Some people start calling themselves experts after accomplishing only a few feats. It is the biggest human mistake. And Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari is well aware of this. As a minister in Maharashtra, Gadkari oversaw the construction of many flyovers and bridges. However, this led him to believe that he could also design his home’s architecture. And he did it too. But when the house was ready, a pillar stood right in the middle of Gadkari’s bedroom. He shares this story and advises others to claim expertise only in areas they genuinely understand. Otherwise, if a pillar pops up in your bedroom, you might have to knock down the entire house.
Hammer down
By the way, Gadkari isn’t one to back away from demolitions. Recently, he ordered to bulldoze the house of Minister of state Krishan Pal Gurjar’s relatives. The house stood in the way of one of the national highways. When it was time for the demolition, Gurjar contacted Gadkari. The Union minister responded by recounting how he had to demolish his own relatives’ house for a road in Maharashtra. Gurjar got the message.
Rice leader
The stature of Chhattisgarh’s former Chief Minister Raman Singh has got a sudden boost. For the upcoming assembly elections, the BJP is boasting about the state’s development under Singh. And it’s the only way the party can make comparisons with the Bhupesh Baghel government. BJP supporters have once again started calling Singh ‘Chaur wale baba,’ a nickname he got in 2008 for starting a scheme that provided rice to the poor at just Rs 2 per kg. The message seems to be that if the BJP wins there might be no alternative candidate for the CM position except Singh.
Also read: Daggubati Purandeswari never supported Chandrababu Naidu. But as BJP state chief she has to
First, let go of your seat
Typically, during the distribution of election tickets, hopeful candidates seek endorsements from senior leaders, especially the ones they are close to. But this time, it’s the opposite. Senior politicians are asking potential candidates if they can give up their ticket. It’s a new scheme introduced by the party ahead of elections.
110 % reservation
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao has asked to reserve 33 per cent of seats in Lok Sabha and state assembly for OBCs and women. Nearly 24 per cent of Lok Sabha seats are already reserved for SC and ST categories. If Rao’s request gets approved, 90 per cent of legislative seats will be reserved. Who will compete for the remaining 10 per cent of seats? Whoever opposes these reservations, says Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). But what will the rest of the people do?
Right to ‘vote-cutting’
In Uttar Pradesh, a Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate won the Ghosi by-election, but a Congress candidate lost in the neighbouring state of Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar constituency. It was a close defeat. The congress candidate’s margin of loss in Bageshwar was similar to the number of votes garnered by the SP candidate in the Uttarakhand constituency. Uttar Pradesh Congress’ new president Ajay Rai found this very offensive. He is critical of the SP. Four states are going to polls soon. Since everyone is entitled to eat into each other’s votes, the threat of Bageshwar-like defeat is looming.
Real education
A senior official of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh shared a story about the state of education in India. He said that PM Modi has put a lot of thought into the new National Education Policy, but there is a big question mark over the qualification of those running it. An RSS office bearer asked an auto-rickshaw driver in a big city to take him to a university, the driver refused. When the RSS worker asked why, the driver hesitated to answer. On much persuasion, he said that he didn’t want to go there because the university’s vice-chancellor post was vacant— “What if they make me the VC? No, that won’t work. I am happy just the way I am”.
There’s a flip side to this story. Outside the same Sangh official’s office, people were heard saying that the Modi government’s education policy is the most comprehensive and rooted in ground reality so far. But anyone aspiring to be the VC of any university first seeks an endorsement from a Sangh member.
Bharat Agrawal is Executive Director, Dainik Bhaskar Group, and a columnist.
By special arrangement with Dainik Bhaskar.