Forceful leader

In spite of his party, the Biju Janata Dal, losing the general election and being voted out of power in Odisha, the former chief minister, Naveen Patnaik, continues to be a force to be reckoned with in both state and national politics. His clout was evident when the Tamil Nadu CM, MK Stalin, sent two of his trusted colleagues — the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam parliamentarian, Dayanidhi Maran, and the Tamil Nadu industries minister, TRB Rajaa — to Bhubaneswar to garner Patnaik’s support for the anti-delimitation meet in Chennai slated for March 22. Since then, the Bharatiya Janata Party has been making covert attempts to dissuade Patnaik from attending the meeting. There is a feeling that his participation would not only lead to unity among the Opposition parties on the delimitation issue but could also pave the way for the formation of a third front against the National Democratic Alliance government. In the past, there have been several attempts at forming such a front but Patnaik had maintained his distance. However, in the wake of his party’s shocking defeat in the polls, he is now willing to join hands with anti-BJP forces. This has become a cause of worry for the National Democratic Alliance, which had always treated the BJD as an ally. Patnaik also has a reason to join hands with the DMK. According to academic calculations based on available data, Odisha is one of the states that could lose seats in the Lok Sabha as a result of delimitation.

Political preaching

All the top ‘babas’ (spiritual leaders) of the country have suddenly developed a love for the state of Bihar and are making a beeline for it. Those who have already visited the state include Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Dhirendra Krishna Shastri. A few others are slated to visit in the coming months. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief, Mohan Bhagwat, who is considered no less than a ‘baba’, also toured the state recently. This newfound love must be seen in the context of the assembly polls scheduled for the end of the year. Bihar is an important state that has slipped out of the hands of the BJP a couple of times in the past decade.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar conducted spotlight session - ABP Infocom 2023

A senior BJP leader pointed out that the latest trend was due to the direction from the topmost ‘baba’ in Delhi. But a leader from Janata Dal (United), an ally of the BJP, revealed: “Religious polarisation and jingoistic nationalism are the panacea for all ills, and the babas, with their mass following, are the most suitable vehicles for them. And when babas are queuing up for Bihar, rest assured that top preachers from other religions... won’t stay behind.”

Guest appearance

When Kangana Ranaut, the actor and BJP member of Parliament, raised the chaotic situation in her constituency, Mandi, in the Lok Sabha last week, everyone across party lines was surprised. Her presence in the House after a long gap was noted. Ranaut, known for her controversial remarks, was hardly seen in Parliament in the first half of the budget session. This was in sharp contrast to her overactive presence in the first session of Parliament after the general elections. Her continued absence from her constituency even led local BJP leaders of Mandi to publicly express their frustration with her.

However, Ranaut has been busy with one issue or the other. First it was the delay in the release of her much-hyped film, Emergency. She was then occupied with the launch of Mountain Story, her restaurant in Manali. Insiders, however, had a different story. Ranaut’s remarks against protesting farmers ahead of the Haryana polls last year had angered the BJP leadership. Then the party had also refrained from promoting her film. These seem to have put Ranaut off.

Secret exposed

The Assam CM, Himanta Biswa Sarma, made some startling revelations about himself on the floor of the state assembly. Expressing unhappiness over the media coverage of a bike theft in Guwahati, Sarma asserted that any negative news that can potentially tarnish the image of the state should be ideally kept a secret and first reported to him before making it public, making him accountable and giving him two-three days to resolve the issue. He then went on to narrate how he took revenge against the Pratidin newspaper, which had been critical of him, by visiting the house of the paper’s founder-editor soon after being elected the CM in May 2021.

His sermon to the media on how to conduct itself drew a sharp retort from the Pratidin Time TV channel, which saluted him for exposing his true colours in the House. It used terms such as dishonest, nefarious, shameless, cunning and conspiratorial to describe Sarma. It added that the media’s job is not to hide negative news but to report it in the interests of the state and the public. For the record, the news of the stolen bike was first disclosed by the visiting Uttarakhand biker on social media, seeking the help of the police and the CM for the recovery of the bike.