJC might support the INLD without joining the ministry.
The BJP, which won just four seats, seemed to shyly walk back towards
its estranged partner, the INLD.
Thus, Chautala could count on wooing independents, getting the support
of the BJP and the HJC, and winning back the lone BSP candidate who
was a former Lok Dal MLA. Also, the INLD’s only pre-poll ally, the
Shiromani Akali Dal, opened its account in Haryana by winning a seat,
its first outside Punjab.
The benefit of the divided opposition and the five-cornered contest,
apparently, went to the INLD. At the end of the day, the Haryanvi
tradition of electing a party once and rejecting it the next time came
close to being proved true yet again.
The Congress swept Arunachal Pradesh. Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu was
elated, as his party won 42 of the 60 Assembly seats in the state.
Khandu was elected unopposed for the third consecutive time from Mukto
constituency in Tawang district that borders China.
The BJP managed to win just three seats. The Trinamool Congress, on
its debut in the state, and the NCP won five each. Independents and
local parties won the remaining five seats.
The Congress, however, faced a minor setback as its former chief
minister and seven-time MLA Gegong Apang and his son Omak were voted
out. Tserin Gyurmi, who was close to Khandu, too, had a surprise exit.
with Vijaya Pushkarna and Soni Mishra
Pulse reader
When the Congress-NCP alliance won the tightly contested Assembly
polls in Maharashtra, it was yet another occasion THE WEEK accurately
gauged the pulse of the people. THE WEEK survey (October 18) had
predicted 136-152 seats for the alliance (at the time of going to
press, the alliance had reached 144). The effect of the MNS factor was
also accurately predicted. The survey had given 8-16 seats for the
party.
THE WEEK was the first one to predict a UPA comeback in the Lok Sabha
elections in April-May. The outcome of the Assembly elections in
Andhra Pradesh was also correctly predicted by us. In 2008, we rightly
predicted the results of Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and
Chhattisgarh. In J&K, where nobody had the foggiest idea about the
trend because of issues like Amarnath land controversy, THE WEEK
survey predicted the Congress to get 16-20 seats (it got 17) and the
National Conference to get around 25 seats (it got 28). The
Chhattisgarh prediction was bang on the bull’s-eye. The survey had
given 44-52 seats for the BJP (it got 50) and 38-46 seats for the
Congress (it got 38).
Dons to dust
A positive outcome of the Assembly polls has been the defeat of
elements linked with the underworld. Gangster-turned-politician Arun
Gawli (pic) was trounced by Madhu Chavan of the Congress in Byculla.
Chhota Rajan’s brother Deepak Nikalje of the Third Front was defeated
in Chembur. Pappu Kalani, whose writ ran large in Ulhasnagar, was
defeated by the BJP’s Uttam Ailani.
Two celebrities were also humbled. Former cricketer Vinod Kambli of
the Third Front was defeated by Mangesh Sangle of the MNS in Vikroli.
Marathi film star and TV personality Aadesh Bandekar of the Shiv Sena
was defeated by Nitin Sardesai of the MNS in Mahim.
Of sons and daughters
President Pratibha Patil’s son Rajendra Shekhawat’s victory in
Amravati has become a talking point. Shekhawat beat Congress rebel Dr
Sunil Deshmukh, who was minister of state for finance in the outgoing
government.
Other prominent sons and daughters who won include Praniti Shinde
(Solapur City Central), daughter of Union Energy Minister Sushilkumar
Shinde; Amit Deshmukh (Latur City), son of Union Minister of Heavy
Industries Vilasrao Deshmukh; Pankaja Munde Palave (Parali), daughter
of BJP national general secretary Gopinath Munde; Pankaj Bhujbal
(Nandgaon), son of Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal.
Poonam Mahajan, daughter of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, was
defeated by Ram Kadam of the MNS in Ghatkopar West. Rohit Tilak, great-
grandson of Lokmanya Tilak, lost to the BJP’s Girish Bapat in Kasba.
chhotemianinshallah
[October 23, 2009]
MAIL TODAY COMMENT
A deeper message in election outcome AT one level the outcome of the
state assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh
has been predictable. The Congress was expected to retain all three
states, and it has. At least in Maharashtra and Haryana, the victory
is as much an achievement of the Congress, as the failure of the
Opposition. Conventional wisdom would suggest that the biggest loser,
by far, is the Bharatiya Janata Party which does not seem to have
recovered its equipoise after its defeat in the Lok Sabha elections
earlier this year.
Its bankruptcy is apparent from its persistent attempts to blame the
electronic voting machines for its election losses.
The Opposition's real problem has been its inability to jell together.
In Maharashtra, it has been undone by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena,
the breakaway group of the Shiv Sena. But the real problem was with
the senior partner of the alliance, the BJP. Its performance has been,
to put it politely, subpar. The party lacks the esprit de corps it had
in the days of Pramod Mahajan.
