Wednesday, June 8, 2011

The Tribune-Chatterati-6th.June.2011

"Position see-saws in politics"

Jayalalithaa adorns jewellery again and a wide smile greets all after 14 years.
The newly sworn in Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J.Jayalalithaa has been forced to start wearing her ear studs again by her party cadre. Since 1997, Jayalalithaa had given up wearing any piece of jewellery. After the results, her colleagues and party workers requested her to start wearing jewels, and threatened self-immolation over the issue. When her jewellery was seized in the wealth case in 1997 and she was mocked time and again by Sun TV, the AIADMK queen had stopped wearing ornaments altogether. It was to stop the Karunanidhi government any mileage by letting them paint her as a politician who lived in opulence.
Now the supremo of Tamil Nadu always has a polite smile to all and no one can find a match for her impeccable mannerism and choosing of correct words at her press conferences. She is a true convent-educated lady with everything in correct order.
On the other hand, Karunanidhi didn't celebrate his 88th birthday as his daughter is in jail. A sad Karunanidhi seems to be reflecting on how so much can go wrong so soon. He has lost his election, reputation and the family is in so much trouble.
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"‘Insecure’ government"

Delhiites were shocked at the sight of three Union ministers - Kapil Sibal, Pawan Kumar Bansal and Subodh Kant Sahay -- receiving Baba Ramdev at the Delhi airport on Wednesday and were more surprised to see Pranab Mukherjee later join them for talks at the airport. The yoga guru, having interests in various TV channels, reached the Capital for his 'satyagraha' against black money and corruption.
There seems to be a kind of a strategy behind this whole drama. Delhiites are questioning the role of civil society representative Baba Ramdev. Is all this done to take the attention of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption stir? Delhiites feel how every second self-proclaimed civil society representative is going to come to the Capital to go on fast and dharna. What will their life be like? Traffic jams and harassment of the common man by cops too. But what seems to be annoying the public is that their Union government feels so insecure that it has to designate its senior ministers for such a threat. Is it a threat? And why is the government so scared? Or is this a strategy to derail the whole Lokpal Bill?
It is sure to boomerang as more and more publicity is given by the media and the UPA-II seems to be just going from bad to worse. Delhiites suffer due to these agitations, but if the message is clear and the demands are based on reasons and ethics, it's fine by them.
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"Some austerity drive!"

In UP, Chief Minister Mayawati is obviously taking a cue from the Congress in trying to initiate an austerity drive. But the move has become a joke in the opposition and bureaucracy.
There is now a ban on government receptions and dinners at five-star hotels. On New Year or Divali, there is no distribution of calendars, diaries and greetings. There are no ads for publicity by the departments.
On the other hand, Madam is spending thousands of crores on memorials and parks. When she moves, there is a fleet of two dozen vehicles and then she expects others to practise austerity. Is this a genuine austerity drive, one wonders.
Explaining the necessity for the decision, the Chief Minister said that the implementation of recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission had put a massive burden on the state exchequer.

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