Lucknow Santa Claus is not well

By Dilip Awasthi
Lucknow’s own Santa Claus is not well. The winning smile has turned into quizzical wide-eyed gaze. The eloquent, witty orator who could hold huge crowds across the country spellbound now makes futile attempts to mumble something but then raises his hands helplessly and quietly slumps back into his wheel chair. This Christmas, Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be 86.

All those politicians and friends, who are still in touch, recall their recent meetings with him to remember him fondly. Says Lalji Tandon, who succeeded him as the local BJP MP, “ He takes his time to recognize you but cannot talk coherently.” Tandon, his campaign manager in all elections, met him just a fortnight ago. He stared at Tandon for a while and then just laughed. “Doctors don’t allow many meetings unless senior leaders turn up”, says Shiv Kumar, his private secretary for 40 years, who still runs the ex-PM’s residential office. “There are 20-30 visitors each day,”says Shiv Kumar.

Lucknow has been dear to him always. Here he won five consecutive elections from 1991 to 2004. Just a couple of public meetings on each occasion fetched him huge victory margins. In 2004 he won with a margin of 37% votes against Samajwadi Party’s Madhu Gupta. His electoral opponents have been heavy-weights like Dr Karan Singh, Raj Babbar and Muzzaffar Ali. In 1996 he won from Gandhinagar (Gujarat) also but retained Lucknow as his seat.

As an MP from the state capital and as the Prime Minister, Vajpayee indeed proved to be Lucknow’s Santa Claus. Developmental works worth over Rs 25,000 crore guaranteed a new sheen to Lucknow. Most foundation plaques would display his name most projects including four to six-laned highways development, metro or memo rail concepts and projects, a web of power substations, several beautification schemes bear his stamp. For almost two decade (1991-2009) Atalji, as he was fondly referred to, has been integral part of Lucknow’s life.

Rajesh Pande, a former BJP MLA and Atalj’s election manager in Lucknow, fondly remembers his famous repartee during 1996 Lok Sabha election campaign. When somebody presented him a garland during his election campaign, “Arey bhai haar nahin, mai jeet lene aayaa hoon…” Vajpayee could devastate his critics with his oratory skills. During 1998 elections Jan Sangh leader Balraj Madhok called Vajpayee a “dual-faced politicians”, a “slippery person”and a “liar” in a campaign meeting in the city. Journalists rushed to Atalji for his reaction. There emerged the well-known mischevious smile, a pause and then, “….wo mere bahut senior hein….” And everybody in the room broke into laughter.

Atalji last visited Lucknow in October 2006, this time on a wheel chair. His health was failing but he still campaigned for BJP mayoral candidate Dinesh Sharma, His visit did turn the election in Sharma’s favour. Recalls Mayor Sharma, who met him a month ago, “I will always be indebted to him that despite his physical condition, he campaigned for me.” Present Lucknow MP Lalji Tandon contested and won the 2009 elections on Atalji’s signed appeal to Lucknowites.

These days, Atalji’s days, tells Shiv Kumar, are restricted to his Delhi house. Doctors are in attendance of the former PM throughout. He goes through a physiotherapy session in the morning and a general check-up in the evening. He watches TV for a while in the evening a meets senior leaders if there is an appointment. Shiv Kumar says L.K. Advani, Nitin Gatkari, Rajnath Singh keep visiting Atalji. But for infection he suffered in February 2009 for he was put on the ventilator in the ICU of AIIMS, there has been no serious cause of concern. He has lost weight. His responses are dulled and senses are failing. It all is age-related, says Tandon. But the legendary statesman, who could praise Nehru or Indira Gandhi and upset the RSS-BJP cadres, can still smile….

Congress working on Rahul formula for ‘viable’ candidates

By Dilip Awasthi
Lucknow:
Rahul Gandhi’s grand plan for Uttar Pradesh is unfolding now. The Congress general secretary’s handpicked AICC volunteers have launched a massive hunt to short-list ‘winnable’ candidates for 2012 U.P. assembly elections. All these volunteers are drawn from different states so that only ‘merit’ prevails. They will report directly to Rahul.