But the BJP's weakness as an ally was manifest in Haryana as well. The
party's inability to play the junior partner led to the collapse of
the alliance with the Indian National Lok Dal. The result indicates
that the BJP was the bigger loser there by far and that it had grossly
overestimated its capabilities. Even so, the victory must be sweet for
Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the first chief minister to win two successive
elections in the state since 1972. The victory of the Congress in
Arunachal was expected, as that of the Trinamool Congress, many of
whose candidates were Congress MLAs denied tickets.
But the election may also be sending a deeper signal. After nearly a
decade in which the BJP's Hindutva brand defined the politics of the
country, it is returning to the path of secular neutrality. There are
only signs as yet, and it is up to the party leadership to press on
and make secularism the country's dominant paradigm.
Mamata's failure BEFORE she took over as Railway minister in the
middle of the year, Mamata Banerjee had given enough indications of
her lack of interest in helping India's premier public transport
organisation, and indeed its biggest employer, grow.
Therefore, Ms Banerjee's absence from the accident spot in Mathura
where India's worst rail tragedy of the year took place on Wednesday,
should not be surprising; it was, in fact, true to form. She was holed
up in Kolkata for more than 18 hours after the accident, thus
broadcasting her insensitivity to a shocked nation for the entire day.
It is evident that the demand for this key ministry was merely a
bargaining chip that Ms Banerjee sought following her party Trinamool
Congress' status as a powerbroker in the UPA- II government. In terms
of real progress, there has been hardly any; indeed if anything, there
has been a gradual regression and the Ministry of Railways now
resembles a badly- managed headless organisation with no regard for
safety.
Though the Railways had earmarked thousands of crores to buy world-
class safety equipment, only 10 per cent of India's rail network has
anti- collision devices fitted. As the Railway minister, it is Ms
Banerjee's prime responsibility to ensure this target is met. If not,
her tenure will prove to be a sorry failure.
Nehru's image UNIVERSAL Studios may have decided to scrap its film on
the Jawaharlal Nehru- Edwina Mountbatten romance for budgetary
reasons. But the controversy has left us with some uncomfortable
questions about the role of the government in defining just how the
former prime minister ought to be depicted.
With what authority is the present government seeking to effect the
changes to the script? There is nothing in the law of the land that
says the image of a former PM remains the property of the country.
The objections, if any, could have been made by Nehru's family.
But even there, you would have to consider the fact that Nehru was a
public person and his life and actions are open to interpretation by
satirists, artists, writers and filmmakers.
(c) 2009 India Today Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by
Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company
bademiyansubhanallah
Chavan, Hooda stay on as Maharashtra, Haryana CMs
TIMES NEWS NETWORK & AGENCIES 25 October 2009, 12:30am IST
NEW DELHI: In a late night meeting on Saturday, Congress decided that
Ashok Chavan will continue to hold the chief minister’s post in
Maharashtra. The party also decided in favour of second stint for
Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
Efforts to find chief ministers for Maharashtra and Haryana shifted to
Delhi after CLPs there leaving the leadership issue to Gandhi who then
held several rounds of separate meetings with the party's observers
for the two states at her residence.
Shortly after Maharashtra CLP authorised her to choose its leader,
Gandhi held late night consultations with AICC observers Digvijay
Singh, A K Antony and K Rehman Khan who apprised her about the outcome
of CLP meeting in Mumbai.
The three observers were accompanied by chief minister Ashok Chavan,
senior leader Narayan Rane, union ministers Vilsasrao Deshmukh and
Sushil Kumar Shinde and PCC president Manikrao Thakeray who were said
to be in the race for chief ministership in the state.
While the party scrambled to resolve the leadership issue in the two
states, clarity emerged in Arunachal Pradesh earlier in the day, with
incumbent Khandu Dorjee being unanimously elected CLP leader who will
take oath as chief minister on Sunday morning.
bademiyansubhanallah
Past forgotten, Bishnoi ready to go with Congress
Manveer Saini, TNN 25 October 2009, 02:09am IST
CHANDIGARH: Holding the keys of stability and power with just six
MLAs, the Haryana Janhit Congress supremo Kuldeep Bishnoi is now
trying to strike a balance between a vengeful son and a promising
politician.
Known for his outbursts against CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Sonia
Gandhi, the Bishnoi family’s relation with Congress has been stormy.
It all began in 2005 when Kuldeep’s father and former CM Bhajan Lal
was denied CM’s chair, following which Bishnoi launched HJC.
Things came to a head last year when as an MP from Bhiwani, Kuldeep
voted against UPA during trust vote.
Today, he claims to have forgotten it all — for ‘‘Janhit (welfare) of
Haryana.’’ Bishnoi said he was not concerned about chief ministerial
candidate of any party claiming power in state
bademiyansubhanallah
Lalu on write track, rivals press alarm
29 Oct 2009, 2308 hrs IST, Ashok K Mishra, ET Bureau
PATNA: His cronies and ardent supporters may have done it in the past:
Penning quite a few of the "Lalu Chalisas" but RJD chief Lalu Prasad
Yadav, himself, now wants to get into writing mode. But his book will
capture more of the political events of his time when he was chief
minister. His desire to write a book is, however, being ridiculed by
the rival camp which is now even digging into the past to boost its
attack on Lalu.
