Today we begin with Kerala CM’s remarks about Sunanda Pushkar and move on to Union minster Sharad Pawar who needs a runner in his ministry. The now not so friendly Jairam Ramesh finally gets a pal in Kapil Sibal. The curious case of Jindal & Jindal, the aam aadmi politician and a Delhi loving governor wraps up today’s round.
As an MP, Shashi Tharoor has shared the dais with Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan several times in the past. But he is not likely to forget his encounter with the veteran Marxist at the Trivandrum airport last week. Both had turned up to receive Vice-President Hamid Ansari. The Chief Minister told Tharoor: "I have come across reports in newspapers about your visit to Kalahasti temple and all with your new love interest". VS was referring to Tharoor's visit to temples with Sunanda Pushkar. Tharoor was stumped, but he recovered quickly, replying that there were eight or nine people with him, including his mother, but the media only saw two.
While Agriculture and Food Minister Sharad Pawar's request to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to lighten his burden and take the Food Ministry portfolio away from him has put the ruling Congress in a spot ahead of the Parliament session. Questions are being raised in bureaucratic circles about the seriousness of Pawar's offer. Only a few days back, Pawar sought to appoint a 2001-batch IAS officer as his PS for the Food Ministry. In fact, even after his request to the PM, he has not withdrawn the move to get the PS appointed.
HRD Minister Kapil Sibal and Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh not only shared the dais last week but indulged in some friendly bantering as well. Announcing the IIT-backed Ganga Initiative, Ramesh quipped that Sibal's presence at the event proved that the Ministry of Environment & Forests did have some friends in the Cabinet. Never at a loss for words, Sibal retorted, "As you reach out to more ministries, more ministries will be your friends." Some serious advice surely for Ramesh who has of late antagonised Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, Roads Minister Kamal Nath and Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal.
Is it just a coincidence or is there something in the name? Congress MP Naveen Jindal would have found himself nodding in agreement last week as Indian-origin governor of Louisiana state in America Bobby Jindal gave his assent to a controversial law allowing people to carry arms inside the churches. Jindal himself has been at the forefront of a campaign to unshackle restrictions on possession of arms in India. Now, if only he had the power to take decisions, like his namesake in America.
Sandeep Dikshit, the aam aadmi
DURING a recent visit to Krishi Bhavan, MP Sandeep Dikshit stood in a queue, like everyone else, for a pass to enter the building. He also objected to any attempts by others to jump the queue. But when it was his turn, he was taken aback when the receptionist asked for his identity card. With no I-card, Dikshit's pass was only cleared after a call from the officer he was scheduled to visit. What has got tongues wagging at Krishi Bhavan is that the receptionist has not been spotted at the desk since then.
The absentee Governor
Arunachal Pradesh might be attracting tourists in hordes but the Governor of this picturesque state, Gen JJ Singh (retd), seems to like Delhi better. In the two-and-a-half years that he has been the Governor of the state, Singh has made 35 official trips to New Delhi, an RTI query has revealed. That is more than one visit a month. His private visits to the Capital were not revealed. No wonder, the Governor is a regular fixture in Delhi's social circuit as well.
