Pact with SP the last tango for UP Cong?

Lucknow: The two-day marathon between the SP and Congress to finalise the contentious seat-sharing issue has left UP Congressmen nervous and edgy. Reports received so far are far from satisfactory . SP, going by the accounts , is playing the big boss while Congress has been reduced to a meek second fiddle . And even as the party bigwigs are yet to arrive at what Digvijay Singh called "a pragmatic , realistic and honourable deal for both" , Congressmen are left wondering just how.

To begin with, the ideological turnaround has been too sudden to stomach for an average party man. Though the relationship between the two had thawed considerably by February, till as late as June, AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi had firmly ruled out the possibility of any tie up. Rahul had only repeated the gist of the Anthony committee report which had listed going it alone as the most favoured strategy for the coming parliamentary polls.

The plan obviously went haywire with trust vote drama unfolding in Delhi. As "pragmatism took precedence over principled politics" , UPCC president put up a brave front and vowed that party would contest at least 35 to 40 seats.

Though they will have an extensive list of candidates for all 80 seats, she assured.

However, with the passage of time as SP leader began their bout of muscle-flexing , her bravado is giving way. Joshi very well knows she is pitted against hard bargainers who would want to wrest away a yard. This to the partymen in UP is a scary prospect.

There are many grey areas that pose a tough challenge . First, the suspense over numbers -how many seats fall in Congress kitty-question still has no answers. Sources doubt if Mulayam and co. will offer anything beyond 20 or 25.

With Ajit Singh lurking in the background poised to jump into the Congress bandwagon at the right moment, the tally could slip further. Chaudhary will demand at least eight seats, confide RLD sources. Moreover, there are other UPA constituents who may demand their pound of flesh not forgetting pocket-sized outfits like Apna Dal or the Rajesh Tikait's fledgling party. This in reality will mean no "jhanda banner" in 50 constituencies , said a disgruntled leader. So far Congress was the only political party which claimed to have a presence all over the state with the selective contest, we are ensuring that whatever grassroots cadre was left with the party would also vanish within no time, he said. In fact, the state leadership is already having a tough time trying to quell the apprehension of the demoralised cadre who fear the party is nearing extinction, said sources.

Then there is the tickling issue of seats - Pratapgarh, Farukhabad, Padrauna, Rampur, Lalitpur, Varansi, Allahabad - that are eyed by both. Congress has the list of winnable candidates including Ratna Singh, Salman Khurshid, Begum Noor Bano and even Rita Bahuguna Joshi all ready, the SP is no mood to surrender the captured ground.

Laloo Yadav had called Mulayam Singh "vote katva" for nothing, said a senior leader on Tuesday. "While the number in the Parliament may go from single digit to double, the tango, he said, would cost the party dearly in long run.

However, having forfeited deposits in 48 seats during the last election in 2004, this could also be the only life line.

Source : Times Of India

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Naidu equates YSR to Duryodhan

Hyderabad: After a cooling off period, chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and his bete noire, TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu, renewed their war of words which very often have gone personal . On Tuesday, it was Naidu's turn.

"The chief minister and the 'brazen' attitude he displays in the House when he intervenes during debates reminds us of Duryodhan, the Kaurava leader, before the battle of Kurukshetra," Naidu said.

Talking to the media on Tuesday, the TDP president said the chief minister had become highly "arrogant and egoistic," and is unable to control himself and was hence claiming that all the parties whose future is being threatened were coming together.

Duryodhana used to claim that he was the supreme ruler and no one can defeat him. The chief minister should realise that his "empty claims," will not get him votes.

"The people are not with the Congress. Rajasekhara Reddy cannot claim to have monopoly over voters," he said.

Referring to the chief minister's intervention during the reply to a discussion on shortage of fertilizers in the state, Naidu said Rajasekhara Reddy claims that the productivity in the state had gone up while the government records say that it had come down in case of rice, jowar, bajra groundnut and malt.

Similarly, the net irrigated area had come down from 16.49 lakh hectares to 16.27 lakh hectares in the last five years despite the claim that crores of rupees was being spent on Jalayagnam. While the farmers suffered due to less returns, the consumer was suffering on account of rising prices, Chandrababu Naidu said.

The chief minister is likely to respond to the TDP leader in a day or two.

Source : Times Of India

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Pak govt might not last its tenure: Nawaz Sharif

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former Premier Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday sounded a warning, saying that the PPP-led government might collapse much before its tenure if its leaders "continue their policies of breaking promises and ignoring public issues".

