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Sunday, September 12, 1999
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Sunday, September 12, 1999 |
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Dhumal: it’s not referendum
on govt working From S.P. Sharma Tribune News Service SHIMLA: The Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, does not consider the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in Himachal Pradesh as a referendum on the functioning of the BJP-HVC government in the state. Mr Dhumal says the Lok Sabha election is generally fought on national issues, while local issues figures in the assembly elections. He, however, concedes the functioning of state government is taken into account to some extent by the electorate during the Lok Sabha elections. The Chief Minister says the voter will compare the functioning of previous Congress governments with that of the present BJP-HVC government which has speeded development in the state and got solved many pending issues. He accuses the Congress of having divided the state on regional lines into upper and lower areas and old and merged areas. The BJP, on taking over the reins of government, initiated steps to remove this feelings and restore amity among people of all regions. Mr Dhumal says he succeeded in re-establishing cordial relations with neighbouring states and also the Centre. He claims the BJP has always undertook “balanced development” of the state. During its 50 years’ rule, the Congress was able to get only three national highways constructed in the state, while his government has got four highways sanctioned within 16 months of assuming power. The most important is the Shimla-Kangra highway which will pass through the heartland of the state. He says work on new rail lines stopped during the Congress regime has been resumed. Mr Dhumal says his government has solved the chronic problem of shortage of staff in far-flung tribal areas by creating a separate tribal sub-cadre in services. On the alleged discrimination in providing relief to the kin of those who laid down their lives in Kargil and those killed in other areas while fighting Pakistani infiltrators, Mr Dhumal says a package for soldiers killed in other areas is being worked out by a high-level committee at the Centre. The state government will implement the package as soon as it is finalised. He says the BJP does not have any personal enmity with Mrs Sonia Gandhi. “We respect her as the daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi and widow of Rajiv Gandhi. But we cannot accept her in any official position as she is of foreign origin”. Mr Dhumal claims the electorate has decided to vote for the BJP this time and have Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister. He claims the election
rallies of the Congress lack in enthusiasm and have
sparse audience. The Congress has no issue to raise
against the government, he adds. |
September
11, 1999
September 10, 1999
September 9, 1999
September 8, 1999
September 7, 1999
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HP witnesses undignified campaign SHIMLA: The election campaign in Himachal Pradesh has never been so undignified as has been this time. It appears as if leaders of main political parties have no election issue, so busy are they in mudslinging. It is, perhaps, for the first time that personal attacks are being made in election speeches. The BJP and the Congress both accuse each other of having started the slanging match. The ruling BJP is targeting Mrs Sonia Gandhi and former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in its campaign. All sorts of allegations are being made against them. The BJP has been highlighting the controversy pertaining to the alleged irregularities in the acquisition of land belonging to Mr Rajinder Singh, a step-brother of Mr Virbhadra Singh, in the Jhakri area for construction of the Nathpa-Jhakri power project. Mr Virbhadra Singh has repeatedly denied these allegations. He says the land acquisition was done during the regime of the BJP when Mr Shanta Kumar was Chief Minister. The case is now with the Supreme Court. The Congress has been highlighting the case of suicide by a senior engineer and seeking action against a minister allegedly named in the suicide note. The Congress has sent a complaint to the Election Commission alleging that certain transfers of employees had been ordered after the elections