The 10 volunteers have been allotted around 40 assembly constituencies each so that all the 403 seats are covered. They are traveling through their respective areas and interacting at the grass-root level. Their brief is to suggest a panel of three to five candidates for each seat in the order of `viability’. They have to go into the logistics of past elections and make final recommendations in the prescribed AICC format. The deadline is March 31, 2011.

The AICC instructions issued to these observers by general secretary Digvijaya Singh, also incharge of U.P., categorically state: “You have to submit your report directly to Shri Rahul Gandhi in a closed cover marked as `Confidential’….. The report is not to be shared with any other in the AICC or PCC.” Explains Singh, “The idea is to let Rahulji have an unadulterated feel of the ground.”

The observers have been drawn from different states. Three are from MP, two each from Mumbai and Delhi and one each from Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat. The instructions say: “Instead of meeting the workers in the circuit house, you should try to meet/contact commen people and take their opinion about the most viable candidates.” The observers are supposed to attend village chaupals (informal meetings) organized by the prospective candidates and make their assessment based on the spot feedback.

Most of these observers have already finished the first round. Some are into their third leg and already have had interim interaction with Rahul Gandhi. Muzzaffar Hussain, a Congress MLC from Mumbai has held more than 80 chaupals in eight eastern U.P. districts between November 15 and December 16. The district Congress President, the MP, MLAs of the area are invariably present in these chaupals. Says PL Punia Congress MP from Bara Banki, who has been attending these chaupals, “ You cannot fib in these chaupals. If you are popular it shows.”

The exercise has been happening simultaneously in other parts. Says Congress Legislature Party chief Pramod Tewari, “ The idea is to finish this homework and have final lists ready by May, 2011.” But obviously these AICC observers are having a tough time navigating through vested interests, pulls and pushes of the local leaders. Congress tickets have been traditionally decided through lobbying or pressure tactics. Says PCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, “ This exercise will give us a fair and unbiased base to work on. The intention is to get the best possible candidates.”

The last point of the AICC instructions is even more unnerving for the local leaders. The circular states: “If there is a powerful and popular person, who is not as yet with the Congress Party, you should try to win him over….”

Samajwadi Party Amar Rahe…..

By Dilip Awasthi
Lucknow:
The dazzling showcase of Samajwadi Party’s official website is awaiting a major revamp. At least three portraits of the nine high-profile leaders displayed on the welcome page have to be marked for deletion. The changes in store may help emergence of an unadulterated socialist face, which the party once claimed to represent.

For a change let’s not talk of Amar Singh and his plans. Let’s just stick to discussing the Samajwadi Party’s gains and losses in his adventurous company. Amar Singh’s contributions to the SP were visibly registered on August 29, 2003, the day Mulayam Singh took oath for his third term. Vastly in disagreement with the party’s pro-poor ideology, he added the tinsel town glitter and he brought a group of industrialists in close contact of the former chief minister. His third major contribution was that he was the articulate face of the party in Delhi hobnobbing with rival parties, striking political and other deals and handling media with his typical bluster.

All the three contributions boomeranged. The stars including the Bachchan family created a gulf between the “dhartiputra Mulayam” and his supporters at large, who could see him from a distance only. Amar Singh’s move to blindly back Jayaprada in Rampur elections infuriated party’s most known Muslim face Azam Khan, who quit just after the Lok Sabha elections. His decision to bring in Kalyan Singh in the SP cost “Maulana” Mulayam Singh, popular Muslim support and leaders like Azam, Saleem Sherwani, Shafiqur Rehman Berq, Shahid Siddiqui and Afzal Ansari. Even Mulayam’s trusted lieutenants like Beni Prasad Verma, Raj Babber, Naresh Agarwal and at least a dozen more left SP protesting against Amar Singh’s domineering ways.

Amar Singh’s political wheeling-dealing also cost SP and Mulayam dearly. The party reached a dead end as far as its rapport with Congress Party is concerned. Sonia would surely like to have Amar Singh in her foe-list. It was because of him that Sonia could not come to power even after bringing down the Atal Behari Vajpayee government in April 1999. After dashing Congress hopes of garnering “secular” support, Amar took a dig at Sonia, “ Main Banungi Raani, Tum bharo paani, aisey kaisey chalegaa?”

