War of words

LK Advani would be hoping that his book, My Country My Life, sells like hot cakes. But the tome has been greeted rather coldly within the parivar itself. One hears that the Bharatiya Janata Party is unhappy with Advani for having ‘exposed’ the failures of the National Democratic Alliance government on various counts, including national security. The party top brass thinks that the disclosure would give the Congress a chance to gloat over the fact that it is the BJP, and not the Congress, which is ‘soft’ on terror. Besides, there is Advani on Jinnah again — one whole chapter is dedicated to the Qaid-e-Azam. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is so miffed that it is apparently having a rethink on supporting Advani’s candidacy for prime ministership. Now that might get even the loh purush worried. He wouldn’t want to miss out having a go at the hot seat after spending years as the prime minister-in-waiting.

Reunion time

Here is another first for Mayavati. The mercurial behenji has brought about a change of heart among the the Yadav chieftains. Frightened that Mayavati’s meteoric rise in national politics would take the wind out of their sails, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Lalu Prasad on the one hand, and Mulayam and Sharad Yadav on the other have now decided to bury the hatchet and device ways to snip Mayavati’s prime ministerial ambitions. The Union railways minister and the Samajwadi Party boss recently met for a quiet chat. Ditto for Sharad and Mulayam Yadav who met at the wedding of a TDP leader. The Congress, expectedly, is happy to see this great Yadav reunion. Mayavati’s opponents, it seems, is busy mending the fence. But will it be high enough to keep Mayavati out of Delhi?

All play and no work

Now for some more news from the Mulayam camp in Madhya Pradesh. The Samajwadi Party’s national executive was held at Jabalpur and only three of the party’s eight MLAs turned up for the meet. The rest were helping the ruling BJP in a close Rajya Sabha contest. The scant attendance meant that the attending MLAs had a lot of time to kill and they did make the most of it. For instance, Dr Sunilam spent his time filming Jayaprada, the actress MP, on his handycam, till someone politely reminded him that he had a by-election to think about. One wonders what Mulayam Singh Yadav has to say about Sunilam’s conduct. No work and all play, perhaps?

Divine interests

The father of the nation is under threat from, would you believe it, Lord Ram himself. The BJP MP, Yogi Adityanath, has demanded that the father-of-the-nation status be accorded to Ram (and Krishna). Understandably, Congressmen have taken umbrage at Adityanath’s plan and dubbed his plea as an insult to the rashtrapita. But Yogi is in no mood to relent. He not only refused to withdraw his demand but, reportedly, also stated that the Mahatma did not deserve the honour as he was the man responsible for the partition of the country. Therefore, only Ram and Krishna deserved such recognition. Of course, the party president, Rajnath Singh, tried to make light of the entire fiasco. Singh, no doubt used to such ‘just’ demands from the party rank and file, chose to describe the temperamental Yogi’s views as personal.

Tricky answer

Rahul Gandhi not only delivers eloquent speeches but can also speak in riddles. Only if he has to evade uncomfortable queries though. At a recent meeting at the AICC office, the scribes pelted Rahul Gandhi with questions but the crown prince refused to take most of them. Finally, someone asked him about the Congress’s views on the price rise. “I will answer your question in Karnataka,” the young man retorted and left, leaving baffled scribes wondering whether he had been coached on how to stave off tricky questions.

Daughter with a difference

While the children of most politicians groom themselves to take on the mantle, here is an exception. Venkaiah Naidu and his daughter were seen playing host to guests at a gala feast. Was the spread in honour of the debut of Naidu’s daughter as a politician? It was the daughter, and not the father, who answered the query with an emphatic “No”. Looks like it would take all of Naidu’s skills of persuasion to make his daughter change her mind.

The sweetest touch

Friendship day has come early in the country’s political circles this year. First, we had the Yadavs making up in one corner of the country. Meanwhile, in another part of India, two other men were busy striking up a friendship. SM Krishna has just touched base in Karnataka. So M Mallikarjun Kharge, the state unit chief, decided to call on him. Things went rather well, and Krishna served hot coffee to Kharge and the other party leaders who visited him. Krishna’s gesture of giving extra cubes of sugar to Kharge was not lost on the gathering. Some thought that it was a clear sign that Krishna wanted to settle the differences with the state unit chief. The wily Krishna had a different explanation to offer. Apparently, Kharge had been served coffee without sugar by mistake. Even as the poor man sat sipping the hot, bitter liquid, Krishna came to his rescue, sweetening the brew for Kharge. No matter what Krishna says, there is surely no better way to make new friends.