The maverick Lalu declared the other day that he will write a book,
recounting the events which led to the arrest of LK Advani, besides
exposing those who had opposed his arrest. Lalu was Bihar chief
minister when Mr Advani was arrested on October 23, 1990, in
Samastipur.
"It is good to hear that Laluji will be writing a book. But he should
also include in the book how he "after his arrest" expressed apology
to Advaniji and even explained to him the reasons behind his arrest,
said JD(U) leader Nihora Prasad Yadav.
Interestingly, Nihora Prasad Yadav was till recently in the RJD camp
but has now switched his political loyalty to the JD(U). But his old
association with Lalu did not stop him from targeting Lalu who he said
had even accepted a golden crown from Independent MLA Pradip Joshi, "a
politician known for Muslim bashing".
Taking a jibe at Lalu, Munna Sahi of JD(U) said he was not sure
whether Lalu will himself write the book or seek someone's help. "I am
not sure about his literary calibre. But if he does write a book , he
should also write about the kidnapping industry, which was the only
industry that thrived in his regime," said Mr Sahi.
Another JD(U) leader, Anil Pathak, sought to open the can of worms for
Lalu and said his regime was known for scams. "The book should have a
special chapter on all the scams which had become endemic of the Rabri-
Lalu regime. The bitumen scam and the multi-crore fodder scam should
be included in the book so that the coming generation gets to know all
the Lalu regime was known for, " said Mr Pathak.
Sid Harth
BJP to form 'third front' in Bengal
STAFF WRITER 18:57 HRS IST
Kolkata, Oct 30 (PTI) Pushed to a corner after its former ally
Trinamool Congress joined hands with the Congress, the BJP today said
that it would form a third front before the 2011 assembly election in
West Bengal.
"We are trying to open a third front in the state before the next
assembly election in 2011. Some constituents of the front led by
Trinamool Congress are in touch with us," state BJP president Rahul
Sinha told reporters here today.
The Trinamool Congress had deserted the BJP and gone with the Congress
"to get Muslim votes", he said.
Sinha said that his party was against both the central and state
governments and would make all political efforts to dislodge the
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government.
chhotemianinshallah
BJP woes rise, Gowdas sniff chance in Karnataka
TNN 31 October 2009, 02:30am IST
BANGALORE: Adding to the battle for survival in Delhi, the BJP finds
itself in the middle of extensive firefighting operations in Karnataka
— with both chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and his detractor-minister
G Janardhan Reddy's camp followers refusing to budge from their
trenchant positions. Wracked by feuds at the top level — first Delhi,
then Rajasthan and now Karnataka — the latest round of infighting is
bound to sap the morale of BJP cadres further.
On a day of fluctuating fortunes, the familiar exercise of number-
crunching began with the Deve Gowda camp jumping in to fish in
troubled waters. Since BJP has 117 MLAs in the House of 224, the
numbers on the two sides are almost evenly matched. In this flux,
speculation is rife that JD(S) is open to teaming up with Yeddyurappa
on the condition that he makes the first move.
But, for the BJP to avail of Gowda's offer is not going to be easy.
After all, the BJP won the state — its first government in south India
— on its own steam and looks at itself as the principal pole in
Karnataka politics. A deal with the Gowdas at this stage will not only
jeopardize their own base, but will also leave the entire opposition
space to the Congress.
Then, quite apart from the fact that Gowdas are not known to be
trustworthy — the last alliance between BJP and JD(S) ended in a messy
divorce — the social bases of the two parties are not exactly
compatible.
Regardless of the stand the BJP eventually takes, the JD(S) at its
legislature party meeting late on Friday evening, passed a resolution
to keep all its political options open. Rather than snuffing out the
idea of an alliance with BJP, JD(S) state president H D Kumaraswamy
said, ``When the appropriate time comes, an appropriate decision on
what is good for the party will be taken.''
The state Congress leadership has decided to keep quiet. ``We are not
interested in helping any BJP faction to form the government. We are
just watching the situation,'' KPCC working president D K Shiva Kumar
said.
Meanwhile, BJP's Karnataka incharge Arun Jaitley, after three days of
talks with both camps, left on Friday without making any headway. The
political drama shifted to New Delhi with the party leadership
summoning Yeddyurappa, legislative assembly speaker Jagadish Shettar
and revenue minister G Karunakar Reddy (brother of G Janardhan
Reddy).
Before leaving Bangalore, Jaitley left one clear message: There will
be no change in the leadership come what may. He told reporters here
thatdiscontented leaders from Karnataka will be summoned to New Delhi
for further dialogue with the party high command. ``We can't set
deadlines. The crisis will be solved within the framework of the party
at the earliest,'' Jaitley said.
BJP state president D V Sadananda Gowda claimed that 80% of the
problem had been solved and the rest was left to the high command.
Yeddyurappa said he had been advised to maintain silence and
``concentrate on development and flood relief works''.
Meanhile, Shettar's emissary and CM's parliamentary secretary, MLA A
Ramdas, suggested getting the opinion of party MLAs either through
secret ballot or open voting. This was rejected by Yeddyurappa
himself. The other solution discussed was to give a three-month
reprieve to Yeddyurappa until party president Rajnath Singh's term
expires.