Emphasising that his party will not work to destabilise the government and he did want army to meddle in affairs of the state, Sharif whose PML-N broke away from the ruling coalition last week predicted that the government will not "last long", as its leaders were fast losing the trust of people.

"I don't want to make any efforts to destabilise the government, but I am afraid it will not last long due to its current way of governance and the policies of its leadership, which are fast losing the trust of leaders and the people," the PML-N chief said.

The government, which was formed in March, might not complete its five-year tenure if its leaders continued "breaking promises and ignoring public issues", Sharif told Gulf News.

Ruling out any possibility of rejoining the coalition despite requests from the PPP, Sharif said, "We have crossed that point and we don't want to enter the ruling coalition again".

Referring to the September six presidential polls, Sharif said he would not withdraw the PML-N's candidate, former Supreme Court Chief Justice Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui, who is running against Zardari.

"Let us wait for polling day on September 6 as it is premature to say who will win," he said when he was asked if he saw Zardari as the next President.
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Source : Times Of India

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Congress, SP to discuss LS seat sharing in UP

NEW DELHI: Hard bargaining is expected to be witnessed in the seat sharing talks between the Congress and Samajwadi Party beginning on Monday for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh.

The two parties which were foes till the other day, are coming together to form an alliance in the backdrop of resurgence of Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party which gained power in UP after shoring up a majority in the assembly elections last year.

Rahul Gandhi will himself lead the Congress team which will have party general secretary in charge of UP affairs Digvijay Singh and UP Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi as its members.

The SP is likely to be represented by party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, general secretary Amar Singh and another general secretary and Yadav's brother Ram Gopal Yadav.

In the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, the SP had spurned offers of the Congress for a tie up and had emerged as the single largest party in the state by bagging 39 of the 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh.

The Congress had managed just nine seats, including Amethi and Rae Bareli -- the pocket burrows of Gandhi-Nehru family.

The Congress' decline in the state has been rapid in the past 25 years after having secured all the 85 seats in undivided UP in 1984.

Congress general secretary Digvijay singh has already expressed confidence that the seat sharing arrangement will be pragmatic and realistic, implying thereby that the Congress would have to play a second fiddle and have to be content with a far lesser role.


Source : Times Of India

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Deve Gowda backs Mayawati as leader of Third Front

LUCKNOW: Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) president H D Deve Gowda on Monday backed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati as a leader of the proposed Third Front which will become political alternative to BJP and Congress.

"I will stand by Mayawati if she becomes the leader of the Third Front. I have no reservations...and I also don't dream of becoming Prime Minister again", Deve Gowda told reporters when asked about the leadership of the Third Front.

"The Third Front is going to take shape. Whether you like it or not, it will become an alternative force to counter BJP and Congress", said Gowda, who was in the state capital to attend state party convention.

He said 11 parties had came together to vote against Indo-US nuclear deal in July and later it was decided that all parties should go across the country and "expose" the UPA government's policies due to which farmers were committing suicide and "misuse" of constitutional bodies including CBI.

A propaganda committee, having a member of each party, was subsequently constituted and another small committee was formed, which also met twice or thrice to finalise modalities of setting up the Front, he said.

"I, as a farmer, will cooperate in formation of the Third Front", he said.

Gowda said that after he met Mayawati at his residence in Delhi he was not in touch with Left and other leaders.

"I am concentrating on my home state Karnataka and the party is going to hold state conventions in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan where the party has its organisation", Gowda said.

Source : Times Of India

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Lalu plays politics over flood issue

MANSI: His repeated claims of not playing politics over devastating floods notwithstanding, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad is in his elements as he meets distraught victims in deluge-ravaged districts of north Bihar, cuddling children, making speeches and blasting the state government for its 'callous neglect.'

"Fail kar gaya Nitish. Hum khana aur bhoosa bhejwa rahe hain. Sab station par khidi chokha hai, jaao aur bharpet khao. Nitish has failed. (I have left food and fodder at every railway station. There is khichdi and mashed potato, go and have your fill)," Lalu tells a crowd at Saharsa.

Then he cuddles an infant while seated in his SUV, glass rolled down and puts the child in front of the car airconditioner, saying 'isko hava khilao (let him catch a breath of air).'

"Hum Lalu Yadav hain. Zindabad bolo. Aye bachcha ko paisa do. (I am Lalu Yadav. Greet me. Give money to this child)," he says as an aide hands over a currency note of Rs 500 to the infant's father with the RJD chief saying 'go get him clothes.'

"Kya naam hai bachcha ka? Batao nahin to bachcha ko le kar chal denge. (What's the name of the child? Tell me or I will leave with the child)," he says playfully as the father timidly answers 'Ravi'.

