Down but not out
Bungalows have sparked bickering among the ministers, because each of them wants a sprawling house. Such a bungalow has been allotted to a former minister, but none of the cabinet members are asking for it – although he has lost the election. That shows how strong is the former minister’s clout in the ruling party as well as in the government. This is the reason why none of the ministers have the guts to set their eye on his bungalow. The government, too, has decided not to allot it to anyone. The former minister will be given some assignment in the coming six months, but there are discussions that he may be given a ticket for the Lok Sabha election. If that happens, he will not have to vacate the house. At a recent meeting, the former minister made it clear that a defeat in an election cannot lessen his influence.
Ram Lalla’s blessings
A legislator is still making efforts to become a minister, thinking that Lady Luck will smile on him after the parliamentary election. He is applying elbow grease to reach his goal. Many important leaders of the ruling party were kept away from the consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla’s idol in Ayodhya, but this legislator got an invitation and took part in the event. Politicians were surprised to know he that had got an invitation from the Ram Temple Trust. He believes Ram Lalla’s blessings will help him achieve the target. This legislator already met a senior leader in Delhi and lobbied with an accomplice of a senior leader for a ministerial berth. It is heard that the leader, whom the legislator has met, helps many people get many difficult things done. The legislator thinks the time has come to take a crack at getting a berth in the cabinet through this leader.
Party-hopper
A leader who switched over to the BJP from the Congress wants to return to his parent party. He recently discussed the issue with an influential leader of the BJP in the state through a politician. What actually happened was that he got a notice from the government, and he took the help of the BJP leader to get rid of it. Now, there are reports that the party-hopper wants to return to the BJP through this leader who got a ticket from the Congress, but lost the election, though he worked hard to win it. He is disenchanted with the Congress after the defeat. Because the influence of the leader through whom he switched over to the Congress has also waned, he wants to return to his parent organisation. The caste equation with the BJP leader whose support he sought is also helping him to return. But the main hurdle in his way is a former leader of the Congress who defected to the ruling party. Ergo his wishes may not be easily fulfilled.
One bride many suitors
Many politicians are aspiring for a ticket for the Bhopal Lok Sabha seat, and one of them is the present Member of Parliament from this constituency. The MP is making the rounds of the offices and residences of RSS leaders, pulling pulling out all the stops to get a ticket. Likewise, two leaders who have lost the assembly election are keen on getting a ticket from this Lok Sabha constituency. Those who did not get tickets for the assembly election are also interested in contesting the parliamentary election from the state capital. A few central leaders of the party have also set their eye on this prestigious seat. Now it is to be seen who the bride agrees to tie the knot with.
Daydreaming!
It is a truth generally acknowledged, that the politicians barely build castles in the air, because they live in harsh reality where daydreaming has no scope, but they often do it in their leisure hours. Two office-bearers of the BJP organisation are wool-gathering about going to the Rajya Sabha where five seats are about to fall vacant. Ergo these two office-bearers of the BJP organisation have set their eyes on two of the five seats. Although it is not known whether they will be elected to the Rajya Sabha or not, their close aides have started congratulating them. Their friends told these two leaders that they had fair chances to get berths in the Rajya Sabha. Such statements make these two politicians so happy that they even offer tea and snacks to their fly-by-night well- wishers. These friends never spare an opportunity to flatter these two politicians. One day, one such friend told one of the two politicians that the Rajya Sabha is meant for intellectuals and he is very suitable for a berth there, because he has done PhD. Fair-weather friends are a reality in politics, but daydreaming is not. Should a politician keep away from both?
Weight of crown
Wearing a crown is easier than carrying its weight. When a Young Turk of a political party was made the head of its state unit, he was very happy. The firebrand leader wanted to breathe in life in the political organisation that was looking pale after the recent electoral defeat. Because of the debacle, the party workers seem to be so upset that they are not ready to listen to their leader’s appeal to roll up their sleeves for another battle of ballots. There is pressure on the young leader from the party’s high command that he should give his best to win the ensuing Lok Sabha election, but he seems to be at sea. The veteran members of the party also want their share of flesh in the organisation. The heart of such leaders is with their present leader, but their soul is not. The youngster knows it is difficult to raise the party from the ruins. But he is giving it his best shot.
