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Political Notes |
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Vajpayee campaigns in local bodies elections
Facing an uphill task in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP has put former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on the campaign trail for local bodies elections in the state. Vajpayee had never campaigned for local bodies elections earlier.
Addressing a rally in Lucknow, Vajpayee condemned the Congress-led UPA Government for what he called its “unclear, confused and ambiguous policy “ on terrorism. He said the Manmohan Singh government was not clear about its goal, particularly when dealing with Pakistan.
The BJP is reported to have pressed the panic button and asked Vajpayee to campaign after a secret survey brought the bad news that the party may be reduced to about half its strength in Uttar Pradesh when the state has Assembly elections before May next year. Officially, the BJP has denied any such survey. The BJP has 82 legislators in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly of 403. The survey said that its strength may be cut to about 40. The survey also indicated that Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party is set to emerge as the single largest party with Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party a close second. The only consolation was that the Congress prospects did not look bright either.
BJP president Rajnath Singh has demanded that since Pakistan had not stopped helping terrorists, India should cut diplomatic relations with Islamabad and ban Pakistani civilian aircraft from overflying Indian airspace. He was addressing a public meeting in Agra.
In another development indicating the difficulties faced by the BJP, leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha L.K. Advani did not attend a meeting called on Oct. 26 to welcome three of the four RSS ‘pracharaks’ (preachers) deputed to the party. There was a buzz in party circles that he was upset because he was not being consulted on key matters. For the record, however, sources close to Advani maintained that he could not make it to the party meeting because of a pre-scheduled appointment with visiting Maldives Foreign Minister at his residence. Advani’s close confidante, Venkaiah Naidu is reported to have told the meeting that the former Deputy Prime Minister was unhappy about being bypassed on important matters.
In another development indicating which way things are going in the BJP, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has succeeded in getting his nominee Purshottam Rupala appointed as president of the state unit of the party. The dissident group led by former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel virtually boycotted the election process.
Gujarat riot victims living in sub-human conditions
The National Human Rights Commission, after a five-day visit to 17 of the 46 camps housing the 2002 riot victims, has come to the conclusion that over 5000 displaced families belonging to the minority community continue to live in relief camps in sub-human conditions. The Commission further found that the Gujarat Government is not fulfilling its constitutional responsibility to create an atmosphere that would enable them to return home.
While the State Government said that the inmates of the camps were living there voluntarily, the NCM in its report said : “In view of the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the Commission finds this view point untenable and evasive of a governments’ basic responsibility.”
According to NCM member Zoya Hasan, the abdication of State responsibility in the post-violence situation is just as bad if not worse, than its turning a Nelson’s eye to the carnage in 2002. “While the Gujarat Government is refusing to recognize their displacement, it also seems that the nation has forgotten what happened in 2002.”
Acting on a complaint from an Ahmedabad-based non-governemnt organization about the condition of 5,307 families displaced in the 2002 riots, the NCM team visited the camps between October 13 and 17.
Parliament session from Nov. 22
The Winter session of Parliament is to begin on November 22. The start of the session on Nov. 22 leaves a window of opportunity open for Chinese President Hu Jintao to address a joint sitting on the first day. The Chinese President begins his four-day India visit on Nov. 20. But it has not been confirmed yet whether he addressed the joint session of the two Houses.
The session - that was initially slated to begin from Nov. 27, will have 20 sittings and conclude on December 19.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had earlier indicated that the Women’s Reservation Bill could be introduced in the winter session. A senior minister on Friday, Oct. 27, hinted that since there was broad agreement on the need for reservations for women, the government could leave it to the parliamentary standing committee to work on the controversial issue of sub-classifying a sub-quota for women belonging to the OBC and minority communities.
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