"Aap log mushar (a Dalit caste) hain na?" he asks as the people nod in the affirmative before resuming his journey.

"Nitish Kumar murdabad. Lalu Yadav zindabad (Down with Nitish Kumar. Hail Lalu Yadav)," chants the crowd and the small convoy moves on with Lalu wearing a broad smile.

Village after village, the convoy of 5 to 6 vehicles stops as Lalu meets people, who have made the highways their home.

"Don't worry, the Centre is with you. Soniaji and Manmohan Singh saw your plight at my request. We have given Rs 1000 crore and 1.25 lakh tonnes of foodgrains. I will come again next week and stay with you to see if every paisa is being spent properly or not," he assures another group of people at Baidyanathpur.

"Yeh Nitish Kumar bhi barh pidit hai. Paanch baar barh se jeeta aur 2004 mein haar gaya. Ab jabse mukhyamantri bana hai har saal barh aa jata hai. (Nitish Kumar is also a victim of floods. He won from Barh (parliamentary seat) five times, but lost in 2004. Ever since he became chief minister no year passes without floods."

Lalu says he has sent one lakh sarees to the flood ravage areas and also allocated Rs 90 crore from the Railway Minister's fund.

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), RITES and other wings of The railways have pitched in with relief.

"The destruction is as great as a tsunami, but the state government has not yet woken from its slumber. We are with you in your hour of crisis... Lalu Yadav is with you, don't worry," he says.

Lalu, who has Z plus security cover shoos away the commandoes accompanying him while meeting people.

"Some undesirable elements may even kill me, but I am not scared. I don't want securitymen to come between me and the people," he told this correspondent accompanying him.

Like when he called the shots in Bihar, the RJD supremo makes it a point to chide top state government officials over phone whenever anybody in the crowd makes a complaint about the problems being faced by them.

"Humko bhool gaye kya? Rahat nahin pahuncha hai abhi tak aur jaldi nahin pahuncha to hum yahin dharna par baith jayenge. (Have you forgotten me? No relief has reached people. I will sit on a dharna here if relief does not arrive soon)," he tells Disaster Management Department principal secretary as he is surrounded by a large crowd.

"Pillai saheb (Bihar Chief Secretary) kuch kaam nahin ho raha hai .... koi rahat nahin hai sirf sarkar dawa karti hai. "Mr Pillai, nothing is being done. There is no relief, the government is only making tall claims," he blares into his mobile phone as the congregation claps in approval.

Source : Times Of India

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Paswan favours citizenship for Bangladeshis

PUSHKAR (RAJASTHAN): With an eye on elections, Lok Janshakti Party, a ruling UPA constituent, on Sunday favoured giving citizenship to Bangladeshis staying in the country and advocated reservation for the economically weak and minorities in government and private sectors.

"Those Bangladeshis who are already staying in India should be provided citizenship. Further infiltration should be checked. There should be strict vigil on the border," a resolution passed by the party headed by Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan said here.

The party supported reservation for the "socially and economically" backward groups. "The party feels that in view of their social and economic conditions, the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe people should get reservation in private sector. Every community or group should have equal representation in all sectors," the resolution said.

The party is also in favour of giving 10 per cent reservation in central government jobs for the economically weaker sections among the upper castes. Besides, employment should be a fundamental right of every citizen in the country, the party resolution said.

Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims should be considered as Dalits and provided quota benefits to help them join the main stream, it said.

The party also criticised the ban on SIMI and demanded setting up of an independent inquiry commission with social scientists and human rights activists as its member to study the role of various organisations in spreading terror and communal tension.


Source : Times of India

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BJP crowd-puller eclipses Cong Mahapanchayat

NEW DELHI: Congress might be hoping to neutralise the anti-incumbency factor and the inflation issue with its announcements to regularise unauthorised colonies during the Assembly elections, but poor attendance at the Mahapanchayat organised by Hastsal MLA Mukesh Sharma and the fact that senior party leaders chose to stay away — coupled with BJP’s star-studded rally with its impressive turnout — boded ill for the party’s hopes of riding the unauthorised colonies bandwagon.

While at the Congress gathering the only senior leader present was Outer Delhi MP Sajjan Kumar, the BJP rally called by former Union minister Vijay Goel saw leader of the opposition in Parliament L K Advani, BJP national president Rajnath Singh, south Delhi MP V K Malhotra, state unit chief Harshvardhan and other senior leaders lambast the Sheila government on its claims of regularisation of unauthorised colonies and take the battle right into the UPA court with Advani launching a scathing attack on the central government in what was clearly sounding the poll bugle ahead of the elections later this year.

