Game of chess
A Union Minister and a powerful leader in the state are trying to check each other’s ‘king piece’ on the political chess board. When districts were allotted to ministers, the Union Minister checked the king of his detractor. He is the only minister who was able to get the districts allotted to the members of his clique according to their choice. The Union Minister wanted that the districts, which come under his influence, should be allotted to the ministers of his group as happened during the tenure of the then chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. What the Union Minister had desired happened – though he had to work hard for it. He has become powerful in his constituency again. Recently, because of an MP, close to a powerful leader in the ruling dispensation, the Union Minister’s influence reduced. It was because of the MP that he was not able to hold meetings with his supporters in a district. When the Union Minister was not invited to an event in which the Chief Minister took part, there were discussions in political circles that the Union Minister was losing his grip over state politics. There is enthusiasm among his supporters after the allotment of districts to the members of his camp. Now, everyone is waiting for the next move of the minister’s rival.
Ma’am’s Surname!
A woman minister from the state was recently very active in Delhi. While she was in the national capital, she met many powerful leaders of the party. The female minister does not have any department that has a lot of work. Ergo, someone close to her advised her to keep in touch with the party leadership in Delhi. She has been told that as most of the work in the state is done with the consent of the party’s central leadership, she should be in touch with them. She not only got closer to the central leadership but also complained to them about a minister in the state. There are reports that after coming from Delhi, she looks very confident. She even told her confidants that her surname came in the way; else, the command of the state would have been in her hands. The minister dreams of becoming the chief minister in the coming days.
Investment talks
There are discussions about investments in the city of a leader who was a minister in the Congress government. Although he is not in the government now, he is buying properties. The former minister recently made a lot of money which has been invested in some big projects. A few BJP leaders tried to put up hurdles in the way of the former minister’s making money. Despite being in the government, they could not stop the former minister. The former minister is working in mining. In this work, too, there is no hurdle from the government’s side. About the former minister, it is said that he has no dearth of money. After losing the election, he paid full attention to politics as well as to business. The former minister is not on good terms with the leaders of his own party these days.
Leader’s tears
FP Cartoon
The tears of a Congress leader are being discussed in the party these days. In his long career in politics, nobody has ever seen him sniffling. Within eight months of his defeat in the election, he began to sniffle. The BJP leader who defeated the Congressman in the election and the collector of the district where he is living are harassing him to the hilt. Both are causing one problem or the other to the Congressman daily. An influential leader of the BJP in the area is helping the Congressman, but because of the minister-collector duo, there seems to be no end in sight to his troubles. The Congressman’s family members are also facing problems. Nevertheless, a few Congress leaders, whom this man once harassed, are happy.
Display of strength
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched Tiranga Yatras across the state just a few days before Independence Day. The party directed its leaders to take out Tiranga Yatras in their constituencies to instil nationalism in every citizen – especially in youths. Whatever the purpose may have been behind taking out such rallies in the name of nationalism, but the leaders, in fact, wanted to display their strength and to draw the top leadership’s attention. This is the reason why the party leaders tried to gather as many youths as possible in their rallies. They spared no effort to make everything happen the way they wanted. As a result, thousands of people took part in Tiranga rallies turning the roads in all the districts across the state, including those in the state capital, into a sea of humanity. People in the corridors of power say the ruling dispensation spent a huge amount of dosh to make it a successful event. Many youths took part in the rally with their two-wheelers and four-wheelers. However hard the BJP leaders may have worked for the success of their rallies, it is not known whether the top leadership, for whom such a big event was organised, will take note of it.
Union Minister’s advice
Everyone loves to quote the Bard of Avon, William Shakespeare, in any situation. A woman minister of the Union Cabinet, who recently visited the state capital to take part in the convocation of a prestigious educational institution, referred to a character of Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. She alluded to Polonius from the play and advised the students to abide by his advice. As his son was going to France for studies, Polonius told him to weigh each word before uttering it, to be kind to everyone, to remember old friends, but to be in no hurry to make new friends. Polonius told him: Neither borrow nor lend money to anybody, be faithful to self and listen to others. Polonius’s advice is still relevant today, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is an example of it. He listens to everyone, but keeps his thoughts to himself. She said, “Everyone should follow the Polonius.”