were announced. The party has also sent the registration numbers of three government vehicles allegedly being used by ministers for electioneering. The BJP is accusing Mr Virbhadra Singh of having violated all norms during his regime when about 2000 appointments were made on the basis of “chits” in various boards and corporations. On the other hand, the Congress alleges that 3,700 daily paid workers have been employed by the BJP-HVC combine in a single PWD Division of Mandi, in violation of rules and regulations. It also says, “favourites” of the government have been employed in the HRTC. The controversy of Mrs Sonia Gandhi having called Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee a “traitor” had failed to cool tempers although the Congress has denied that she never made such an allegation. Mr Dhumal and various other BJP leaders lose no opportunity to ridicule Mrs Sonia Gandhi on this point. The Congress accuses Mr Vajpayee of having turned an approver against freedom fighters during the British regime in 1942. They have circulated certain documents in this regard. The Congress accuses the BJP of exploiting the Kargil issue for electoral gains. The credit for getting the intrusion vacated goes to the soldiers and not to BJP, it says. Polythene flags despite EC appeal SUNDERNAGAR, Sept 11 — Poster war is slowly gaining momentum in the Mandi parliamentary constituency. The BJP and the Congress, who have fielded candidates, put up posters, flags and banners at various places. Both parties have been flouting the appeal by the Election Commission not to use polythene as campaign material. The Election Commission vide letter dated July 16, 1999, had urged all parties to avoid the use of plastic polythene for preparation of posters and banners. Interestingly flags by both the BJP and the Congress in this constituency are of polythene. In fact, just outside the gate of the D.C.’s office in Mandi thousands of small polythene flags have been put up. Observers appointed by the Election Commission frequently visit the office of the DC, who is also the Returning Officer, but no direction for removing these flags have been issued. At several places along
the National Highway walls of various public offices are
being used for poll graffiti but no complaint has been
made to the EC in this regard so far. |
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BHADHOI, Sept 11 (UNI) — Bandit-turned-politician Phoolan Devi is once again in the electoral fray, this time to avenge her defeat by two-time rival Virendra Singh of the BJP from the Mirzapur constituency. However, an interesting dimension has been added to the straight fight between the Samajwadi Party and the BJP candidates with the Congress fielding a high-caste candidate, Mr Shyamdhar Misra, a former Union Minister. The BSP too has fielded a Brahmin Rajendra Tripathi further befuddling the voters. Mirzapur which has a predominant Scheduled Caste population (26 per cent) had for long been a Congress stronghold. It was only in 1991 that the BJP bagged the seat which was wrested by the high profile Phoolan Devi in the 1996 elections. Phoolan Devi, the rustic wronged woman riding on the crest of media hype, took her constituency by storm on the plea to enable her to join the national mainstream and leave her painful past behind. Conceding her plea, the voters in this agriculturally dominant area (80.25 per cent),rooted for her allowing her to enter the portals of the Lok Sabha. Even as the cynics guffawed questioning her abilities, Phoolan Devi only hogged the camera limelight. When she returned to the constituency within two years, the voters were less gullible and propelled her BJP rival Virendra Singh Parasi to power. In a convincing rebuttal, he defeated Phoolan Devi by 52,777 votes. This time Phoolan Devi has once again been fielded by Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party. In the present elections, Mr Singh is again facing Phoolan Devi with the incumbency factor working against him this time. The presence of high-caste Congress and BSP candidates, has created further problems for him. Moreover, Mr Singh is also facing problems within the party. His party workers accuse him of neglecting them. Mr Singh is also accused of not remaining in touch with the voters of his constituency. In such a situation the
high-caste voter might find an alternative in the
Congress candidate, benefiting Ms Phoolan Devi.