Shettar is likely to be in Delhi on Saturday which will intensify
political activity in the state. A senior MLA supporting Shettar said
he had the support of more than 70 MLAs. To counter this, Yeddyurappa
convened an meeting of ministers and MLAs where the attendance was
around 50.
chhotemianinshallah
BJP assails RJD move to file chargesheet against govt
TNN 31 October 2009, 06:55am IST
PATNA: The state BJP leadership on Friday pooh-poohed at the decision
of the RJD to file chargesheet against the performance of the Nitish
Kumar government in the "people's court."
The party maintained that the RJD leadership, in fact, would have to
first go out looking around for lapses, faults and failures of the
present dispensation with a microscope, since the state, in sharp
contrast to the 15-year Lalu-Rabri "misrule", has seen all-round
development in just last four years, beginning November 2005.
In this regard, the state BJP leaders issued a joint statement on the
day. They included party's state general secretary Rajendra Prasad
Gupta, election management committee secretary Anil Sharma, national
media incharge Sanjay Mayukh, state secretary Suraj Nandan Mehta and
state media incharge Virendra Jha.
According to them, the Lalu-Rabri rule was marked by various scams,
while "several ministers, officials had been jailed on corruption
charges", a reign of terror prevailed due to uncontrolled violence,
including kidnapping and murder. Moreover, the then government failed
to contain Naxalite violence and developmental activities has come to
a standstill, the BJP leaders maintained, adding that RJD had no moral
right to present any chargesheet on the Nitish Kumar government at the
people's court.
On the contrary, they added, the RJD should prepare its report on
comparative scale enumerating the success of the Nitish Kumar
government and pointing out the details of the non-performance of the
governments headed by Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi.
The BJP leaders, lambasting Lalu, said that he has also failed as
railway minister, even as he was accorded the epithet of Management
Guru. But his successor Mamata Banerjee has exposed the hollowness of
his claims that he has brought a turnaround in the railways, the state
BJP leaders maintained.
Meanwhile, BJP's national general secretary and party's Central
Election Authority official for the organizational elections T Gehlot
has constituted a state-level appealate committee to look into all the
complaints and disputes regarding organizational elections. Deputy
leader of the BJP in Bihar legislative council Ganga Prasad has been
made convener of the committee. Its two members are Suresh Sharma and
Sukhda Pandey.
Sid Harth
BJP slams Naveen government on agriculture
STAFF WRITER 19:10 HRS IST
Bhubaneswar, Oct 31 (PTI) Dubbing BJD government in Orissa as being
"anti-farmer, inefficient and irresponsible", BJP today claimed that
not a single district in the state figured in the list declared
drought-hit by the Centre as the administration failed to send a
preliminary report.
"Naveen Patnaik government is anti-farmer, inefficient and
irresponsible. It failed on all fronts, particularly in safeguarding
the interests of farmers," BJP stalwart and former state minister B B
Harichandan told reporters here.
Farmers continued to commit suicide following crop failure due to lack
of irrigation and pest attack as also debt burden but the BJD
government failed to take proper steps to ameliorate their condition.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP calls 12-hour West Bengal shutdown Nov 30
2009-11-01 22:40:00
Protesting against the 'abnormal' price rise of essentials, the West
BengaL unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sunday convened a 12-
hour shutdown across the state Nov 30.
'We have started a month-long statewide agitation Sunday against the
rising prices which have hit the common people hard. The shutdown will
be the climax of our agitation,' new BJP state president Rahul Sinha
told IANS.
Sinha said the BJP will make written appeals to all political parties,
except the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), to support the
Nov 30 shutdown.
'We won't go to the CPI-M as we believe they are responsible for the
price escalation in the state, having been in power for the last 32
years at the head of the Left Front government,' he said.
Sinha claimed that the BJP was the only opposition party now. 'The
Congress and the Trinamool Congress are sharing power at the centre.
The CPI-M and other left parties are ruling the state for long. That
leaves only us,' he said.
chhotemianinshallah
BJP-JD(U) seat-sharing talks in Jharkhand fail
STAFF WRITER 17:51 HRS IST
New Delhi, Nov 4 (PTI) A day after BJP declared its first list of
candidates for Jharkhand assembly elections, its ally JD(U) today said
talks with its NDA ally over seat sharing have failed and announced
nominees for 19 seats.
"The current situation is that our seat sharing talks with BJP for
Jharkhand assembly polls have broken down. We had been talking to them
(BJP leadership) for the last three days, as we wanted to contest 18
seats like last time, but talks have failed," JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav
told reporters here.
BJP, however, described as surprising the breakdown of the talks,
saying it was a "unilateral" decision taken by its NDA ally despite
being offered their priority seats.
Yadav said both the alliance partners could not reach a consensus.