The BJP rally at Ramlila Maidan with its 40,000-odd turnout was a thumping success compared to Congress’s 2,000-odd at Jantar Mantar. The latter had been convened at a 72-hour notice to allay fears of Congressmen that BJP’s rally would steal the credit that was ‘‘rightfully’’ theirs. The BJP brigade came down on the Dikshit government highlighting its failures on all fronts. Huge hoardings dotting the venue said: ‘Mehnga Bijli, Tej Bhagti Meter, Paani Ki Killat. Dilliwasion Ke Saath Shiela Ka Dhokha’ (expensive power, fast running electricity meters, water scarcity. Sheila has only cheated Delhiites). Goel alleged that the Sheila government could not keep any of its promises. ‘‘What happened to the issue of full statehood to Delhi?’’ adding that on all fronts of providing basic facilities to people, the government has failed miserably.

Targeting the Congress government, BJP’s Delhi unit chief Dr Harsvardhan said that people living in unauthorised colonies had the right to ask the government why it failed to construct roads, open schools and lay water pipelines even when it stayed in power for 10 years. ‘‘We don’t want to know what they wish to do in next five years, but what they have done in the past decade,’’ he said.

Moreover, accusing the chief minister and Union urban development minister Ajay Maken of cheating Delhiites, South Delhi MP Malhotra said the city government was resorting to advertisements to cover up its inefficiency.
‘‘By distributing forms, you don’t regularise unauthorised colonies. Plans have to be prepared, public facilities have to be laid and then only regularisation can happen. Congress governments at Delhi and Centre have done nothing like that,’’ Malhotra said. Indicating how BJP will take up the issue of development in both the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, BJP Prime Ministerial candidate L K Advani said the development taking place in Gujarat proves the point that BJP rule can bring the best to people.

The Mahapanchayat too assumed political hues with the focus shifting from the tomtomming of Congress’s regularisation largesse to a discussion of BJP’s shortcomings. Speakers criticised the BJP for levying development charges of Rs 3,200 per square yard and thanked the central government for regularising the colonies. An effigy of BJP was burnt at the rally that resounded with cries of ‘‘Bhajpa ka Nash Ho (down with BJP)’’.

Source : Times Of India

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Cong-loyal businessmen forced to ally with SAD

MUKTSAR(PUNJAB): Fearing political reprisal, a large number of businessmen who are Congress supporters here are distancing themselves from the party’s September 1 political rally at Lambi. So much so that many of their staunch supporters have formally joined the SAD after they were persistently harassed by Punjab Pollution Control Board, PSEB, sales tax and food and supply departments in the past 18 months. Though Congress workers and leaders in Malwa region are euphoric over the rally programme but in Muktsar, Gidderbaha and Malout a large number of rice millers, cotton and ginning factory owners, pesticide dealers and other businessmen are keeping away from the rally preparations, fearing SAD vengeance.

Family of a Congress supporter, who runs rice mills and known for their party loyalty for the past many decades, were forced to allign with the SAD as the pollution control board threatened to close their rice mills while power supply was disconnected on flimsy grounds. Similar is the story of some ginning factory owners.Even in October 2007 some Congress workers and leaders of Gidderbaha, who were into the business of rice mills, had approached Punjab and Haryana High Court, alleging that the food and supply department was prejudiced towards them in the allotment of paddy for milling. The millers alleged that on the direction of Akali leaders in the area, the Congress-backed millers were not being allotted paddy. A pesticide dealer in Gidderbaha who could not face the harassment closed his business.

The millers who accused the food and supply department of bias last year included two sons of senior Congress party leader Raghubir Singh, who contested MLA election on Congress ticket from Gidderbaha against finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal. Other petitioners included Ashok Dhir, senior Congress leader and former chairman Punseed, Subash Jain Lily, a senior party leader and president, Muktsar Rice Millers Association, and Kulwant Singh Maan, president, municipal committee, Gidderbaha.

Source : Times Of India

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Sri Lanka Government decides to hold other Provincial Council elections according to the original schedule

Colombo: Government of Sri Lanka has decided to hold the elections of the rest of the Provincial Councils as scheduled once their terms end as per the schedule prepared by the Election Commissioner.

However, it is also reported that a Presidential Election will be held soon prior to the general elections which is scheduled for 2010 April to secure the Government’s position in the local political arena.

Next Presidential election is supposed to be held at the end of 2011. With the war against terrorism becoming a success with an anticipated conclusion by 2009 May, the Government plans to conduct Provincial Council Elections for the Northern Province in December 2009.

Source : Colombo Page

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