Then again in 2009 Amar Singh was instrumental in scuttling an almost certain Congress -SP alliance. “The Congress was seeking to contest just 22 seats to which he (Amar) did not agree”, says Naresh Agarwal, now BSP general secretary, who along with Saleem Sherwani quit SP after its decision not to have an alliance with the Congress. The Congress won 21 seats in 2009 Lok Sabha elections just two less than SP’s 23.

Amar Singh’s industrialists’ club, which included Anil Ambani, Adi and Parmeshwar Godrej, Kumar Manglam Birla, L.K Khaitan, Subrato Roy Sahara formed the UP Development Council with Singh as its chairman. It held some star-studded meetings with Amitabh Bachchan as the brand ambassador. The council promised to bring in investments of Rs 4000 crore and developing 15000 acres of industrial area but nothing happened on the ground. To add to Mulayam’s woes was the telephone-tap in February 2006, which had him and Amar Singh discussing settling sugar prices to suit the sugar lobby, ways and means to “manage” judiciary and other embarrassing issues.

The losses are far greater than the numbers reflect. Conceding 35 of the total 36 Vidhan Parishad elections held on January 7 or a massive shortfall of 18 Lok Sabha seats in 2009 are serious warnings. Oblivious as he has been until Amar Singh’s fourth resignation on January 6, there were enough and more red signals on the way for party chief Mulayam Singh.

The party lost 46 Vidhan Sabha seats in 2007,which resulted in a big way in bring BSP to power. There have been desertions galore. Party’s support base is shaken to the hilt. Mulayam’s daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav’s defeat in Firozabad byelection in November 2009 at the hands of Congress’s Raj Babber by 85,000 votes proves this beyond doubt. Mulayam Singh chose to ignore all.

But when he ignored his cousin Ram Gopal Yadav’s diatribe against Amar Singh as an aftermath of Firozabad defeat, Amar Singh was offended and reminded of his “failing health”. According to Ram Gopal, grass root party workers are euphoric after Amar’s resignation. There are several party leaders who share his views and believe that Mulayam Singh has the capacity to bounce back to his past glory. At best he would need an eloquent party spokesman in Delhi and return of some of the stalwarts who deserted the party because of Amar Singh. Azam Khan does not rule this out. “In politics doors are never closed for ever”, he says philosophically. But Mulayam should get over and out with Amar Singh or reinvent the party’s chant to: “Samajwadi Party Amar Rahe….”

Growing old but not wiser

By Dilip Awasthi

1934, 1936, 1941 and 45 are not the participating models of a vintage car rally. In a world obsessed with youth, these are the entries in the year column of the frontline state BJP leaders.

Like in case of women, never ask the age of a BJP state leader. It will be a waste of time as a truthful answer is unlikely to come. In this age of information, it took a collective effort of three days to figure out the dates of birth of senior BJP state leaders. The reactions in the party office ranged from a confused “but what has happened….?” or a panicky “Is everthing allright?..” to the lame execuse “we don’t maintain such records…”.

At a stage when the Congress is celeberating the rise of 1971 born Rahul Gandhi and even Mulayam Singh Yadav is pinning hopes of his party’s future on his son Akhilesh (1973), who has been made the state party chief , the BJP seems to have run out of young blood in its ranks. Its playing eleven has proved infirm and incapable and the benches in the dugout are empty.

It all starts at the top with 1927 born LK Advani, who certainly would not like tobe referred to as prime minsietr still-in-waiting in 2012. It percolates down to Uttar Pradesh, the state which brought the BJP in political limelight in the late 1990s. The age list of party’s torch-bearers reads Keshari Nath Tripathi (1934), Lalji Tandon (1936), Kalraj Misra (1941), Om Prakash Singh (1945), national president Rajnath Singh and state president Dr Ramapati Ram Tripathi (both 1951) and Vinay Katiyar (both 1959). The list of state-level leaders virtually ends here.

They all are having a slippery relationship with time. Some of them are already puffing and panting. The rest would be knocking 55-60 and will join the superannuated club by 2012 when the state will have Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections together. The party office will be reminiscent of a geriatric ward by then. “An old head doesn’t always mean a wise one”, reflects a BJP well-wisher.