"First they announced their candidates, and today we decided to
announce ours," he said.
chhotemianinshallah
BJP having edge in Jharkhand: Shahnawaz
STAFF WRITER 17:52 HRS IST
Patna, Nov 4 (PTI) Slamming the Congress and RJD for supporting the
erstwhile Jharkhand ministry led by Madhu Koda, now under scanner of
the income tax department, senior BJP leader Syed Shahnawaz Hussain
today said the party has an edge over other parties in that state.
"The Congress and RJD are equally responsible for backing Madhu Koda,
now under I-T scanner.... Had these two parties not supported Koda, he
would not have been the CM of that state," Hussain told reporters
here.
"The BJP has an edge over rest of the parties in Jharkhand. It is all
set to form its government to rid the state of corruption, naxalism
and other ills by providing clean administration," Hussain claimed.
chhotemianinshallah
Cong workers raise 'donations' for BJP dissidents
STAFF WRITER 17:23 HRS IST
Davanagere (KTK), Nov 4 (PTI) It was a different march of sorts to
raise 'donations' by Congress activists here.
This 'fund' raising drive was not for the flood-battered, but for
dissidents in ruling BJP in Karnataka, camping at Hyderabad and Goa,
seeking removal of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.
As the activists of youth Congress went through the city's main
thoroughfares, donors made offerings like bottles of whisky, brandy,
beer, live chicken and even cash.
"Some legislators instead of toiling for flood-hit people are enjoying
in resorts at Hyderabad and Goa for political power. So we decided to
contribute to the legislators' expenses at resorts. Hence we are
collecting funds," K G Shivakumar, a city municipality councillor,
said.
chhotemianinshallah
Toss-up between Congress, BJP in Chhattisgarh
November 4th, 2009 SindhToday
Raipur, Nov 4 (IANS) The Congress in Chhattisgarh is displaying a rare
united front as it fights for the lone assembly seat to which a by-
election will be held Saturday. Pundits say it is the party’s first
show of unity since losing power in the state in 2003, mainly due to
intra-party bickering.
The by-poll in the Vaishali Nagar constituency in Durg district became
necessary after legislator Saroj Pandey of the ruling Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) was elected to the Lok Sabha in May and vacated the
assembly seat that she won in the November 2008 polls by a margin of
nearly 22,000 votes.
Though 15 candidates are in the fray, the main fight is between
Jageshwar Sahu of the BJP and Bhajan Singh Nirankari of the Congress.
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the third force in Chhattisgarh
politics, has decided to stay out of the contest.
The Congress has deployed all its local top guns including state
president Dhanendra Sahu, leader of opposition Ravindra Choubey and
most of its 38 legislators for door-to-door campaigning to woo about
211,000 voters.
The BJP has also been pulling out all stops to retain the seat, mainly
relying on its proven ‘booth management’ formula by which it ensures
that all its supporters actually come out and vote on polling day.
However, its prospects have taken a knock due to the entry into the
fray of independent candidate Riti Deshlahre, backed by local
heavyweight and four-time BJP MP from Durg Tarachand Sahu, who was
expelled from the party this January.
“As of now it looks like a toss-up between the Congress and the BJP.
The battle is sure to be close,” political analyst Anil Vibhakar told
IANS.
He added that the result would set the tone for the state’s local
bodies elections expected in December-January.
A voter who lives in the Nehru Nagar area, Vipin Yadav, a native of
Uttar Pradesh and one of 40,000-odd migrants from northern India who
live in this constituency, commented: “We elected BJP leader Saroj
Pandey with high hopes. But she ditched us within six months. We plan
to go for the Congress this time.”
But a teacher of the Adarsh Nagar area, Poonam Sahu, stated: “We have
no issues with the BJP. We need development and a legislator who cares
about our civic problems. For this, the BJP still tops our list.”
But the Congress can sense a possible win and has called for the
campaign its national treasurer Motilal Vora, who is from Durg
district, and union minister V. Narayanasamy, the party-in-charge of
Chhattisgarh. Congress veteran and the state’s first chief minister
Ajit Jogi is also campaigning extensively.
(Sujeet Kumar can be contacted at suje...@ians.in)
[LM1]
chhotemianinshallah
No change in BJP leadership in Bihar: Shahnawaz
STAFF WRITER 18:3 HRS IST
Patna, Nov 4 (PTI) Ruling out any change in the party's leadership and
removal of S K Modi as Bihar Deputy Chief Minister, senior BJP leader
Sayed Shahnawaz Hussain today said no such demand was under
consideration at top level.
"There is no plan to change Modi...the party's national leadership has
not received any such demand from any section," Shahnawaz told
reporters here.
Modi said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has ruled out the possibility of
enacting any legislation to protect sharecroppers.
A section of the party leaders had demanded Modi's removal following
his reported statement to cover sharecroppers under the Kisan Credit
Card (KCC) scheme.
Accusing the Centre of "neglecting" Bihar, Hussain said the NDA MPs
would continue to raise issues related to the state's development in
the forthcoming session of the Parliament.
bademiyansubhanallah
Thursday,5 November 2009 16:15 hrs IST
Jharkhand: Cong opts for former BJP man
-
Babulal Marandi
Ranchi: The Congress party has dumped its old allies in the coming
assembly elections in Jharkhand and found a new ally in former chief
minister Babulal Marandi, formerly of the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP).
