Feb 22, 1999

By Dilip Bobb

There was a time, when switching on to the nine o'clock news on television was as eagerly awaited an exercise as Tu Tu Main Main. There was always a surprise or five to liven up the evening's conversation--a new scam, a few defections and whether or not the government of the day had fallen or survived the latest crisis. No more. News is, well, ... no longer new. Switch on and you could be watching a re-run of last week or last month. Here's how prime time goes.

Good evening. In today's headlines.

George Fernandes rushes to Chennai: In a desperate bid to save the Government, Defence Minister George Fernandes air-dashed to Chennai to try and pacify aiadmk supremo Jayalalitha after she sharply criticised the Government for its latest policy directive and threatened to withdraw support. Fernandes is expected to offer her nominee the post of law minister in the cabinet expansion, delayed yet again because of pressure from the allies.

Government retracts latest policy announcement: Under pressure from allies and other non-governmental organisations, the Government retracted its decision to raise prices on certain subsidised items announced yesterday by the Finance Ministry. It also decided to review a range of earlier decisions, including granting of visas to controversial authors, the Prasar Bharati Bill, Urban Land Ceiling, etc. However, the decisions to raise the salary and perks of MPs will remain unaffected.

Sonia lashes out at Government: Congress President Sonia Gandhi today accused the BJP Government of failing in its duty and said it had lost the moral right to govern. Speaking at a function to mark Mother's Day, she said that the country's economic crisis, the law and order situation, the rise in competitive communalism, the sharp fall in night temperature, India's 12-run loss at Chennai, all pointed to lack of governance.

Indo-US talks are constructive: After the latest round of talks between Jaswant Singh and Strobe Talbott, both sides announced that progress had been made and a better understanding of India's point of view had been created. However, there would be no easing of sanctions as yet.

Orissa CM may resign: Orissa Chief Minister J.B. Patnaik was once again summoned to Delhi, following yet another brutal attack on members of the Christian community in Orissa yesterday. However, he denied that he had been asked to resign by the Congress President. Congress sources admit that there is no leader to match his stature in the state and his resignation could be a major setback to the party.

Protest against multinationals: Yet another demonstration was held to protest against the entry of multinationals. The latest protest was led by the Indian Modelling Association which was agitating against the increasing use of filmstars in every multinational advertisement, posing a direct threat to their livelihood. "As if Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid weren't enough, we now have the entire Khan-dan taking over our jobs," said an agitated spokesman.

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