Amit shy, so Doval’s the troubleshooter
Optics of a riot
T he Central government’s decision to send National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval to the riotaffected northeast Delhi areas was a deliberate move. Apparently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and his two deputies in North Block, G. Krishan Reddy and Nityanand Rai, were not keen to make any conciliatory gesture. The political leadership zeroed in on Doval. The NSA’s presence was effective after the crowd heard him say, “Inshallah, everything will be fine.”
Saffron takeover?
T he Narendra Modi government is reportedly contemplating some sort of an interim government or an advisory council in Jammu and Kashmir with the help of Altaf Bukhari, Muzaffar Baig, Dilawar Mir, and a few others from Jammu region. The Centre is reportedly keen to undertake the delimitation of Assembly seats by early 2022, with 50 constituencies in Jammu and 40 in the Kashmir Valley. The big question doing the rounds in Lutyens’ Delhi is whether such a plan can work without the three former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti? Enthusiastic elements in North and South Blocks point to the past when Sheikh Abdullah was imprisoned for almost two decades.
Framing concern
W hen Sonia Gandhi addressed a press conference over the Delhi riots, many party leaders were unable to recall the last time the AICC chief — for over 20 years since 1998 — conducted a press briefing from 24, Akbar Road. So eager was the Congress leadership to be seen in the same frame as her that nine chairs were placed on the dais. The ninth chair placed for Shaktisinh Gohil almost teetered off the stage. The leaders who sat with Gandhi included Manmohan Singh, Ghulam Nabi Azad, A.K. Antony, Randeep Surjewala K.C. Venugopal, P. Chidambaram and Ahmed Patel. Many leaders who couldn’t find space on the dais sat with reporters. These included Rajeev Gowda, Mallikarjun Kharge and P.L. Punia.
Shakhas and leaves
T he BJP’s choice of V.D. Sharma as the Madhya Pradesh party head has generated a lot of interest in party circles. Sharma is perceived to be close to Suresh Soni, an influential RSS leader. Many had thought Shivraj Singh Chouhan would get the post or Rakesh Singh would get another term in office. Sharma’s appointment is seen as the RSS’s growing clout over the BJP organisation.
Berth pains in Cong
T here are many anxious souls in the Congress as the Rajya Sabha poll dates draw closer. Reports of Sonia Gandhi traveling out in the first half of March and Rahul Gandhi returning to the country have rattled a section of the party’s old guard who were confident of securing berths in the Upper House. In Karnataka, veteran Mallikarjun Kharge is a contender while in Haryana, Kumari Selja is a hopeful. But Congress insiders claim if
Rahul gets a chance to have a decisive say in selecting Congress nominees for Rajya Sabha, loyalty may not be on premium and Kharge may find himself getting upstaged by Rajiv Gowda.
CMs to be tested
N ow that Delhi elections are done and dusted, the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership is said to be giving a hard look at some of its party-ruled states. Three states — Haryana, Assam and Uttarakhand — are under the scanner, where the performance of the chief ministers is being evaluated against many parameters. BJP sources say, however, that an assessment does not mean the chief ministers of these states would necessarily be uprooted.
The writer is a keen observer of the goings-on in backrooms of power