The Congress has decided to contest 55 seats and leave 31 for the
Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajantantrik (JVM-P) of Marandi, who was chief
minister from November 2000 to March 2003.
Two seats have been given to another party. "We will have friendly
fights in five to seven seats," a Congress leader said.
A formal announcement of the alliance is likely to be made Thursday or
Friday.
Marandi quit the BJP in 2006 and floated the JVM-P, which won 10.5
percent of the votes in the Lok Sabha elections this year.
The two earlier allies of the Congress were the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha
(JMM) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The Congress-JMM alliance
has snapped after six years.
The Congress and JMM fought the 2004 and 2009 Lok Sabha and the 2005
assembly elections together.
The Congress has also dumped independents who were part of the
government of Madhu Koda, who is now embroiled in one of India's
biggest corruption scams.
The JMM will contest the November-December elections on its own. The
RJD wanted an alliance with the Congress but the latter was not
interested.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP and JD-U to contest jointly in Jharkhand
STAFF WRITER 13:30 HRS IST
New Delhi, Nov 5 (PTI) After some initial differences over seat-
sharing for Assembly elections in Jharkhand, the BJP and JD(U) today
reached an understanding on contesting the polls together with JD(U)
likely to contest 14 of the 81 seats.
"JD(U) President Sharad Yadav and I held a meeting today to discuss
the possibility of an alliance in Jharkhand. It has been decided that
JD(U) will contest 14 seats," BJP Vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
told PTI.
JD(U) had yesterday announced nominees for 19 seats, a day after BJP
declared its first list of 58 candidates, and JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav
had said seat sharing talks with BJP for the polls have broken down.
Naqvi said the two NDA allies will campaign jointly.
The formal announcement of the finalisation of the seat sharing
arrangement is likely to be made by BJP President Rajnath Singh in
presence of Yadav.
Sid Harth
Congress smiles in Jharkhand, BJP sulks
Poll deal with Marandi
SANJAY K. JHA AND SUDHIR KUMAR MISHRA
Sonia, Rajnath
New Delhi/Ranchi, Nov. 4: The Congress has finally managed to convince
Babulal Marandi’s Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) to enter into an
alliance for the coming Assembly elections.
The JVM, which had refused to compromise on its demand for 31 of the
81 seats, has now settled for 26, although a few friendly fights
cannot be ruled out in some constituencies, including Bokaro, Dhanbad,
Jamshedpur (East) and Ranchi.
Although no official confirmation of the alliance was available till
late in the night, sources said both sides had agreed to fight the
election together, barring a few loose ends that were being tied up.
They said while the Congress wanted friendly fights to be restricted
to two seats, one Bokaro and one in Dhanbad, Marandi reportedly faxed
a list asking for friendly fights in nine seats. Congress leaders went
into a huddle to study his proposal.
Although the late-night decision shocked Jharkhand Congress, central
leaders were delighted to have Marandi, the one-time RSS darling, in
their lap on a day when the BJP had lost its most valuable ally, JD
(U), for the Jharkhand battle.
The Congress high command did not share state leaders’ perception that
going alone was the best option. It was desperate to prevent the BJP
from reversing the downslide in Jharkhand and hence the decision to
bolster its own brittle forces.
The Congress had almost given up hope by afternoon, but the collapse
of alliance gave it a new sense of purpose and the central leadership
decided to revisit the issue again in the evening.
The initial offer of 25 seats given to the JVM was scaled up to 28 and
the leaders made up their mind for a few friendly fights, too.
Party sources revealed that last night, the Congress’s Jharkhand in-
charge K. Keshav Rao had detailed discussions with Marandi over the
telephone. They spoke to each other today too. The two leaders agreed
forging an electoral alliance was necessary for fighting “bigger
challenges” ahead.
However, to hold their respective flocks together, friendly fights in
certain areas, too, was a necessity.
Congress negotiators were under tremendous pressure from local leaders
and workers who had been camping at the party headquarters for the
last few days, pressing for the go-alone policy. But the overriding
reason was to exploit the fragmented electoral scene to the Congress’s
advantage by adding up whatever little was available in the political
market.
A few seats were left for individual leaders who had their own pockets
of influence; Sudesh Mahto for instance who has been given two seats.
While some ticket aspirants openly spoke against central leaders
associated with the Jharkhand process at the party headquarters,
others staged demonstrations at Rao’s residence.
Rao had refused to attend the central election committee meeting
earlier in the day in protest against yesterday’s heckling amid
allegations of money transactions for tickets.
Some Jharkhand leaders later tendered an apology to him and persuaded
him to resume his work. AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik was also
the target of workers’ ire.
bademiyansubhanallah
JD(S) leaders in Delhi as BJP brass grapples with Kar crisis
STAFF WRITER 15:42 HRS IST
New Delhi, Nov 6 (PTI) As the BJP leadership grapples with the crisis
in Karnataka, JD(S) -- a lead player in the state politics -- is
keeping a close watch on the development though its leaders are
refusing to openly comment on the issue.
