New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak is drawing attention for his new look. He has of late switched from the traditional pyjama to a dhoti and has also started attending RSS shakhas in the morning.
Pathak, who switched from the BSP to the BJP in 2016, seems to be making every effort to project himself as a typical “BJP worker”. According to one of his close aides, someone in the RSS told him that leaders in the UP BJP who had carried on the dhoti tradition, such as former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, senior leaders Kalyan Singh and Rajnath Singh, and even Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, had found notable success. The observation appears to have particularly influenced Pathak to don the attire.
Seen in a dhoti-kurta nowadays, is he trying to project himself as a carrier of Vajpayee’s legacy? Or attempting to reconnect with the Brahmin community? Such questions are being widely discussed in political circles—often with a tinge of mockery and derision.
Pathak is, significantly, also the president of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Foundation. Notably, he was the first one to spark a debate between bureaucrats and ministers when he openly questioned the functioning of officials in his own health department.
Telangana does away with ‘Telugu thalli’
More than 11 years after Telangana split from Andhra Pradesh, the Telugu thalli (Mother Telugu) flyover, probably the last infrastructure-wise remnant of the united Andhra Pradesh era and sentiment in Hyderabad, has been renamed as Telangana thalli flyover, drawing some criticism from the other side of the divide.
The flyover is a major landmark in the heart of Hyderabad, adjacent to the secretariat building.
Following approval from the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation standing committee last month, and the necessary endorsements, the municipal body earlier this week installed a new name board on the entrance arch on one side of the flyover.
Visuals of the change went viral on social media and the Revanth Reddy-led Congress regime’s decision attracted some censure from Andhra Pradesh politicians.
“So, you are saying Telugu is not your tongue? Then why is the new name in Telugu?” questioned Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader Neelayapalem Vijay Kumar, even as he added that the modification was Telangana’s prerogative now.
“But isn’t Telugu still the mother tongue for people in both states? A change would have been appropriate if the flyover was known as Andhra-mata flyover. That is why even KCR (former Telangana CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao) did not touch it,” he posted on social media with a picture of the new signboard.
Amid such flak, a day later, the signboard was found draped with a white cloth, leading to speculation that the Congress government is reconsidering the name change.
However, GHMC commissioner R.V. Karnan said there is no going back on the modification. “Since the signboard work is under way the other side, this side has been covered with a cloth. The new name on both sides would be unveiled soon,” he told ThePrint.
The two Senas go for the jugular
The Sena vs Sena battle is taking an ugly turn. Allegations and counter allegations are flying thick and fast from both rival Shiv Sena camps, led by Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray.
First, Shinde camp leader Ramdas Kadam at a Dussehra rally accused Uddhav of keeping Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s body at their residence Matoshree for two days before announcing his death in 2012, and demanded an SIT probe into the matter. Now, Anil Parab, senior leader from Shiv Sena (UBT), has raised questions over how Kadam’s wife suffered burn injuries in 1993.
The trading of charges is far from over as Kadam demands answers from Uddhav, while Sena (UBT) challenges MoS for home Yogesh Kadam, son of Ramdas, to investigate the incident involving his mother.
Shivakumar’s foot in mouth
Karnataka Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar was left red-faced at a press briefing, inadvertently admitting to corruption in the Bengaluru district administration.
With the debate around potholes taking centre stage, Shivakumar has been fielding more questions, from the media and Opposition, around civic infrastructure than any other topic.
A reporter pointed to substandard asphalting work outside the deputy CM’s home in upscale Sadashivanagar. Assuming the conversation was still about the Opposition, Shivakumar broke into laughter and said “their entire lives are poor quality”, using the Kannada word “kalape”.
When the reporter clarified that the question was about road works under the incumbent government, he quickly stated that there is absolutely no corruption or substandard work under the current dispensation.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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