April 6, 2004

NEW DELHI:

ALL EYES NOW SET ON THE FINANCIAL WORTH OF CANDIDATES

Candidates are now required to compulsorily reveal their financial worth, including that of their spouse and dependents, while filing nominations and hence all eyes will be set in the coming days on knowing the richness and the poverty of those entering the fray.

In states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the candidates who reveal their wealth will certainly attract the attention of the criminals who kidnap and abduct to seek ransom.

In ordinary times, Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati would have pretended to be poor to have the right tuning with the poor Dalits over whom she has the sway. Because of the CBI unearthing everything she owns in the Taj Corridor scandal, she cannot even hide anything. And so her affidavit shows that she has Rs 9.78 crores in the bank deposits, four residential plots in Delhi worth another Rs 1.25 crores and jewellery worth Rs 30.94 lakhs. Besides, she has also declared Rs 1.50 lakh as cash with her but claims she owns no vehicle.

If she is rich, so what? Why can't a Dalit's daughter be a crorepati if sons and daughters of Brahmins, Banias can be crorepatis. If anybody questions her for amassing so much wealth, he will be immediately dubbed "Manuvadi." By the way, her affidavit also lists two criminal cases registered against her, including one on the charge of forgery.

In Mumbai, film actor Govinda, real name Govind Arjun Ahuja, has declared assets worth Rs 15 crores, including 30 kg of jewellery alone being worth over Rs two crores. Two bungalows in posh localities and a flat are some of the properties Govinda declared while filing his nomination in Mumbai. The next in terms of the wealth in Mumbai turns out to be Lok Sabha Speaker and Shiv Sena candidate Manohar Joshi, declaring himself to be worth Rs five crores. Joshi had a modest start in the metropolis running the coaching classes but his affidavit shows that he not only has properties at various places but also a share in the construction business and hotels.

Want to know about the worth of Rahul Gandhi who filed his nomination from Sultanpur on Monday for the Amethi seat? In his assets affidavit, he has declared to have Rs 19 lakhs in two bank account in Delhi, 83 per cent shares worth Rs 2 lakhs in an IT company, UK pounds 328.75 in two British bank accounts and half a share in Indira Gandhi's farm house. And, that is all. No jewellery, no vehicle and no house or plot.

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WILL THE TDP LOSE ITS BICYCLE SYMBOL

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party supremo Chandrababu Naidu is facing a big threat from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav. The threat does not come from Mulayam's party making a foray in Naidu's bastion of Andhra Pradesh as its candidates are very few to be any challenge. But the real threat comes from Mulayam trying to acquire the status of the "king maker" that Naidu enjoyed with regards to the NDA government. Still bigger threat looming on Naidu's head is that Mulayam may even snatch away the TDP's winning symbol of bicycle. Both TDP and Samajwadi Party have the bicycle symbol allotted to them respectively in Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh as a recognised regional party but Mulayam is now trying to acquire a status of the national party for the SP by fielding candidates in more than 250 constituencies across many states. If the SP gains the status as the national party, the TDP will have to look for some other election symbol as Mulayam will make claim over the bicycle and rightly so.

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SHIV SENA INFIGHTING ?

If groupism in the Congress is threatening to sabotage prospects of the party candidates in Maharashtra, the rival Shiv Sena has more to worry about the sabotage as heading the sabotage band is none else but Raj Thackeray, nephew of the Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray, as he does not want Uddhav Thackeray to get credit by the Shiv Sena winning majority of the seats in the Lok Sabha elections. Among those who have already complained to the old man against Raj for his hidden hand in sabotage is Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Nirupam who is contesting the Lok Sabha election. The supremo's daughter-in-law Smita Thackeray is openly canvassing for Congress candidate Govinda. Petroleum Minister Ram Naik, who is a BJP candidate in Mumbai, suspects that Bal Thackeray has himself let loose his Shiv Sainiks in his constituency to help Govinda because he had turned down a recommendation of the Shiv Sena chief to give petrol pumps to five Shivsainiks.

