Prestige at stake
The difference between stumping by the ruling party in two constituencies in the state, where the by-elections are being held, is apparent. In one constituency, the government and the party organisation are making all efforts to win the by-poll, because its prestige is at stake there. In this constituency, the party leaders have been advised to remain alert to avoid any problem. A politician, holding an office that should remain out of any politics, is openly canvassing for a candidate. Similarly, a Union Minister is pulling his weight in another constituency where he is making a strategy for the party candidate there. Those who are close to the Union Minister have taken over the command of electioneering. The confidantes of the Union Minister and those of the candidates are active in this by-poll-bound constituency. At stake in this election is the prestige of the Union Minister. So, it is he who is doing the damage- control exercise by interacting with the partymen. It is only after the by-election results are out, that it will be clear who is more powerful.
Show of strength
Few in the Congress understand why a leader of the party is out to display his strength. There are reports that all is not well with this leader and the party’s state unit. Because he does not want to switch over to another party, he looks unhappy for not getting enough importance in the outfit. The supporters of this leader have recently displayed their strength at an event. By inviting a BJP leader to the function, they issued a veiled threat to the Congress leadership. Before this event, the supporters of the leader organised a function on his birthday. Through this event, though he displayed his strength, it did not have any impact on the important Congress leaders. After the formation of the party’s executive committee, the leader showed his anger, but the party bosses did not give two hoots to him. The leader, who is displaying his strength, does not know how to draw the party leadership’s attention to the difficulties he is facing in the party.
Pangs for pew
A well-heeled BJP legislator is at a loss to understand how to become a minister. So, he is pulling out all the stops to keep the BJP’s top leadership happy. His supporters put up posters and hoardings from his constituency to the state capital on his birthday. Advertisements were also published in newspapers and TV channels. His supporters put the photograph of such a leader in the posters and hoardings as partymen generally avoid. The leader, whose photograph has been put in the posters, holds such an important position in the organisation that he keeps away from publicity, but the legislator has used his pictures to please him. The legislator is also performing certain rituals to get a berth in the ministry. He has already performed several religious ceremonies to woo heavenly bodies. There are reports that he is keeping an eye on possible changes in the cabinet, into which some new faces may be inducted, and a few old hands asked to go. The legislator is making all efforts to get a berth, keeping in mind that probable ministry reshuffle.
Back on track
The influence of a BJP leader in Gwalior, who has been ignored for five years, has suddenly grown. Neither the party organisation nor the government gave him much importance in the past five years. After the two senior leaders of the party visited his residence last week, discussions about him are going on. During the Chief Minister’s trip to Gwalior, his visit to the residence of this former minister was included in his itinerary. The CM stayed at his residence for a long time. Afterwards, a national leader’s trip to Gwalior and his visit to the residence of the former minister, have deepened the talks about his prospects in the party. The national leader generally avoids visiting the house of anyone, but he not only visited the former minister’s residence but also stayed there for a long time to discuss various issues. The former minister has recently met a senior functionary of the RSS. So, his growing importance in the party as well as in the organisation has spawned speculations that he may get an important assignment in the coming days.
Bungalow buzz
A bungalow, adjacent to the residence of a senior Congress leader, has given off buzzes these days. The Congress leader wants the government to allot it to a leader of his party. The leader thinks if the house is allotted to a party legislator, he may use it as part of his residence. The bungalow was reportedly earmarked for an officer, but the Congress leader stopped the allotment by using his clouts in the government. He expected that it would be allotted to a Congress legislator. But it has been allotted to a BJP leader, very close to the higher-ups in the party organisation. He had been trying to get a government house for a long time. Meanwhile, though the BJP leader was allotted a bungalow, he failed to get it vacated. So, the bungalow, which the Congress leader was trying to get allotted to an MLA of his party, was handed over to the BJP leader. Because of the incident, the Congress leader is angry with the government.
Who’s afraid of snakes? (Cartoon snake)
A wounded serpent is more dangerous than any hazard a human can ever imagine. So goes the saying: never wound a snake; kill it, but a Member of Parliament (MP) and leader of farmers did not want either. To avoid a possible clash with venomous serpents, the MP simply got himself vaccinated against their poisonous bite in a village of his constituency. The residents of this snake-infested village get an anti-venom injection every year. Now, the MP is confident of enduring the snakebite as fearsome as death with a smiling face, because he believes in the philosophy of non-violence that taught him to embrace even his enemy. Perhaps, this is the reason why he got vaccinated on the occasion of Bhai Duj. Now that the MP has no wrangle with snakes, for he has no fear from them, he can happily sing, “Na yeh chaand hoga, na tare rahenge… magar hum hamesha tumahare rahenge…!” (Neither the moon, nor the stars shall be there. But I shall be with you forever…)”