What is sad is that no one in the party seems to admit this. In a stock-talking meeting to analyse the Lok Sabha debacle, the state leaders concluded that the party had increased its voteshare. Just look at the figures to appreciate this audacity. The party could win just 10 seats and polled 17.5%, which is 0.5% more than 2007 Vidhan Sabha elections. They are celebrating this but convieniently choose to forget that the party polled 22.1% in 2004 Lok Sabha elections for a similar number of seats.

The party’s dismal performance is also proved by the fact that only 11 of its candidates finished as runners up and 30 were at number three whereas as many as 32 forfeited their deposit. In 2004 as many as 21 BJP candidates were runners up and 31 finished at number three whereas just 20 lost their security money.

That the party has run out of ideas and young state level leaders is proved by the decisions which it has been taking at crucial junctures. In 1999 when it had to replace towering Kalyan Singh as the chief minister, the best they could manage was 1923 born late Ram Prakash Gupta, who was 76 then. Yet again after the 2007 Vidhan Sabha humiliation when the party wanted to replace Keshari Nath Tripathi (1934) as the state president, the saffron archives could only yield Dr Ramapati Tam Tripathi, a 1951 born homeopathic doctor, who had been an unsung party general secretary for 11 years.

Now again a reshuffle is said to be in offing. In the absence of a second line, how many candles will be on the cake is anyone’s guess.

Turning Gandhigiri into Netagiri

Lucknow, March 19, 2009: Supreme court's decision on his petition must be giving Sanjay Dutt sleepless nights these days. The fate of his dream to switch over to `netagiri' from `gandhigiri' depends on the petition wherein he has requested the court to allow him to contest Lok Sabha elections from Lucknow.

"Dua kijiyega, supreme court ka faisla mere haq mein ho," urged actor Sanjay Dutt, the supposed candidate from Samajwadi Party (SP) for the high-profile Lucknow parliamentary seat. He said this at Lucknow's Aishbagh Eidgah on March 16 during a 45-minute long informal meet with several Sunni clerics.

Accompanied by Rajya Sabha member from SP, Virendra Bhatia, Dutt claimed that there was no official or political agenda of the meeting. However, the actor was at his best in terms of mannerism and language with the obvious aim of winning over Muslims who form 24. % of the electorate in Lucknow.

Sipping a cup of lemon tea at the Aishbagh Eidgah, Dutt spoke of what his parents taught him of religion. "Ma and Papa always said that one should respect all religions. It is for this reason, that I visit all places of worship to seek blessings," said the actor.

He may be a beginner in politics, but Sanjay Dutt seems to be learning his lessons fast. On his fourth trip to Lucknow, a more politically mature Munna Bhai visited the Samajwadi Party's district headquarters in Kaiserbagh to attend a Holi Milan samaroh and interacted with the party workers from the grass-roots level.

What showcased an interesting mix of his maturity as a politician and skills of a good actor, was the manner in which Sanju Baba managed to avoid a controversies by spontaneously improvising on a slip during his address that caused quite a few heads to turn. Speaking on senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Lalji Tandon's remarks that he is an outsider, an emphatic Sanjay Dutt questioned the very basis on which the remark was made.

"Main bahar ka nahin hoon. Hum sab Hindu hain..."(I am not an outsider. We all are Hindus...), said Dutt, sounding like a staunch saffron leader. His statement did create a murmur leaving some of the senior party leaders sharing the dais him visibly uncomfortable. Apparently taking the cue, Dutt hastened to repeat: "...Hum sab Hindustani hain," (We all are Hindustanis) much to the relief of his political mentors around him.

From here on, he spoke like a seasoned neta and when asked to comment on Tandon, who is BJP’s candidate in Lucknow in place of Atal Behari Vajpai, said: "Woh bahut hi varisht neta hain....humare bare hain....hum unka samman karte hain...(He is a very senior politician....he is my elder....I respect him a lot)."

Dutt spent more than a couple of hours interacting with party workers on a one-to-one basis, in between smiling for lensmen and his fans-cum-party workers who sought a chance to stand beside their Bollywood hero for a quick photo session. Addressing the party workers, Sanjay Dutt confidently outlined their role at the grass-root level and went on to declare that a leader owes his existence to party workers.

