Anita Katyal | BJP put caste in Dhankhar saga; Uddhav's honesty impresses press

The suspension of a record number of MPs from Parliament should have evoked anger and outrage among the public and anyone who cares for the health of parliamentary democracy. But the Bharatiya Janata Party strategists turned the tables on the Opposition by successfully deflecting attention from this development by highlighting how Trinamul Congress MP Kalyan Ray had insulted vice-president Jagdeep Dhankhar by mimicking him. On cue, trolls on social media were activated to condemn this insult to the Vice-President and the Jat community. The BJP lost no time in prompting friendly Jat groups to protest this “insult” to their clansmen. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior BJP leaders called up Mr Dhankhar while others were asked to express their solidarity with him on social media. All this was sufficiently publicised at the behest of the ruling dispensation. For instance, Sansad TV made sure it showed all the social media messages in the Vice-President’s support whenever there was a break between programmes. The Opposition did its best to highlight the suspension of their MPs but it was beaten to it by the BJP and the government’s publicity machinery.

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Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray is not a frequent visitor to Delhi. He was here last nearly three years ago when he and son Aaditya called on former Congress president Sonia Gandhi after the formation of a coalition government in Maharashtra. He was here again last week to attend the fourth meeting of the INDIA alliance leaders. This time, a conscious effort was made by his party colleague Sanjay Raut to introduce Mr Thackeray to the Delhi media and to acquaint him with press persons in the Capital. A special dinner was organised by Mr Raut at his Delhi residence for this informal interaction. Most journalists went back impressed with Mr Thackeray primarily because he did not dodge their questions and responded to their queries frankly and with clarity. Since the dinner was held soon after the meeting of the INDIA alliance, most questions pertained to the discussions at the gathering. On seat sharing in Maharashtra, Mr Thackeray said he had a perfect understanding with NCP chief Sharad Pawar but talks with Congress were yet to begin. He was also firm that the negotiations be held in Delhi because it was not clear if the Congress leadership had authorised anyone in Maharashtra to conduct these talks.

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An “anti-Rahul Gandhi” alliance is clearly emerging within the anti- BJP INDIA alliance of opposition parties. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee can be described as the leading member of this alliance followed by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav. Banerjee’s proposal that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge be projected as the Prime Ministerial face of the INDIA alliance was meant to send a message to the Congress that Rahul Gandhi should not be put forth as a contender for the top post. Though other Opposition leaders are not averse to Mr Kharge’s candidature, they prefer to wait and go about it systematically. A senior Opposition leader and key Congress ally, had a telling comment to make. “Before you expect all of us to forge a consensus on Kharge’s name, first ask if there is a consensus within the Congress on this,” he asked.

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There is no clarity yet about the Bharatiya Janata Party’s plans for former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan after he was denied another term to head the new state government. Mr Chouhan’s meeting with BJP president J.P. Nadda last week led to speculation that he has been promised an important role in the party organisation at the Centre or a Lok Sabha ticket. But the fact that he could not meet Union home minister Amit Shah left everyone wondering if these reports were correct. While Mr Chouhan is putting up a brave face at being shown the door after a record four-term stint as chief minister, his wife Sadhna Singh is yet to reconcile to moving out of the CM’s bungalow. She is said to be bemoaning that she could not even get her sons married while Mr Chouhan was helming the state government. She apparently confessed to friends that she had hoped her husband would be asked to continue as chief minister till the Lok Sabha elections. That would have suited the Chouhans as the marriage of their son Kartikey is fixed for early next year.

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There was a time when Bharatiya Janata Party’s spokesperson Sambit Patra was virtually a permanent speaker on every prominent English television channel during the prime time news programmes. Like other spokespersons, Mr Patra dutifully adopted the party template laid out for them. This meant being permanently angry and combative to the point of snapping at the anchors and shouting down the other speakers. But Mr Patra’s appearances on English TV channels have reduced drastically though he is still on the panel of party spokespersons. Sanju Verma and Gaurav Bhatia are the current favourite spokespersons. Mr Patra is also said to be busy with his assignment at the ITDC and is hoping to be fielded again from Puri in next year’s Lok Sabha election. He lost to BJD’s Pinaki Mishra in 2019. However, party insiders maintain this is not a done deal yet.