Therefore, along with national and local issues, caste
equations are likely to affect the results of the
election in this constituency. |
Formidable
challenge to RJD PATNA: Rivals, the ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Janata Dal (U), comprising followers of Loknayak Jaya Prakash Narayan, leader of the 1974 socialist movement, are crossing swords in 21 of the 54 Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar going to the polls on September 18. The RJD, contesting 36 seats in alliance with the Congress and the CPI-M, is facing a tough challenge from the BJP, a formidable ally of the JD (U) in the remaining 15. The JD (U), formed after the Samata Party of veteran socialist leader and Defence Minister George Fernandes merged with the Janata Dal of Mr Sharad Yadav, has put up nominees in 25 of the 54 seats, firming up an understanding with the BJP, which received the lion’s share of 29 seats under a seat-sharing agreement. The JD (U) has thrown down the gauntlet to the ruling RJD in 21 constituencies. The two parties, the Janata Dal (8.8) per cent and the Samata Party (16.51 per cent) had together polled 24.59 per cent votes, while the BJP secured 24.36 per cent in the 1998 Lok Sabha poll. Political analysts describe the BJP-JD (U) combine as a “strong force” and believe if the two manage to retain the 48.95 per cent vote they polled last time, they could put up ‘a vastly better showing’. In the 1998 poll, the Samajwadi Party, the RJD, the Samata Party and the Janata Dal were at the crossroads pitted against each other in many constituencies. Notwithstanding a sharp division in votes, the RJD and the Samata Party put up an impressive show, while the other two suffered serious electoral reverses. The Samata Party had won 10 seats polling 16.51 per cent votes, while the RJD emerged victorious in 17 seats securing 27 per cent votes. Though the Janata Dal polled around 8 per cent votes, it was able to retain only the Hajipur seat where former Railway Minister Ram Vilas Paswan was the winner. In 1977 which saw the installation of the first-ever non-Congress government at the Centre led by late Morarji Desai, the Janata Party with the support of the Jan Sangh and socialist parties had put up candidate in 53 constituencies against the Congress and wrested all, polling 64.88 per cent votes. The Janata Party candidates had fought the elections on the symbol of the Bhartiya Lok Dal (BLD). The Marxist Coordination Committee leader, Mr A.K. Roy, who is contesting the Dhanbad seat again with the support of the RJD, had emerged victorious from the seat in 1977. Observers feel Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav’s RJD has a tough task this time as the BJP has aligned with the JD (U), which is likely to further consolidate anti-Laloo votes. The RJD is also facing a difficult situation as its alliance with the CPI has come apart. The CPI has decided to contest nine seats, while the CPI-ML (Liberation) has put up nominees in 24 constituencies, with observers saying the two parties could make a dent in the RJD votebank. In 1998, the division in the Socialist votes had led to the RJD’s defeat in nine constituencies, though it won in 17. The ensuing three phase
poll will decide the fate of 70 leaders with Socialist
backgrounds, including Defence Minister George Fernandes,
RJD President Laloo Prasad Yadav, former Railway
Ministers, Nitish Kumar, Mr Ram Vilas Paswan, JD (U)
President Sharad Yadav and former Union Ministers
Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and Devendra Prasad Yadav. —
PTI |
Cong:
Marxists enemy No 1 CALCUTTA: At long last, the Bengal unit of the National Congress Party has come out with its poll manifesto when all other parties have already completed their first round of campaigning. The manifesto targets the ruling Marxists in the state as Congress party’s No 1 and the dissident Congress leader, Ms Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamul Congress is described as the “B team of the CPM”. The Bengal Congress manifesto is a sharp contrast to party’s national manifesto which says the CPM is “not untouchable”. Incidentally, the Marxist supremo Mr Jyoti Basu, of late has been making statements in public pleading for Congress where the Congress and the BJP are the only political parties locked in an electoral battle. The CPM and the Trinamool Congress in their manifestos target each other while the CPM has taken a more softer line towards the Congress than Trinamool since the latter has joined hands with the BJP which both these rival parties, the CPM and the Congress, have condemned as “communal.” The state Congress party is in a shamble as once again manifested by its manifesto. Since it is in contrast to the party’s all-India stand on the Marxists, the electorate in Bengal has reasons to think twice on the question of support to them. Voters who have been traditional supporters of the Congress are perplexed as they find a section of the party leadership in the state not only hobnobbing with the Marxists in power but maintaining a friendly rapport with leaders like Mr Jyoti Basu, Mr Buddhadev Bhattacharyya, Mr Biman Basu and Mr Anil Biswas, the CPM’s big bosses in the party. However, Congress leader Somen Mitra, who is chairman of the party’s election committee in Bengal, while releasing the manifesto to the press on Wednesday claimed, that the Congress was equi-distant from the CPM and TMC. In Calcutta as well as
