Anil Vij’s hot start in Haryana
Anil Vij, sworn in as a Haryana cabinet minister Thursday, has a well-documented history of run-ins with officials. His first and second terms, from 2014 to 2019 and 2019 to 2024, were marked by such incidents. And it seems he’s at it again. Following his swearing-in, Vij traveled from Panchkula to the Circuit House in Ambala Cantt the same evening. Upon arriving, he was displeased to find that some of the district’s key officials were absent from the meeting. Losing his temper, he promptly ordered the officers who did make it to leave as well.
Present on behalf of the administration were Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Aparajita, Sub-divisional Magistrate Satinder Siwach, and some municipal council officers.
As soon as Vij took his seat, he expressed his displeasure, and the ADC’s attempt to highlight the presence of several other officials did little to alleviate his anger. “What should I do with committee officers? Am I here to build roads?” Vij asked. “This is wrong. You leave, and we will handle things ourselves.”
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Vijay Kumar intervened, informing Vij that the superintendent of police was on VIP duty in Panchkula, but this only intensified Vij’s anger and he retorted, “Forget about that duty. Where are the other officers? There are so many departments, where are the rest?”
The minister emphasised that the officials had been notified of the meeting’s timing at 2 pm, however, 4 hours later, they still had not arrived. Frustrated, he cancelled the meeting and instructed the officers to leave the room, reiterating, “We will handle it ourselves.”
Mandaviya back in the bicycle saddle
Labour Minister Mansukh L. Mandaviya’s love for cycling is well-known. He began cycling to Parliament back in 2012 when he was first elected as an MP. At that time, the Congress-led UPA was in power, and Meira Kumar served as Speaker. When Mandaviya approached Kumar to request a dedicated parking space for his bicycle, she had playfully asked, “Photo khichwane ke liye kar rahe ho…?” (Are you doing this for a photo op?).
Mandaviya continued cycling to Parliament for 9 years, even after becoming Minister of State in 2016. However, he eventually had to let go of this routine due to his increasingly hectic schedule.
Now, it may not be to commute to work, but thanks to former minister Kamal Nath, Mandaviya is cycling again.
As a minister, Mandaviya was assigned 1 Tughlaq Road bungalow, previously allotted to Kamal Nath. During his tenure, Nath had renovated the house, which now features a spacious lawn with a cycling track. This set-up allows Mandaviya the luxury of cycling every day after returning home from work.
“Kamal Nath virasat mein mujhe accha ghar de kar gaye hain (I’ve inherited a great house from Kamal Nath),” he quipped during an informal interaction with reporters.
Mahayuti cabinet drama
During the Mahayuti government’s second-last cabinet meeting Thursday, the Eknath Shinde-led coalition made 38 decisions. However, the buzz ended up being not about the sheer number of decisions made, but about Deputy CM Ajit Pawar’s abrupt and early departure from the meeting.
Sources within the Mantralaya reveal that Shinde expected a specific proposal to be presented at the cabinet meeting and clashed with Deputy CM Pawar, who oversees the state finance portfolio. Shinde, the source added, questioned Pawar about the proposal, apparently a bit too aggressively for the latter’s liking, prompting Pawar to walk out. Following this, Shinde is said to have redirected his frustration towards a government official—an unfortunate scapegoat in the situation.
Also read: ‘Busiest’ minister on the block? Rajiv Ranjan Singh’s frequent absence keeps officials on their toes
Civil servants’ dilemma in J&K
A post on X by a Kashmir Administrative Service (KAS) officer on the day of the swearing-in of the Omar Abdullah government in the Union territory has sparked considerable discussion among officials.
Amid much anxiety within the J&K bureaucracy about navigating two power centres with the return of an elected government after 6 years, the post by Zeeshan Khan highlighted the confusion among the bureaucracy that still officially reports to the Lieutenant Governor and the Centre.
Khan wrote: “During the LG rule, we achieved results and that will continue. Illegal work will not be tolerated as before.”
The officer then balanced the post by saying that the difference now is “having a representative we know”.
After his tweet went viral within officer groups, Khan faced criticism for publicly “taking sides”. Although he later deleted the post, many officers acknowledged it as a reflection of the dilemmas and challenges that lie ahead.
Another ‘son’ rise in Tamil Nadu
A new political figure is emerging in Tamil Nadu, mirroring a trend within the ruling DMK. With Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, being appointed Deputy CM, there is growing anticipation of a similar ‘son’ rise within the AIADMK party.
AIADMK General Secretary and Opposition Leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) is gearing up to introduce his son, Mithun, into electoral politics for the 2026 assembly elections. Both father and son are considering running from different constituencies in their home district of Salem.
Though Mithun maintains a low profile in party matters, he has been quite active behind the scenes since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Grapevine suggests that EPS’s relatively mild criticism of CM Stalin’s son, Udhayanidhi, rising in the DMK is closely tied to his preparations for his own son’s political debut.
SP’s ‘family affair’
Speaking of dynasties, the Samajwadi Party’s (SP) list of assembly by-poll candidates in Uttar Pradesh largely comprises relatives of prominent leaders. Out of the seven candidates announced so far, six come from political families.
In Mainpuri’s Karhal seat, Akhilesh has fielded his cousin Tej Pratap Yadav ‘Teju’. This seat became vacant after Akhilesh resigned upon being elected as a Member of Parliament.
Others include former MLA Irfan Solanki’s wife Naseem Solanki in Sisamau, former MP Ramesh Bind’s wife Jyoti bind in Manjhwa, former MLA Kadir Rana’s daughter-in-law Sumbal Rana in Mirapur, incumbent MP Lalji Verma’s wife Shobhawati Verma in Katheri, and incumbent MP Awadhesh Prasad’s son Ajit Prasad in Milkipur.
While the BJP is criticising the party for promoting ‘parivarvad’ (dynasty politics), SP functionaries defend it, arguing that when a son, daughter, or daughter-in-law of a senior leader receives a ticket, it motivates other family members to put in their best effort during elections. Call it SP’s ‘winnability formula’, if you will.