His speech was greeted with obvious applause when Munna Bhai said that all the party workers were his `Circuits', name of Dutt's famous stooge in the flick Munna Bhai MBBS. "Aap sab humare Circuit hain...agar aap Circuit ki tarah saath denge to hi hum Munna Bhai ban payenge" (All of you are my Circuit. When you all will extend support to me like Circuit then only can I become a Munna Bhai), Sanjay Dutt said.

Though SP has declared Dutt as its candidate from Lucknow, the Bollywood star can contest elections only after he gets the permission from the Supreme Court. He was convicted by the special TADA court in Mumbai for possessing illegal firearms. Dutt has moved the Supreme Court seeking suspension of his sentence in order to allow him contest the polls.

Under the provisions of the People's Representation Act, any individual convicted in a crime that attracts a punishment of three or more years cannot contest any election. Sanjay Dutt stands debarred from contesting polls unless provided relief by the apex court in his case.
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“Jai Ho Ram Kumarji….”

By Dilip Awasthi
Between the proverbial cup and the lip, this story seeks to become the slip for state government’s intention of demolishing another institution of public trust. If it doesn’t, the all-important position of the state Chief Information Commission (CIC) may be served on a platter to one of the most controversial bureaucrats. The retired official’s sole claim to fame is that he is the only IAS officer in UP’s history, whose services were terminated for corruption and possession of assets disproportionate to known sources of income.

Both chief minister Mayawati and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav would share the honours for the contentious appointment. Mayawati has short listed the name of 1976 batch IAS officer Ram Kumar, once her most trusted lieutenant and Mulayam Singh has absented himself from the high-power committee meeting on February 20, which finalized the official’s name for the coveted post. The CIC is the custodian of the Right to Information Act (RTI), which aims to ensure transparency and accountability in working of all public authority including the state government.

According to highly placed sources, Ram Kumar’s name was short-listed from a panel of five including two former bureaucrats and an existing information commissioner. In absence of Mulayam Singh, the committee sent its recommendation to the Governor the same evening. Ram Kumar, who retired last year, was appointment secretary between June and October 1995 during Mayawati’s first term as CM. He became controversial as his own colleagues including some PCS officials leveled charges of corruption against him. Some of them even submitted in writing and alleged that he had accepted grafts for doling out plum postings. The Kalyan Singh government placed him under suspension in June 1998, which continued till December the same year.

A series of inquiries including Vigilance proceedings were initiated against Ram Kumar. In 2000, the state government under BJP’s Ram Prakash Gupta took up a tirade against corrupt public servants and short-listed 277 officials against whom charges had been substantiated. In this list Ram Kumar, then a director with the state planning institute, was the only official against whom the state government sought central government permission for dismissal of services under the Rule 16(3) of All India Administrative Services Rules 1958. Ram Kumar was found involved in 16 cases of corruption by various inquiries.

On July 12, 2000, chief minister Ram Prakash Gupta himself ordereed Ram Kumar’s dismissal. The compliance of the dismissal notice was done the same evening by the additional district magistrate by pasting the notice at his A-5, Dilkusha Colony residence. However the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) reinstated him in 2003. He retired as principal secretary, rural engineering services last year. Says Ram Kumar, “None of the charges could be substantiated against me in the court. I was a victim of political vendetta”.

The decision to appoint him as the state CIC now rests with Governor TV Rajeswar as he is the appointing authority. According to Section 15 (3) of the RTI Act, the recommendation for the appointment has to be made by a three-member committee comprising the CM who is the chairperson of the committee, the leader of opposition in the Legislature Assembly in this case Mulayam Singh Yadav and a cabinet minister to be nominated by the CM in this case Panchayati Raj minister Babu Singh Kushwaha.

The obvious intention of the act is to get the CIC or for that matter any state Information Commissioners appointed on merit and with consensus. Whereas two members of the committee represent the government, one member represents the entire opposition lobby. The Governor now has to take a call on the issue that in the absence of the leader of opposition should the recommendation of the committee hold? The act is silent on this aspect.

The RTI Act has been an eyesore for the state government and its officials, who have been wanting to castrate this institution, which promises at least some justice for the common man. Nonetheless there could be no better salute to UP government’s penchant for backing the wrong horses than Rehman’s Oscar wining ‘’Jai Ho’’ more aptly “Jai Ho Ram Kumarji”….