"The drama is going on between two factions (of BJP) and it is not
necessary for me to answer for their action.
Nobody from BJP till now has had discussions with me. I think they
will sort out their problems among themselves. It is not for our party
to align with any of them," JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy told
reporters here, soon after his arrival.
JD(S) Chief and Kumaraswamy's father H D Deve Gowda is also camping in
Delhi and sources said the father-son duo is keeping a close watch on
the situation in the state.
Sid Harth
BJP sure of absolute majority in Assembly polls
TNN 6 November 2009, 10:23pm IST
JAMSHEDPUR: State BJP president Raghuvar Das is confident of wresting
two-third majority in the ensuing election to the Jharkhand Assembly.
He has said that a pro-BJP wave is blowing in the state and it is just
a matter of time before the BJP-led NDA assumes office.
He termed the JD(U)-BJP alliance, which was stitched up after days of
dilly-dallying, a perfect combination to take on the "unholy alliance"
of Congress and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (P).
On the Madhu Koda episode, Das, a former finance minister of the
state, said that the record-holder independent chief minister is just
a small fry and that the real culprits are those who managed the
affairs from Delhi.
The BJP leader said that those who were manning the affairs of the
Congress in the state should also be questioned.
"Madhu Koda is just a small fry. What about those who supported the
installation of the unethical dispensation in the state?" Das asked.
He threatened to take legal action against those involved in shielding
Koda's illegal and unethical deeds during his regime once the NDA came
to power.
"Nobody would go scot-free. All senior Congressmen, who were in-charge
of the party during Koda's regime, shall be brought under the scanner
once our alliance forms the government," he said.
Taking a dig at JVM-P president Babulal Marandi, the senior BJP leader
said that under the garb of fighting corruption in the state, Marandi
has patched up with the most corrupt party just for the sake of
attaining power.
Speaking to mediapersons outside the deputy commissioner's office here
on Friday after filing his nomination papers for the fourth
consecutive term from the Jamshedpur (East) constituency, Das claimed
that all the important projects initiated by the previous NDA
government in the state would be pursued speedily once the alliance
assumes office.
"There are some very important projects concerning public interests
undertaken by our government in the previous term and were later
shelved by the UPA regime. However, we will take up these projects
once we come to power," he remarked.
Without specifying any number, the BJP state president said that the
NDA will get an absolute majority in the state and that the alliance
would celebrate former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birthday by gifting
him a government in the state. Notably, counting to the five-phase
polling would be held on December 23 and Vajpayee's birthday falls on
December 25.
chhotemianinshallah
Much at stake for stalwarts this poll
SUMAN K. SHRIVASTAVA
Ranchi, Nov. 8: Jharkhand, a victim of a fragmented polity, braces up
again for a multi-cornered contest in 81 seats, making the Assembly
elections, slated to start from November 25, unpredictable.
The Congress, having struck a bilateral deal with Babulal Marandi’s
Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM), is pushing for a “stable” government,
but it has left Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), a former ally, in the
lurch.
The Congress, pulling all stops to capture power in the state, is up
against political juggernaut, the BJP. The Congress has also tried to
distance itself from the corrupt regime of Madhu Koda, facing a probe
by central agencies.
The BJP had emerged as the single-largest party in the 2005 Assembly
elections. The party topped up its performance by clinching eight of
the 14 seats in the past Lok Sabha elections. Now, it is a do-or-die
battle for the BJP as it tries to reverse recent nation-wide defeat in
Jharkhand that has been a bastion. “A victory here (Jharkhand) would
prove a lot for the BJP that is smarting after defeats in Maharashtra,
Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh,” said a BJP insider.
“The BJP rode high on the anti-incumbency factor and won eight out of
the 14 Lok Sabha seats some six months ago. I doubt it will repeat the
same feat,” said Harishwar Dayal, who studied the past elections on
behalf of the Delhi-based Centre for the Study of Developing Societies
(CSDS). For JMM, it could prove to be the final battle for Shibu
Soren, as he strives to prove that he is still a prominent figure in
Jharkhand politics. Though JMM has no base in Palamau, the party has
roped in several Left-wing rebel-turned-politicians to rake in votes.
Despite efforts, it is difficult to believe that the JMM will be able
to retain its position in the Assembly. “LS polls made it clear that
the JMM may not be able to survive merely playing on janata’s
emotions. In Jharkhand, government’s performance has been
unsatisfactory. Here the politics of performance should be effective
rather than that of allegiances,” Dayal added.
“Against this backdrop, the fate of the Congress alliance with Babulal
Marandi would be interesting to watch,” he said. Marandi is facing the
first Assembly elections after parting ways with the BJP in 2006.
Lalu Prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan, too, are out to show their political
relevance despite being cold-shouldered by the Congress. In the 2005
Assembly polls, the Congress had entered into an alliance with the
JMM, leaving the RJD and Left in the lurch. The RJD had bagged seven
seats in the last elections.
Pollsters say that Naxalite leaders will play a major role this poll,
as previously they have been able to influence voting pattern in a
large number of seats.
