‘Australians rich, but lack common sense’
Former Tripura chief minister Biplab Deb has often made headlines for his oddball takes on various issues. From claiming that the internet existed during the time of the Mahabharata to suggesting only civil engineers should join the civil services, Deb, who now represents the West Tripura constituency in the Lok Sabha, has repeatedly become the subject of public ridicule.
His latest remark came during a BJP event in Tripura this week. Addressing the gathering, Deb said that he realised during a recent visit to Australia that people there lack common sense, unlike in India. He recounted an experience where he was made to wait in a long queue, which nearly caused him to miss his flight.
In India, he claimed, such a situation would not have occurred, as people ahead of him would have allowed him to jump the queue, recognising that his flight was scheduled earlier than theirs. “People in Australia might be rich, but they don’t have common sense,” Deb said.
Conspicuous by absence
A meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice on the issue of judges taking up post-retirement jobs had a notable absentee. A member of the 31-member panel, former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, who was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in March 2020 by then President Ram Nath Kovind months after retiring, did not attend the meeting, according to MPs who were in attendance.
The members of the panel had a long discussion on the need for a cooling-off period of five years for judges before they can take up post-retirement jobs. The panel has already urged the Ministry of Law and Justice to have a relook at such post-retirement assignments for judges.
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What’s brewing at BJP HQ
The Bharatiya Janata Party has decided that ministers of state (MoS) will now be spending some time at the party headquarters to ensure coordination between the government and the organisation.
Under the exercise that began Friday, each minister is asked to spend a day at the party headquarters, and be available to BJP workers between 11 am to 5 pm to listen to their grievances or suggestions.
The party says the initiative is to ensure there is a direct connect between the organisation and the party. But there is more to it than meets the eye!
A source pointed out that with the party president election delayed for quite some time and senior leaders not coming to the headquarters on a daily basis, many workers had stopped visiting.
This is not the first time such an initiative has been taken—previously, some Union ministers would meet party workers at the headquarters from 3 pm to 5 pm.
The party is confident, the sources said, the new arrangement will allow workers a greater opportunity to connect with leaders and communicate their concerns.
‘Thank you, master’
While V.D. Satheesan was hailed as the “captain” behind the Congress’s victory in Kerala’s Nilambur bypoll, Communist Party of India (Marxist) state secretary M.V. Govindan is having to face flak for his party’s defeat.
Many Left-leaning social media pages and individuals vented their frustration with sarcastic posts. ‘Nandiyund mashe’ (Thank you, master) reads one of them, pinning the CPI(M)’s defeat on Govindan and his remarks on the party’s partnership with the RSS during the Emergency.
Nilambur was not a traditional Left Democratic Front bastion, but the CPI(M) had high hopes from its candidate M. Swaraj, who enjoys popularity across the political spectrum in the state.
The party’s confidence got a boost when Swaraj received support from several writers and artists during the campaign. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan camped in Nilambur for days.
The United Democratic Front’s internal bickering over whether to let former Nilambur MLA P.V. Anvar into their fold further bolstered the CPI(M) optimism.
But the outcome didn’t match the expectations. Swaraj lost to UDF and Congress candidate Aryadan Shoukath by a margin of over 11,000 votes. And Govindan was quick to be blamed for the controversy he created just a day before the constituency voted 19 June.
His statement was that the Left had partnered with the RSS during the Emergency to fight Congress’ fascism, which he said to contextualise political partnerships for a cause. But it backfired as the Congress quickly managed to make it look like it was the Left’s attempt to appease Hindu voters.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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