Maneka Gandhi likely to leave Pilibhit to keep son Varun in House
Seven-time MP Maneka Gandhi is believed to be exploring the option of leaving her Pilibhit Lok Sabha seat and contesting from Karnal in Haryana instead.
If the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) brass does agree to shift the Women and Child Development Minister to Haryana, her son Varun Gandhi will contest from Pilibhit.
While the newly-stitched Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh has thrown up significant challenges for the BJP, Pilibhit is nevertheless considered to be a somewhat safe bet for the party.
However, Sultanpur, from where Varun contested the 2014 elections, and won with a handsome margin, may no longer be an easy ride for the BJP given the SP-BSP tie-up.
If Varun does indeed shift to Pilibhit, it would not be the first time he contests from the constituency. In 2009, the party had fielded Maneka from Aonla, while Varun contested from Pilibhit and won with an overwhelming margin.
The party is anyway known to be looking for a candidate for Karnal, whose sitting MP Ashwini Minna recently showered praise on Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who happens to be Maneka’s niece.
‘Tantrik’ visitor sets off hocus-pocus chatter at IIC
An anonymous letter about the presence of a “tantrik”, or witchdoctor, in an India International Centre (IIC) hostel has created a buzz in Delhi’s premier cultural institution.
The letter, addressed to IIC president N.N. Vohra and mailed to members, stated that a few days ago some policemen had enquired about a male visitor at the IIC who wore “jet-black clothes” that resembled a burqa, suspicious about the concealing outfit.
The policemen wanted to know the details of this visitor, who had checked into an IIC hostel and stayed there for a few days, the “IIC well-wisher” added in the letter.
The “well-wisher” later “found out” that the visitor was a Bengali “tantrik” who performed pujas and rituals as part of “magical and mystical practices”. His room had been booked by an elected trustee and there were instructions to the hostel to forward his bills to the same trustee, said the anonymous mail, adding that the latter might be resorting to “dubious means” to ensure his victory in the upcoming elections.
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What Mamata wants the world to know about her lifestyle
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee loves talking about her austere lifestyle.
During a recent visit to the national capital, she told reporters that she had not drawn her salary for the last seven years, and managed her expenses from the royalty she received for her books.
“The royalty money is good. In fact, after meeting my expenses also, money is left. My needs are limited,” she said.
She also described herself as a frugal eater and said, more often than not, her acquaintances brought her food. In an interaction with members of the Press Club of India, she expressed her desire to become a member of the Delhi Press Club, saying that, in her capacity as the editor of Jago Bangla, the Trinamool Congress mouthpiece, she was already a member of the Kolkata Press Club.
(Contributors: Sanya Dhingra and Moushumi Das Gupta)