All in the name of Lord Rama…

February 8, 2009

By Dilip Awasthi
Ram Bhakt Kalyan is on a special assignment. The Hindutva protagonist of yesterday is busy managing Muslim politics for his rediscovered friend Mulayam Singh Yadav. After issuing a letter to the press in Lucknow on February 4, Kalyan Singh issued another statement the next day in Delhi ``owning up the responsibility of Babri mosque demolition’’ so that Muslims do not fall apart from the Samajwadi Party fold.

How this ``owning up the responsibility’’ will pacify Muslims is a mystery because Kalyan Singh has all through brandished the Ayodhya demolition as a medal of pride. That he was squarely responsible for allowing the pulling down of the mosque is amply proved by the dismissal of his government on December 6, 1992, his trial as the main accused by the Liberhan commission and finally his one-day conviction by the Supreme Court on October 24, 1994.

Some famous Kalyan Singh quotes further underline his staunch stand on the issue. “I will appear in the Supreme Court on 19 January and will say that I was responsible for Ayodhya…”(Press conference December 19, 1992); “Let them try and build a mosque there and we will have a bigger agitation….”(Press conference January 11, 1993): “I am thankful to Bhagwan Ram that he chose me as the medium….”(Public meeting in Shikohabad February 21, 1993); “Demolition was an act of God. I have no regrets, no repentance, no sorrow, and no grief...(Statement before Liberhan commission on December 3, 2004). There are at least a dozen more such revealing quotes from the years gone by.

It always is fruitful to revisit Kalyan Singh’s public statements because he emerges as a perennial jumping jack of UP politics. Historically he seldom means what he says. On November 2, 1991 he made four promises before the National Integration Council (NIC) in Delhi, which included “complete security to disputed structure”. In a press conference on April 22, 1992 he says, “ I am not their (central government’s) `patwari’ (revenue record keeper) that they keep ordering me for documents…my party and I myself are committed to building the new Ram temple….”

On May 13, 1992 Kalyan says referring to NIC team’s Ayodhya visit on April 7, “The report of NIC team about demolishing of temples around the disputed site is baseless, biased and preconceived…” Finally on November 23, 1992, just 12 days before the demolition Kalyan boycotts the NIC meeting in New Delhi. On November 28, 1992, the Supreme Court finds his government’s reassuring affidavit `emphatic’ and decides to allow `symbolic karseva’ on December 6. How well Kalyan Singh kept all his promises needs no elaboration.

In his clarification letter of February 4 last Kalyan Singh states: “ Mulayam Singh and I have become friends. This is no political pact. No conditions are set in friendship and in our friendship there are none…this friendship has four purposes including dispensing social justice to the downtrodden and backwards...” Now consider this oratory in a public meeting in Mughalsarai (Varanasi) on September 20,1996, “ Do you know who was behind Purulia arms droppings? He (Mulayam) is traitor. CBI should inquire into Mulayam Singh’s ISI links…” And what he said in a public meeting in Varanasi in presence of BJP national president Rajnath Singh on December 1, 2005 is also worth a consideration. “If Mulayam Singh incites a communal riot, just give him a fiting reply. Dangaa rokna ho to ek ke badle chaar maro, dangaa ruk jayega…” A national news channel recently replayed video of this particular statement.

Kalyan Singh has not joined Mulayam camp for the first time. The Samajwadi Party had contested 2002 assembly elections in a pact with Kalyan Singh’s Rashtriya Kranti Party (RKP), which was formed after he was ousted from BJP in November 1999. Kalyan Singh’s main strength in the state is said to be the Lodh votes which comprise nearly three percent of the electorate in UP. The 2002 results candidly speak of Kalyan Singh’s net political worth. The RKP contested 335 seats and could win only four seats of which Kalyan Singh won two. The party’s vote share was a paltry 3.39%. Kalyan Singh campaigned against the BJP full throttle and supposedly damaged his erstwhile party’s chances in around 30 seats. That was about all.

But this time on when the BJP, as it is, is quite down and out in UP at least, Kalyan Singh could be cutting both ways for Mulayam Singh Yadav and his party.--------------------------