All for a Cause It is generally the governments floor managers or the minister concerned who reach out to the Opposition seeking their cooperation for introduction or passage of a Bill. One hears that CPI(M)s Brinda Karat went across to the BJP benches in the Rajya Sabha when the House was adjourned over the Shunglu Committee report and urged them to allow the government to introduce and pass the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill 2010. When her plea went unheeded,the visibly unhappy CPM leader even argued with BJP leaders like S S Ahluwalia and Prakash Javadekar pointing out that the BJP had helped the government introduce the Pension Bill the other day. She also appealed to HRD Minister Kapil Sibal,who expressed his helplessness since it was decided in the morning itself by floor leaders that the Bill would not be taken up. Raising the stakes Taking note of the impact their continuing agitation is having through its blockade of train movement in north India,the influential Jat community in the region has decided to raise the stakes. Not only have they threatened to stop milk and vegetables from reaching the capital,their demand for reservation in central government jobs now comes with more ambitious addendums. Some MPs belonging to the community are voicing the opinion that they should also be accommodated in the union cabinet. Their logic is that there are 18 Jat MPs in both Houses of Parliament 15 in the Lok Sabha and three in the Rajya Sabha. Yet,they contend,there isnt a single cabinet minister from the community. The only representative is junior minister Mahadev Singh Khandela,who is Minister of State for Tribal Affairs. Jats,they say,had fared better in UPA I with two cabinet ministers,K Natwar Singh and Sisram Ola in the government. Could there be another problem for the beleaugered Prime Minister in the offing? Not-so-hot hotline In the run-up to the highly-anticipated Home Secretary level talks between India and Pakistan,Islamabad had proposed that a hotline be established between these two senior officials. However,it seems that New Delhi is not very enthusiastic about the idea and has not responded to the proposal so far. New Delhi feels that the existing hotline between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries has not helped much in bringing them closer. With just a few days left for the talks,where the issue is likely to be broached again by Pakistan,it would be interesting to see how India deals with the issue. Kissa kursi ka Members to speak from their own seats, the bulletins in both Houses of Parliament keep reminding MPs on a daily basis. Still,the point does not seem to have registered with not just ordinary members,but even some of those who often preside over the Lok Sabha. Francisco Sardinha,who is on the panel of chairmen (who conduct proceedings in the absence of the Speaker and her Deputy),started speaking from the place earmarked for someone else. Having caught him on the wrong foot,nobody was prepared to let him off. Are you speaking from your own seat?, several taunting voices rose from different sides. Have you left your seat?, Speaker Meira Kumar also asked. Half-way through his submission,an embarrassed Sardinha moved to the slot allotted to him. The Trinamool scandal On the face of it,people in Trinamool Congress may maintain that they are saddened over the fact that party leader and Rajya Sabha member Kanwar Deep Singh was found carrying Rs 57 lakh in cash at the Delhi airport,while on his way to Guwahati. However,there are quite a few in the party who see it as a blessing in disguise. The reason being that they were quite upset over the sudden rise of the Chandigarh-based businessman who had joined the Trinamool Congress only a few months ago. A man of substantial means who was earlier with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha,Singh had been assigned to election-bound Assam by Mamata Banerjee. The incident,they hope,would force Mamata to distance herself from him. Watch this space. Strategic placement Congress secretary Ved Prakash has some genuine competition now. For years,the Congress functionary has occupying a strategically located seat in the Speakers gallery facing the treasury benches in the Lok Sabha so that he is directly in the line of sight of party president Sonia Gandhi. Wags often remarked that his prominent location may lead to some upward movement in his career-track. However,offering him competition now is another lesser known turbaned Congressman who has of late become a regular fixture in the gallery,also bidding to catch Mrs Gandhis eye.