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ALL IS WELL ACCORDING TO JYOTI BASU

While CPI(M) secretary-general Harkishen Surjit is sad at the secular forces not coming together in the key state of Uttar Pradesh which may decide the fate of the Lok Sabha elections, yet another ageing CPI(M) old horse Jyoti Basu finds nothing gone wrong as he says the parties winning the elections would ultimately join hands to show that India is, in real sense, "unity in diversity." Politics only reflects the Indian culture and as such an Indian culture that presents unity in diversity is a fit ground for the parties of diverse views coming together to provide a government instead of letting religious bigotry and anarchism ruin the country, says Jyoti Basu.

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THE BIHAR SCENE

Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Laloo Prasad Yadav may spit venom against the RSS for ever, but he had not even a slightest hesitation in picking up a RSS man to be his party's candidate from Gaya simply because the gentleman has defected from BJP to Laloo's side in Bihar. Laloo even did not bother from the fact that Rajesh Kumar Majhi had even taken part in the demolition of the Babri Mosque in 1992. Majhi had lost in the last Assembly election from Bodh Gaya as a BJP candidate in 2000 and hence more reason for Laloo not to nominate him for the Lok Sabha seat. Even Muslims of the area protested but Laloo did not relent as what he sees in Majhi is a Dalit belonging to the very poor Mushar caste. What he wants is the Dalit votes in a big way to retain his supremacy in Bihar, the reason that made him give more seats to Ram Vilas Paswan than to the Congress.

Elsewhere the people are shocked at criminalisation of politics but it is other way round in Bihar and that is why Paswan has been befriending and fielding two "dons" in the election. One is of course Rajesh Ranjan, more popularly known as Pappu Yadav, who has a number of cases listed against him. Pappu Yadav is right now cooling heels in the jail. He was arrested soon after he joined Paswan's Lok Janshakti party. Pappu has enough musclemen to get him elected even if he stays put in the jail. He had won the last election by a margin of whopping two lakhs. Pappu has also fielded his wife from the nearby constituency. Another "don" being fielded by Paswan is Surya Bhan Singh against Railway Minister Nitish Kumar from Nalanda. Surya Bhan, a notorious goonda of the neighbouring Balia district in U.P. has been a righthand man of Nitish Kumar and it was his defection to Paswan side that made Nitish to contest from Nalanda besides his own constituency of Barah.

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TAKING ON RAHUL GANDHI IN AMETHI

All top Saffron leaders will be descending on Amethi to come to the aid of Ram Vilas Vedanti, the leading light of the Ram Janmaghoomi movement and twice MP who has been fielded by the BJP to take on Rahul Gandhi, son of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti was the first to seek permission from the BJP high command to let him campaign extensively in Amethi for two or three days. Others who have committed to work for Vedanti include Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders Ashok Singhal and Pravin Togadia. The BJP high command has also directed General Secretary Pramod Mahajan, incharge of U.P. elections, to organise tours of the leaders in such a manner that one or the other leader is campaigning in Amethi every day from this Tuesday. The BJP and the RSS cadres have also been asked to aggressively campaign in the neighbouring Sultanpur constituency from where Capt Satish Sharma is contesting. The strategy is to tie down the captain to his own area instead of letting him take care of Amethi to free Rahul to campaign for the Congress elsewhere.

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FROM"MAIN SAMAY HOON" TO "MAIN BHARAT HOON"

Harish Bhimani, whose voice in the superhit TV serial "Mahabharat" is still not forgotten, has been engaged by the BJP to prepare audio and video cassettes titled "Mahasangram" (Great War) and these cassettes will soon spread to every nook and corner of the country for being played in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections. Remember the voice "Main Samay Hun (I am time)?" The same tune but with different words: "Main Bharat Hun."

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