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Taking
a Break Delhi:
After months of intense activity and trans-continental airdashes, the high-point of which
was Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to the United Nations, Indian nuclear
diplomacy seems to have reached a calmer phase. With the deadline for US President Bill
Clinton's visit to India having come and gone, the two sides appear to have paused for
breath. One indication of this is that the two high-profile interlocutors on the nuclear
issue-Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Jaswant Singh and Principal Secretary to the
Prime Minister Brajesh Mishra-are taking the leisurely route back home. Mishra and spouse
are in the US on a private visit while Singh and his better half are in the UK. Though few
would grudge the two a break, the choice of their destinations does speak volumes for the
texture of India's relations with the US and the UK.
Back in Reckoning
Delhi: After a
six-month sulk for being sidelined, Congress warhorse Pranab Mukherjee is back in favour
with party chief Sonia Gandhi. He has been made convener of the National Training
Institute, constituted by Sonia to train partymen. The one who had to give up his office
at the AICC headquarters to Mukherjee is poor Ghulam Nabi Azad, whose last assignment as
convener of the committee to celebrate the 50th year of Independence expired on August 15.
Incidentally, Mukherjee is the only senior Congressman to have an office in the main AICC
building.
Inauspicious Reshuffle
Hyderabad: N.
Chandrababu Naidu is a meticulous planner, but sometimes even the best laid plans of the
Andhra Pradesh chief minister can go awry. On the auspicious Vijayadashmi day, hours
before the 13 new faces were to be inducted into the state cabinet, Naidu summoned the
four dropped ministers to his residence for their resignations. But what he didn't
anticipate was that their removal would spark a controversy. "Painful, insulting and
embarrassing," complained Nettam Raghuram, threatening to resign from the Assembly.
While N. Ramakishan Rao sulked in silence, T. Srinivas Yadav was sore that Naidu removed
him on a festival day. But the influential and defiant S.V. Subba Reddy refused to resign.
When Governor C. Rangarajan sacked him on Naidu's request, Reddy demanded an inquiry into
the assets and other income of the chief minister, his ministers and their relatives. More
than needling Naidu, Reddy has ended up giving the opposition Congress just the stick to
beat the ruling TDP with.
Dry Celebration
Patna: When
Laloo Prasad Yadav has reasons to celebrate, you can be sure that nothing goes amiss. And
that brother-in-law Subhash Yadav is around to lend a helping hand. Last week, to mark the
"victory" over the Centre on the issue of President's rule in Bihar, Laloo
decided to host the mother of all parties in Patna. While Chief Minister Rabri Devi was
not around, Laloo and friends enjoyed the launda naach (performance by male dancers).
Subhash pitched in by ensuring that friendly retailers despatched over 150 crates of
liquor on a dry day. But the revellers swear that no alcohol was served at the party. Now
the state's excise officials are trying to figure out where exactly the liquor went. |
