'Embarrassed' Congress reminds Mamata of Nandigram humiliation !!
New Delhi: Even a party like the Congress can get it on patience!
"People looking for a “national” alternative based on poaching INC (Congress party) functionaries who can’t win even their own seats is in for a big disappointment," came a tweet from Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
Yes, notwithstanding the facade of 'sickularism' (read jhun-jhuna - and there is no English substitute for that), the target has been Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress.
Once TMC show: Empty chairs in Delhi
The West Bengal-based 'outfit' was snubbed by Delhi crowd in 2013 at Ram Lilla Ground, but some lessons are hardly learnt. The 'national ambition' has made Ms Banerjee and her party arrogant to an extent and also 'ruthless' and thus harming the Congress more.
Did PM Narendra Modi not promise - 'Congress mukt Bharat'? Trinamool is helping out in all that !
Thus, Baghel's tweet has political significance. He further wrote - "Unfortunately, to become a national alternative deep-rooted and concerted efforts are needed and there are no quick- fix solutions".
The Trinamool Congress has started poaching Congress in Tripura, Assam, Goa and Meghalaya. It thinks by weakening Congress, the Bengal outfit would capture 'national space' and emerge as a viable alternative to the BJP and Prime Minister Modi.
Incidentally, Baghel's tweet came within hours poll-strategist Prashant Kishor also had tweeted: "People looking for a quick, spontaneous revival of GOP led opposition based on Lakhimpur-Kheri incident are setting themselves up for a big disappointment.
Unfortunately there are no quick fix solutions to the deep-rooted problems and structural weakness of GOP."
And as they, drama has just begun. Prashant Kishor is now said to be 'close' to Mamata and his missive was directed against Congress, with whom he did a rather failed business in 2017.
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| Some writings mean 'writing on the wall' |
Some Congress insiders say Mamata Banerjee has time and again made use of Congress and when her work was done, she has betrayed the grand old party and humiliated the top leaders. Thus her bluff should be called and she should not be given any mileage and soft-spot to encash in 2024 at the cost of Congress party and its prestige.
The Congress has their reasons to be annoyed with Mamata, as she has poached into Congress camp in Goa by taking Luizinho Faleiro. Mamata's party hardly exist in Goa, and she has done poaching of several Congress leaders in Tripura.
In Assam, Congress took away Sushmita Dev, the all-India Mahila Congress chief and was seen as a trusted lieutenant of Rahul Gandhi. But Mamata has taken her and also given Rajya Sabha berth. That means the 'poaching' is happening with a plan and applying 'give and take' formula.
Politics of Varun Gandhi : Is he also a second generation hyped dyanast ?
New Delhi: Mr Varun Gandhi and his mom, Maneka Gandhi, missing their names
in the newly recast BJP National Executive panel made news; and it was certainly
not without good reason.
The political journey of Varun Gandhi, the cousin of former Congress president Rahul and nephew of aunt Sonia Gandhi, deserves a closer scrutiny.
While doing so, it is again worth revisiting some of his recent tweets.
"The video is crystal clear. Protesters cannot be silenced through murder," came his missive on Lakhimpur mega episode. In another missive on September 5, he had said - "we need to start re-engaging with them".
Now, if a section of BJP leaders were unhappy with him for such missives; what else could have been the reactions. When his party's official stance is something else and an assertion that probe wouldbe conducted, calling it 'murder' does not seem to be an innocuous statement.
In 2009, he had made a highly provocative statement against Muslims and had said even certain Muslim names could spread fear among the people.
He had called for "cutting off" the hands that is raised against Hindus. In fact, after the poll debacle, BJP stalwart L K Advani was asked (in Parliament premises in 2009) on whether Varun Gandhi's statement had caused the defeat for the saffron part-led NDA.
In 2014 yet again, he stole media limelight when he lauded Rahul Gandhi's works for his constituency Amethi.
Some BJP leaders privately say - it is a fact that Varun Gandhi too is a 'dynast' and often hyped merely because of his surname.
"Emergency is a blot, we keep attacking Congress for Emergency and curbing democracy, but Varun Gandhi is a direct lineage of Sanjay Gandhi, who played the maximum abusive and autocratic role during Emergency," says a party insider.
Leaders also suggest that dropping both Maneka Gandhi and son Varun (both MPs) have actually fulfilled a longtime desire of a section of BJP leaders.
Observers say prior to 2017 elections, a section of media deliberately had hyped about Varun Gandhi and even put his name as a probable Chief Minister.
However, most BJP leaders were against such an idea and once Yogi Adityanath was entrusted to be Chief Minister, analysts thought the message was clear for Varun Gandhi and his 'lawmaker Ma'.
