Vis-a-Vis

MAMATA BANERJEE Trinamool Congress MP versus SOMNATH CHATTERJEE Lok Sabha Speaker

"There is no point in my being a member of the House if I am not allowed to raise people's issues."

"The member concerned did not choose to take part in the debate. The same matter cannot be raised twice in one session of the House."

EPILOGUE: Banerjee's famed tantrums hits Parliament and causes red faces all around.

VOICES

"We are a country of one billion people and we have the right to get that seat. One day, I am sure, we will get it."

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, President, on India's bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council

"Revenue generation is important, I agree. But the mindset to collect the maximum through complex means is not right in my opinion."

Kamal Nath, Union commerce minister, on the fringe benefit tax

"The governor was gracious enough to visit my residence and his visit was more than enough for me to return to work."

G.S. Kang, Bihar chief secretary

"We will look at all objections. We do not want to steamroll our way through it."

Santosh Mohan Deb, Union minister for heavy industries and public enterprises, on sale of government shares in BHEL

"When someone said Shah Rukh Khan was Bollywood's badshah, I said he was the badshah but I'm the ikka."

Aamir Khan, actor

THE BUZZ OF THE WEEK

The prime minister has a new focus: energy security. He believes that rising oil prices and demand will cause the biggest crisis in the years ahead. He has asked key ministries to treat this on priority.

PICTURE SPEAK

DOUBLE TROUBLE: (From left) Gaur, Sameena, Shagufta

BHOPAL Babulal Gaur reached the Madhya Pradesh chief minister's office at the ripe old age of 74 and he could be heading out for the most improbable of reasons: allegations of sexual misdemeanour. Sworn affidavits by two men blaming Gaur for the break-up of their marriages have created a storm in the state. Husbands of sisters Shagufta Kabir and Sameena Khan, whom Gaur described as "party workers", alleged the chief minister had been plying their wives with favours which led to marital discord and finally ended in divorce. Shagufta contested the recent municipal elections, with Gaur actively campaigning for her. Sameena allegedly got her job in the Bhopal Municipal Corporation in April on Gaur's recommendation.

On his part, Gaur says, "I am being dragged into this scandal unnecessarily." Though Gaur got a reprieve when party leaders gave him a vote of confidence in Bhopal on August 6, the issue flared up again when the two men made the same allegations in Delhi. Even as they were relating their tale, the sisters walked in and described Gaur as a father figure before the assembled media. Father figure or sugar daddy, that's the question doing the rounds of Bhopal's political circles.

-By Ambareesh

CHANDIGARH Five months after the India-Pakistan cricket series created an atmosphere of unprecedented bonhomie, an alert sounded by security agencies on the 11 missing Pakistani fans has struck a discordant note. Punjab Police have released their photographs, calling them "a threat to the security of the nation". The Amritsar Police registered a case on March 31 against the Pakistani nationals for overstaying after their seven-day visa expired. But the alarm bells started ringing in the wake of the Ayodhya terror attack, suspected to be the handiwork of Pakistani let terrorists. With security agencies claiming to have learnt a lesson, extra caution would surely cast a shadow on future cross-border trips.

-By Ramesh Vinayak

APPOINTED: Karan Singh, former Union minister, as the chairperson of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations. He replaces Najma Heptullah.

CLARIFIED: By the Supreme Court, that doctors cannot be held criminally liable under Section 304A of the IPC unless they are "grossly" rash or negligent in performing their duties.

RESTRAINED: Actor Karisma Kapoor, by the Delhi High Court, from taking her daughter out of the country without the permission of her husband Sanjay Kapur.

RANKED: Sania Mirza, as No. 48 in the latest WTA rankings. She is the first Indian woman tennis player to break into the world top 50.

DIRECTED: The Bihar Government, by the EC, to delete from the electoral rolls, the names of persons against whom non-bailable warrants remained unexecuted for more than six months.

Next

Index