The JMM will field candidates in 81 seats, while the BJP and the JD(U)
will be fighting for 67 and 14 seats, respectively. The Congress and
JVM will contest 62 and 19 seats, respectively, and will be locked in
a contest in five seats.
bademiyansubhanallah
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP leads in Chhattisgarh
Raipur, Nov 10
Chhattisgarh's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday established
an early lead over the Congress in the Vaishali Nagar assembly seat as
officials counted votes cast in Saturday's by-election.
Jageshwar Sahu was leading by some 600 votes over Congress candidate
Bhajan Singh Nirankari, officials said. The counting of votes started
in Durg district at 8 a.m.
About 52 percent of the 211,000 electorate voted Saturday. The by-
election followed BJP legislator Saroj Pandey's election to the Lok
Sabha in May.
Last updated on Nov 10th, 2009 at 10:02 am IST--IANS
chhotemianinshallah
BJP, Cong win one seat each in byelections in HP
STAFF WRITER 11:44 HRS IST
Shimla, Nov 10 (PTI) BJP won Rohroo assembly seat and Congress bagged
Jawali in Himachal Pradesh as results of the two by-polls were
declared today.
While the Rohroo seat was held by Congress, Jawali was represented by
BJP.
In Rohroo seat Khushiram Balnatah defeated Congress candidate Manjit
Singh Thakur by 8,473 votes while in Jawali former state minister and
Congress nominee Sujan Singh Pathania humbled BJP's Chaudhary Baldev
Raj by 5,249 votes, the state election office said.
Byelections on Rohroo in Shimla district and Jawali in Kangra district
were necessitated due to resignation of Union Minister Virbhadra Singh
and BJP's Rajan Sushant respectively after they became MPs.
Sid Harth
Trinamool Congress – Congress Combine Sweeps West Bengal Elections
Last Updated: 2009-11-10T17:32:39+05:30
The resurgent Trinamool Congress-Congress combine on Tuesday swept the
West Bengal assembly by-elections winning eight of the 10 seats,
dealing a blow to the beleaguered ruling Left Front that could bag
only one seat. An independent took the 10th seat.
Although the Nov 3 by-elections were mainly held in areas considered
opposition citadels, the Left was desperate for a good showing since
the next assembly elections are due in 2011.
Despite contesting separately, the Congress and the Trinamool won
seven of the 10 constituencies in 2006. The Left Front had won three.
Continuing with its electoral victories since the Lok Sabha sweep of
May, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool bagged all the seven seats it
contested, retaining five and wresting Belgachia East and Rajganj from
its arch rival Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) in the vote
count Tuesday.
The Congress, which was in the fray in three constituencies, had to be
satisfied with one seat. It retained its traditional stronghold
Sujapur in Malda district but conceded the prized Goalpokhar seat in
North Dinajpur district to the Forward Bloc, a Left Front ally.
It was the only success for the Left Front, which was defeated in all
the other nine seats.
The Kalchini seat in north Bengal's Jalpaiguri went to an independent.
And, in a clear sign of the hard times to follow, the CPI-M drew a
blank despite pitting candidates in five constituencies.
Trinamool candidates were re-elected from Bongaon, Serampore, Alipore,
Contai South and Egra.
The victor in Sujapur was late Congress leader A.B. Gani Khan
Chowdhury's brother Abu Nasser Khan Chowdhury. He won by 29,479
votes.
In a startling result, the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha-backed independent
Wilson Champamari won from Kalichini in north Bengal's Jalpaiguri
district. The Adivasi Vikas Parishad nominee finished second, leaving
the more established political parties far behind.
Left Front partner Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) finished third
and the Congress fourth in the seat, which comprises a large number of
tea gardens in the foothills of the Darjeeling Himalayas known as the
Dooars.
In Alipore, Trinamool's Bobby Hakim trounced his nearest rival Kuastav
Chatterjee of the CPI-M by 27,555 votes. The seat, a Trinamool
stronghold, falls in Mamata Banerjee's Kolkata South parliamentary
constituency.
Trinamool's triumph in Belgachia (East) on Kolkata's outskirts was a
big triumph for the party and a severe heartbreak for the Left as it
had elected popular CPI-M leader Subhas Chakraborty seven times since
1977. Chakraborty died earlier this year, and the CPI-M tried to cash
in on a perceived sympathy wave by nominating Chakraborty's widow
Ramala against Trinamool leader Sujit Bose.
In the end, the move boomeranged, and Bose sailed home with a massive
28,360 margin, which was more than the lead taken by Chakraborty in
any of the elections.
Rajganj was another example of the CPI-M's decline since the April-May
Lok Sabha battle. Then, CPI-M's Mahendra Kumar Roy, a sitting
legislator from Rajganj, had taken a massive 26,000 plus lead from the
segment. But the scene dramatically changed this time as Trinamool's
Khageswar Ray was elected with a margin of over 15,000.
With the Left slowly losing grip over the state that it has ruled
since 1977, under the assault of the Trinamool-led opposition, the by-
elections were considered a trailer to the 2011 assembly elections.