Even in past questions have been asked whether two cousins (rather three of them with Priyanka) can ever work together and help 'revive' the Congress.
New Delhi's political circles are aware of issues and strong differences between Sonia Gandhi and Maneka, but the cousins have generally stayed clear of any major fight or debate in public.
Of course in 2009 in the run up to the general elections, Priyanka Gandhi had advised Varun to read Bhagwad Gita more carefully and in details. This was when Varun trying to pose himself as a Hindu hardliner had lambasted the Muslims in general.
In 2017, the cousins (younger Gandhi siblings) were among headlines when Congress leader Hazi Manzoor Ahmed suggested that there were plans to accommodate Varun Gandhi in the "Congress Working Committee" once Rahul Gandhi becomes party president.
On another occasion during a standing committee meeting on the External Affairs Ministry in Parliament, both Rahul and Varun were reportedly nice to each other and even toed almost similar line despite being from two warring parties.
Is this the case of the 'return' of prodigal cousins ?
ends
Jaishankar waxes eloquence on Pakistan, friendship and 'civilised world'
New Delhi:
Unlike his usual mild manner but very assertive, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar has used very strong words vis-a-vis seeking ties with a neighbour such as Pakistan and insisted that Islamabad's use of terrorism was not acceptable as a term of friendship in a 'civilised world'.
"Everybody wants to be friends with their neighbours. But you want to be friends on terms which a civilised world will accept. Terrorism is not one of those terms,” Dr Jaishankar said at the DD News Conclave Finale focusing on 'India First Foreign Policy'.
He said that Pakistan uses terrorism as an instrument of 'statecraft' which is unacceptable. He also said that neighbours exist to foster connectivity, trade, bilateral cooperation and growth. “All of that has not happened with this neighbour,” he pointed out;
and the scenario was quite in contrast with the eastern neighbour Bangladesh.
Elaborating on various facets of the India-Pakistan relationship, he said whether the same kindof ties would remain between the two countries in next 75 years as has been the case in the past,"a lot of it would depend on their (Pak) mindset".
"Because...what is the difference between us. The difference is in many ways We have been increasingly democratic," he said adding in contrast, Pakistan has "artificialuniformity" (perhaps in the form of religion) and "which did not last (split of Bangladesh)".
"Their mindset has been very much to use terrorism as a statecraft, which is something wewould never accept."
In this context, he said India has had a long history of friendship with Afghanistan.
"Afghan people know what India has done for them, what kind of friends we have been, I am sure they are contrasted with what Pakistan did for them in the same period. I think the differences are obvious," Dr Jaishankar said.
The Minister also maintained that - "We should not try to imitate ourselves to make ourselves acceptable. We are what we are; we should be proud of it".
He said India is an old civilisation and now a modern state playing important role at the global stage.
"Lot of us have grown to believe that democracy is a western concept....," he said suggestingthis was erroneous and pointed out that India for long has had a wide diversity and this diversity 'makes a democracy',
"Agreed to facilitate travel....," says Jaishankar on vaccine row with UK
Hours after Britain relaxed norms on Covid vaccines giving ease to Indians travelling to that country, all the bitterness of 'tit-for-that' rhetoric seems to be over.
External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar on Friday spoke to his counterpart, Liz Truss and tweeted rather in a soft tune - "Good to talk to UK Foreign Secretary @trussliz'..
Dr Jaishankar further wrote - "Agreed to facilitate travel between our two countries.
This will help to implement the Roadmap 2030".
"No quarantine for Indian travellers to the UK fully vaccinated with Covishield or another UK-approved
vaccine from 11 October. Thanks to the Indian government for close cooperation over last month," tweeted
British High Commissioner to India, Alex Ellis bringing an end to the stalemate on Oct 7.
Making the United Kingdom understand things in a language and gesture it understands better,
on October 1, the Indian government finally decided to impose 'reciprocity' on all British
nationals arriving in India from the UK with regard to vaccine and Covid19 protocols.
But now things appear to have been resolved and ties will be back to normal soon.
For her part, Ms Liz Truss has also retweeted Dr Jaishankar's missive in the micro blogging site.
The unilateral restrictions on Indian travelers and not to recognise Indian vaccination had certainlyirked Indian authorities.
At some quarters, the observers found the British decision (of restrictions and quarantine for Indians)as a reflection of the 'colonialist mindset'.
Surprisingly, the UK norms had said that while those who received Covishield in the UK count as vaccinated, those who got it in India are not.
Notably, the Covishield is a formulation of Oxford University's vaccine against Covid-19, manufactured
locally in India by the Serum Institute of India.
New Delhi had earlier 'exported' the vaccine to the UK also and that also means many people in the UK got
vaccinated with Covishield from India only.
ends
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