Late invitation irks Shatrughan

The BJP had advertised the name of Bollywood star and MP Shatrughan Sinha as an “honoured guest” in the mega show organised by the party on the occasion of Veer Kuer Singh Jayanti. But the Patna Sahib MP did not turn up. Instead, he took the flight to Delhi the same day. One of his aides said Sinha was annoyed because he was invited to the show just a couple of hours before the programme was about to begin. Nobody actually wants him in any show because he hogs the limelight and other BJP leaders feel left out,” said a close confidant of the MP, stressing that this was not the first time that he was invited late. He recalled that the state government had listed the name of Sinha’s daughter Sonakshi as one of the celebrities coming to participate in the Bihar Divas function. “But the invitation was never extended to her,” said another close associate of the Patna Sahib MP.

Difference in assets

When chief minister Nitish Kumar and his predecessor Rabri Devi filed their nomination papers for the election to Bihar Legislative Council, politicians were quick to take a glance at the affidavits filed by the two. “The son of Lalu and Rabri — Tej Pratap — was shown to own a super motorcycle priced over Rs 12.5 lakh. He must be the only one to have such a vehicle in Patna. On the other hand, the son of the chief minister Nishant Kumar does not own any vehicle,” said a JD(U) MLA. But an RJD MLA stressed that the affidavit of Rabri Devi reflected her honesty in declaring property owned by her and her kin. “Besides, the sons of Lalu and Rabri are visible on public platforms with their parents. The son of Nitish appears to have rejected the idea of having anything to do with politics,” he added.

Benefit of doubt

Labour minister Janardan Singh Sigriwal created a mild ripple at the BJP-sponsored programme to mark the birth anniversary of legendary freedom fighter Veer Kuer Singh. Sigriwal said Kuer Singh was among the first few freedom fighters to host the Tiranga (Tricolour) in 1857. “The minister probably has not read history. The present National Flag, popularly known as Tiranga, was proposed to the constituent Assembly by Jawaharlal Nehru on July 22, 1947. It became the National Flag from August 15, 1947. The minister has missed his date by about 90 years,” said a person in the audience. The minister can get the benefit of doubt because the flag of the Congress was also saffron, white and green. While it had a charkha in the middle, our National Flag has the Ashok Chakra.

Politics in events

When Tarakant Jha hosted his last function in the capacity of the chairperson of the Bihar Legislative Council to mark the Bihar Divas celebrations and roped in the vice-president as the chief guest, the employees of the House started talking about the long tenure of the former in the House. “He will fade into oblivion after this function,” said an official of the council, recalling that Jha had been a fine orator. But as the programme unfolded and deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi was not asked to speak despite being an honoured guest, the mood of the employees changed. “Once a politician, is always a politician. He has taken his revenge on Modi by denying him the opportunity to speak before the vice-president,” said the official, stressing that most of the government- and House-sponsored functions were full of politics.