|
Round The States
All Eyes On Gujarat
SATTA GIVES MODI THUMBS UP
By Insaf
New Delhi, December 22, 2007
All eyes are riveted on the poll outcome in Gujarat
tomorrow. Specially, after the bitterly-fought high decibel
campaign for the 182 Assembly seats in the State. The
elections in Gujarat are no ordinary routine State elections.
The outcome will have a domino effect on the national polity.
The result will decide the timing of the next general election
as also the fate of the controversial Indo-US nuclear deal. In
the event, the Congress emerges victorious then Sonia Gandhi
is likely to announce general elections by mid-April next year
and initial the nuclear deal. But if the obverse holds true
and Modi emerges third-time victorious, the nuclear deal will
be dumped and Congress-Left ties will be back to bhai-bhai
once again.
While the exit polls are hedging their bets over Modi’s
victory, from scraping through to a simple majority, the
Gujaratis are reposing their faith in the satta market. Unlike
the psephologists, who appear confounded by the abnormally
high percentage (17) of those surveyed belonging to the ‘can’t
say category’, the satta bazaar has given Modi a majority of
102 out of 182 seats. That the Hindu icon is a bookies
favourite is evident from the lowest returns of 70 paisa on
the BJP winning. In other words, if one bets Rs.1 on the
Saffron Party getting 102 seats and are proved right then one
takes home Rs.1.70. Already, the satta amount has surpassed
Rs.800 crore and is slated to rise to Rs.1000-1500 crore.
Interestingly, Gujarati NRIs too have jumped in with their
mega dollars, pounds and euros.
* * * *
Daring Jailbreak In Chhattisgarh
The Naxalites have once again cocked a snook at the
Government. This time round in Chhattisgarh. In a daring
jailbreak, 299 inmates out of 377, including 110 Naxal
activists, escaped from the Dantewada jail in the State.
Described as a “pre-meditated conspiracy,” by the State
police, the undeniable fact is that the jailbreak was a major
security lapse. The reason doled out for this lax is the low
priority given to security in this district prison which
housed only the low-level Naxalite functionaries and was
highly understaffed. Shockingly, only five out of the
16-strength staff were present. Recall, following the infamous
Jehanabad jailbreak in 2005 in Bihar, senior and important
Naxalite leaders facing trial, were shifted from small
district-level prisons to Central jails.
Significantly, the jailbreak has exposed the State-Centre
disconnect on the jail security issue vis-ŕ-vis strategy and
its implementation on the ground. More so as the Dantewada
incident comes a day after the Special Task Force on Naxalism
discussed measures to beef up security in Naxal-hit States in
Bhubaneswar. For over two years the Home Ministry has been
asking the States to beef up security and surveillance as also
upgrade the jail housing. But to no avail. The States have
limited the upgrade to central jails and the bigger
state-level prison on the facetious plea of lack of funds. The
Centre has again asked the States to pull up their bootstraps
and hopes they will act this time. Better late than sorry.
* * * *
BJP Suffers Twin Blows In MP
The BJP’s ‘victory’ march in Gujarat has been dampened by the
twin blows it has suffered in the by-polls in Madhya Pradesh.
It has had to bite dust in the Sanwar Assembly segment and the
Khargaon Parliamentary constituency. In both the saffron
bastions, the Congress wrested the seats from the BJP with
massive margins. Interestingly, both parties viewed these
by-polls as an acid test and had put their best foot forward.
Buoyed by the results, the Congress has demanded the
resignation of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the
ground that the polls have exposed the peoples’ loss of
confidence in the State Administration. Significantly, the BJP
has lost five out of the ten by-elections held in the State in
the past two years. Clearly, this holds out ominous portends
for the BJP, which needs to get its act together prior to the
Assembly elections ten months away.
* * * *
Sheila Completes Nine Years
Sheila Dikshit, Delhi’s popular Chief Minister, has much to
rejoice. Setting a record, she has not only completed nine
“extremely exciting” years as the CM, but also put her many
political rivals on the back-foot. Her USP? Converting every
challenge into an opportunity and meeting the same with
truthfulness and veracity, as she puts it. Standing testimony
to this is the fact that her duly acclaimed Bhagidari scheme
has truly empowered the people. Moreover, her Government has
been in the forefront of bringing the eco-friendly CNG, Metro
and low-floor buses to its people. Besides, the construction
of 28 flyovers has not only changed the city’s skyline but
also the transport scenario. Not willing to rest her past
laurels, Sheila has set the agenda for her ‘10th and most
challenging’ year --- demolitions, sealings, Blueline buses
and population pressure. And is rearing to go.
* * * *
Ending Corruption Khanduri-Style
The Uttarakhand Chief Minister, BC Khanduri, seems to have
achieved an impossible feat. He has reportedly succeeded in
ridding the State of corruption in Government jobs. His
formula? Banning all interviews in recruitment for Government
posts. Only those who score above the cut-off mark in the
objective questions exam would be selected. So far, about
6,000 people have been recruited this way. Asserts Khanduri
proudly: “Even my sifarish can't get anybody a job in the
State now." Khanduri has also threatened to cancel the
appointments of teachers and doctors who do not report for
duty. Moreover, the CM has withdrawn 250 cars with beacon
lights and 350 policemen from VIP duty. Khanduri has cut his
own entourage of cars from 8 to 3. All officers now travel to
Delhi from Dehra Dun by train. True, all this may be a small
consolation in his nine-month-long fight against bureaucratic
corruption and lethargy in the hill State. But well begun is
half done!
* * * *
Karunanidhi Anoints Successor
The DMK supremo Karunanidhi has virtually anointed his Crown
Prince. After his daughter Kanimozhi’s rise to a Rajya Sabha
MP, it is now the turn of son, Stalin, to take a bow. At a
massive first-ever gathering of his Party’s youth wing on
Sunday last, Karunanidhi took the first step towards the
continuation of his own dynasty when he described his two
sons, Stalin and Azhagiri as “two hands of a clock”. Asserting
that Stalin, who is presently the Local Administration
Minister had done him proud, Karunanidhi recited a couplet
which inferred that Stalin would succeed him as DMK’s Chief
and possibly the next Chief Minister. Even as other speakers
hailed the junior Karunanidhi as Ilaya (young) Kalaignar, the
elder Karunanidhi nodded his approval. Stalin on his part
described the rally as a turning point in the DMK’s history
--- and, indeed, that of the DMK’s first family! ---- INFA
(Copyright India News & Feature Alliance)
E-Mail :
newseditor@sarkaritel.com |
