War of scam petitioners

The politicians who moved Patna High Court seeking a CBI probe into the fodder scam in the 90s have got engaged in mud-slinging after 17 years. allan Singh, Shivanand Tiwari, Sushil Kumar Modi and Sarayu Rai were the four politicians who approached the high court in the case. After former chief minister Lalu Prasad was convicted, Sarayu Roy charged Sushil Kumar Modi with making misleading statements on the scam. The BJP countered, saying Sarayu was a “mouthpiece” of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar. Modi was called a liar by co-petitioner Tiwari, who accepted that he was a reluctant petitioner. Lallan took out his anger against the co-petitioners alleging that they filed the petition because they wanted political mileage. “This (verbal duel) is getting more exciting than the scam. They should have fought each other when the court trial was on,” said an RJD MP.

Confusion over Cong

The JD(U) leaders appear to be confused over their stand on the Congress. While senior JD(U) MP Shivanand Tiwari has openly advocated for an alliance with the Congress, national president Sharad Yadav has declared that his party would have nothing to do with the grand old party of India. Chief minister Nitish Kumar, on the other hand, issues vague statements on the alliance with the Congress. “There is so much confusion about making statements against the Congress. Even when the Congress leaders attack us on some issue, we remain silent. We have stopped making statements against corruption and price rise,” said a spokesperson of the JD(U), stressing that the party should make its stand clear soon.

Feast for 50000

The BJP would dish out dinner to 50,000 participants on October 26, the eve of Hunkar Rally. According to sources, the food packets would contain puri, vegetable and bundiya. Besides, the party MLAs and MPs would make food arrangements for participants coming from their respective constituencies. A morning-walker, regular at Gandhi Maidan, said: “Patna, particularly Gandhi Maidan, will be littered with empty food packets. The problem is nobody clears the mess after the event is over.”

Liberal RJD

The day Lalu Prasad was awaiting the CBI special court verdict in a Ranchi jail, several RJD leaders, including Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Ram Kripal Yadav and Prabhunath Singh, were airing divergent views on TV. After listening to them for hours, a JD(U) leader pointed out that the RJD was much more “democratic” than his party. “Had such a situation arisen in our party, a gag would have been put on our spokespersons,” he said, recalling that the JD(U) spokespersons were asked not to speak on several occasions in the past.