Crossed connection

THE Pakistani propaganda that there was a tussle between hardliners and softliners which led to a breakdown of the summit talks is wishful thinking. For the hardliner, L.K.Advani, and the softliner, Jaswant Singh, are now firm allies. Their uniting bond is their desire to cut the PM’s principal secretary Brajesh Mishra to size.

Pervez Musharraf’s impression is based on the fact that in one of the proposed drafts at Agra, Musharraf had wanted the removal of the appendage ‘‘cross-border’’ to ‘‘terrorism.’’ Singh said he would check out with the Prime Minister. Vajpayee referred the foreign minister to Advani who was adamant that the full term ‘‘cross-border terrorism’’ had to be included in any joint declaration. What Musharraf does not seem to have realised is that the home minister’s views were shared by other members of the cabinet committee on security and there was no argument between softliners and hardliners on this score.

Advice and consent

IT was at the insistence of UP’s minister for urban development Lalji Tandon that Prime Minister Vajpayee agreed to inaugurate a software technology park in Lucknow run by the notorious Cyberspace Infosys firm which the CBI is now investigating. The Prime Minister could have saved himself considerable embarrassment had he heeded the advice of government officials to stay away from the function instead of giving in to the persistent pleas of Tandon, who looks after Vajpayee’s Lok Sabha constituency.

Sharp shooter

PHOOLAN Devi may have been illiterate, but the questions she asked in Parliament — whether on the shortage of fishing nets, the carpet weavers of Mirzapur or the plight of bear trainers because of the laws against cruelty to animals — were focussed and well researched. In fact some time back the Lok Sabha speaker complimented her on her clarity of thought in framing her questions and supplementaries and recommended that other MPs follow her example.

Phoolan incidentally was a fan of Jayalalitha. The AIADMK women MPs could not comprehend Phoolan’s rustic Hindi dialect and she could not understand their English, but she managed to convey her admiration. Phoolan, however, was dismissive of another woman leader, Sonia Gandhi. Once while Sonia Gandhi was speaking in Parliament Phoolan remarked loudly that she had no future in UP since she had become an old woman. The MPs were puzzled as Sonia is young by the standards of our geriatric politicians, until they realised she was referring to the more than 100-year-old Congress party and not to Sonia.

Faceless bureaucrat

AT the Agra summit, foreign secretary Chokila Iyer kept such a low profile that she practically merged into the background. Either Iyer had very little to contribute or else no one asked her opinion. There is no point claiming you are striking a blow for gender equality by appointing India’s first woman head of the foreign service if it is such a token appointment that the men who have been bypassed in the selection process carry greater clout in the ministry. A question being asked in South Block is, will iyer have a senior aide in tow if secretary level talks with Pakistan are initiated?

Shotgun marriage

AJIT Singh forced the government’s hand on his inclusion in the Vajpayee Cabinet, even though Om Prakash Chautala and George Fernandes were vehemently opposed to his entry. Realising that the Cabinet expansion was being postponed yet again till after the monsoon session, Singh let it be known to his followers that he would soon make a public announcement that he wanted no truck with the Vajpayee government after the fiasco at Agra. UP chief minister Rajnath Singh panicked and sent an SOS to Advani.

The home minister got Punjab chief minister Prakash Singh Badal to bring Chautala around, while Fernandes was requested to speak to Ajit directly. Ajit has finally made it as a minister, but it is an uneasy alliance. Ajit has yet to announce publicly that he has joined the NDA and the central government has yet to concede to his demand for a separate Harit Pradesh carved out of UP. Chandrababu Naidu, who has to deal with the Telangana demand, is opposed to the Vajpayee government conceding any further requests for creation of a new state.

Aaj ka MP

SAMAJWADI Party’s Amar Singh sported designer dark glasses in Parliament’s central hall this week. He made clear he was not doing a take on DMK leader M Karunanidhi, he was wearing the glasses because he had a rash in his eye. His cat-eyed glasses are from Cartier unlike Karunanidhi’s square Ralph Lauren frames. Obviously, designer labels are very acceptable in today’s political environment. When Rajiv Gandhi wore Gucci goggles many criticised his departure from the austere style of dressing expected of politicians.

Singh, incidentally, is chortling over the fact that Congress secretary Kamal Nath sent a copy of Sonia Gandhi’s itinerary for her forthcoming trip to Gujarat to him. The letter was actually meant for Amar Singh Chaudhary of the Congress, but went by mistake to his better known name sake. Singh lost no time informing all concerned about the mix-up.

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