New Delhi: Call it a reflection of the BJP’s anxieties about the Jat vote bank following the seemingly forced resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar as Vice President of India and its soured relationship with late former Governor Satyapal Malik, but the BJP seems to be positioning its V-P nominee, C.P. Radhakrishnan, as a Jat leader.
Radhakrishnan is actually a Kongu Vellalar Gounder, a land-owning backward class community in Tamil Nadu.
Soon after the NDA declared its V-P candidate, BJP national general secretary and MP Radha Mohan Das Agrawal took to social media to express gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on behalf of the Jat community across the country.
“By nominating the highly respected leader and former MP from the Tamil Nadu Jat community as candidate for Vice-President, he (the PM) has shown a sense of belonging towards the entire Jat community,” Agrawal, who is in charge of Rajasthan, wrote.
After being criticised by a section of social media users, Agrawal doubled down: “Today, the Jat community feels a sense of pride that this community is not only influential in North India but also extends to the far southern border of Tamil Nadu, and has played such a significant role in the cultural integration of North and South.”
That’s what you call courage of conviction.
Pahalgam visit by MPs to brainstorm how to revive J&K tourism
The tourist season had just begun in Jammu & Kashmir in April, when terrorists killed over two dozen tourists in the Baisaran meadows of Pahalgam. In its aftermath, tourists started deserting Kashmir, cancelling their travel plans. Hotels and homestays at one of India’s top summer destinations witnessed a drastic drop in bookings, which is continuing even today.
What followed was a flurry of activity by the administration to promote J&K as a safe tourist destination. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah held his cabinet meeting in Pahalgam. Taking cue, the parliamentary standing committee on commerce has planned a five-day trip to Pahalgam, Srinagar and Jammu for its next meeting. The agenda: To study how to revive J&K’s commerce post-Pahalgam.
The 29-member committee, headed by Trinamool Congress MP Dola Sen, will meet traders, businessmen, those in the hotel industry, apple growers, etc, to understand how their business has been affected. Their recommendation on what needs to be done to revive tourism may take time. But in the interim, the MPs’ five-day stay will at least, in a small way, contribute to boosting Kashmir’s tourism.
‘VIP treatment’ for minister’s son
A minister in Uttar Pradesh who is considered close to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is in the eye of a political storm. The reason: VIP protocol for his son, Abhishek.
Jal Shakti minister Swatantra Dev Singh’s son was scheduled to participate in a Tiranga Yatra in Orai on 15 August. A day before that, the minister’s personal secretary sent a letter to the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, asking them to issue instructions to all concerned to make necessary arrangements for the same.
Officials did the needful. The letter has now come out in the public domain and the Opposition, the Samajwadi Party, is having a field day asking the government to come clear on the ‘VIP facilities’ asked for. Swatantra Dev Singh has chosen to go quiet, obviously waiting for the political storm to blow over. And the personal secretary has been removed.
Raj Thackeray’s love for dog
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray has been in the news quite a bit this week. First, his party drew a blank in the first poll (a hyper local one) it fought along with the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena. A day after the loss, he met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, making all reporters in political circles wonder what he was up to. He then addressed a press conference, venting on various issues related to urban planning.
While he was lamenting the quality of roads, he suddenly stopped, looked at his feet and said: “Ae Pillu, come here.” Nuzzling against his leg was his dog, Rino, looking for some of his attention.
“Come up here,” Thackeray said, pointing to his lap. In two blinks, the dog put his paws on Thackeray’s knees, as the MNS chief cuddled him.
The politician’s piercing tone suddenly softened as everyone present saw a rare gentle side to the otherwise belligerent Raj Thackeray.
“You are no taller than the boom mics here,” Thackeray teased his dog as he continued to pet him.
The MNS chief launched back into the press conference and resumed his complaints about the state of urban planning while keeping one hand on his dog. Rino didn’t seem too interested in the complexities of urban infrastructure and ambled away.
Meanwhile, for the reporters tailing Raj Thackeray’s moves this week, his brief interaction with Rino turned out to be the most heartwarming piece of news.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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