1970s pop music rules the roost at Rashtrapati Bhavan on R-Day
Guests at the ‘At Home’ reception organised at Rashtrapati Bhavan Sunday on the occasion of Republic Day were surprised by the choice of songs being played in the background.
There were the obvious patriotic choices like A.R. Rahman’s Maa Tujhe Salaam, but 1970s overseas pop music seemed to be the flavour of the day as ABBA’s Dancing Queen and Boney M’s Rasputin were among the songs played.
The choice of pop music was apparently driven by the presence of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, the chief guest at the Republic Day function.
It is not known whether Bolsonaro enjoys pop music, but the choice of Rasputin in particular would probably not have been jarring to his ears — particularly the lyrics “Oh, those Russians”. In an interview earlier this month, he had said Brazil was open to hosting an American military base to counter the Russian influence.
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Yediyurappa seeks probe against IAF chopper ‘flying too low’
Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa is angry nowadays, and not just because the BJP high command is not letting him have his way in cabinet expansion.
At a Republic Day function, an Indian Air Force chopper that showers flower petals on the dignitaries’ podium flew too low, causing a mini-dust storm.
An irate Yediyurappa has sought an inquiry into the incident, and the Bengaluru civic body BBMP’s chief B.H. Anil Kumar has written to the Indian Air Force, seeking an explanation. Kumar told the media that the helicopter flying so low was a “VIP security breach” and caused tremendous inconvenience to hundreds of spectators at the Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw Parade Ground.
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Is Shatrughan Sinha a Congressi or a Samajwadi?
Former Union minister Shatrughan Sinha recently addressed a press conference at the Samajwadi Party office in Lucknow, along with another former minister Yashwant Sinha and party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
The actor-turned-politician praised Akhilesh and called him the “most dynamic and vibrant” young leader in the country.
Sinha’s statement has riled up fellow members of the Congress, the party he joined just before the Lok Sabha elections after a decades-long stint in the BJP.
Acharya Pramod Krishnam, who is often seen with Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during her travels in Uttar Pradesh, tweeted: “Shatrughan is a star campaigner of the Congress but he campaigns for SP and wears khaki pants of the RSS.”
Krishnam has had an axe to grind against Sinha since the general elections, when the senior leader campaigned against him and in favour of his wife Poonam Sinha in Lucknow. Poonam was contesting on an SP ticket.
The UP Congress headquarters has been buzzing with the question: “Is Shatrughan a Congressi or a Samajwadi?”
But Shatrughan Sinha, who lost from the Patna Sahib seat in Bihar to the BJP’s Ravi Shankar Prasad last year, later clarified that he was there to support his “good friend” Yashwant Sinha’s Gandhi Sandesh Yatra. “The yatra is a non-political function and I will support it,” he said.
Siddaramaiah dons lawyer’s robes again
Former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has decided to slip back into his former role as a lawyer. The Congress leader had surrendered his bar licence when he became chief minister in 2013, but his close aides say he has now decided to revive his practice as he would like to represent those who are being slapped with sedition charges for participating in the anti-CAA protests.
On 8 January, a woman from Mysuru who displayed a placard saying “Free Kashmir” was slapped with sedition charges. And while Siddaramaiah has clarified that he will not be representing this woman, he does plan to make a “watertight case” for others who would seek his help.
(Contributors: Rohini Swamy and Prashant Srivastava)
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