elsewhere a large number of Congress supporters and
party’s rank and file have joined hands with Ms
Mamata Banerjee. |
New slogans in Amethi SULTANPUR, Sept 11 — Congress workers in Amethi have been drawing parallels between Ms Priyanka and Lord Hanuman as also between Mr Rahul Gandhi and the late Jawaharlal Nehru. A popular slogan coined by them is: “BJP ki Lanka, jalayegi Priyanka” (The BJP’s citadel will be burnt down by Priyanka). Another slogan goes as: “Congress ki dhal hai, naya Jawaharlal hai” (He is the Armour of the Congress and is Jawaharlal incarnate”). Congress workers seem surcharged with the decision of Mrs Sonia Gandhi to contest from Amethi and sloganeering has reached its crescendo. What kind of effect the Priyanka factor will have in wresting this seat back from the BJP will be known when the constituency goes to the polls on October 3. Barring the 1998 elections, the constituency has returned a member of the Gandhi family or its nominee in five of the six Lok Sabha elections held since 1980. Last year, Mr Jagdish Piyush, a Congress worker had coined the slogan “Amethi ki danka, hamari beti Priyanka”. This year too he is the brain behind the slogans. Last time for Rahul Gandhi he had coined the slogan “Amethi ka bigul, hai Rahul”. Admirers of the Gandhi
family are disappointed as Rahul and Priyanka do not
travel with their mother at a given time. This, the
Congress men say, is due to security reasons. Yesterday,
when Rahul accompanied his mother for filing of
nominations, it was for him that the crowds called out
the most. |
Sinha
pitted against grassroots leaders HAZARIBAGH: Pitted against grassroots leaders, the suave Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha is campaigning vigorously in the sensitive Hazaribagh constituency to make sure he enters the Lok Sabha once again. One of the most verdant areas in the non-Himalayan belt, the Naxalite-dominated Hazaribagh has come alive with all three contestants leaving nothing to chance before the poll on September 18. Contesting against Mr Sinha are trade union leader and CPI nominee Ramendra Kumar, seeking his maiden entry and Bihar MLA Teklal Mahato of the JMM(U). The fight could well be tough as the bureaucrat-turned-politician is taking on the three-time CPI MLA from the Barkagaon segment and grassroots leader Mahato who has never been defeated for the assembly from the Mandu segment. Against the suave, articulate minister, who is campaigning 14 to 16 hours a day, Ramendra Kumar is putting up a fiery fight typical of trade unionists while Teklal is a man with rustic fervour, simple and unassuming, mixing with everyone. The Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal have fielded separate candidates — Ishwari Paswan and Bihar Minister Aklu Ram Mahato, respectively. By doing so, the RJD will be unwillingly helping the Finance Minister, observers say. Political observers see in this move a bid to secure neutral votes that had swung towards Mr Sinha in the last poll. The RJD and the Congress had not contested this seat in 1998 under an understanding to back the CPI. “During the last elections we were able to garner minority and uncommitted votes”, says BJP poll organiser Surendra Sinha. Mulling over the shock that Hazaribagh had given him during his maiden venture after quitting the IAS in the 1984 elections, Mr Sinha retained this seat for the BJP last year defeating the CPI’s Bhuwaneshwar Mehata. Ramendra Kumar is busy with his team of comrades spread over the coalfields and there is activity in the otherwise desolate CPI office. The telephone rings round the clock as Ramendra Kumar sends instructions from campaign meetings. Against the Finance Minister, Ramendra Kumar has not lost hope saying “I will win because of Sinha’s own doings. To the people of India and of Hazaribagh Yashwant Sinha has promised the moon and delivered sand dunes”. As Finance Minister he levied surcharge on the taxed middle class, hit the local industry by lowering the import duty on coal, and the price situation has been unsatisfactory, he says. The thrust of the Finance Minister’s campaigning is on the development he claims to have initiated in this backward district still unlinked to rail and shorn of employment-intensive manufacturing industry. Works were at various stages but the government fell abruptly, Mr Sinha tells his audience. The CPI leader, however, contests the claims saying even though Mr Sinha was Finance Minister no budgetary allocation had made for the Karnpura project or financial sanction granted for the rail project. The projects have, however, raised hopes of employment among people and they feel Mr Sinha’s return may step up work, says a political worker. Voters are reluctant to commit themselves as collective decisions are taken by villagers in this tribal and backward region. “I vote where everyone does”, says Ramu of Katkamsandi village. Villagers do not understand gross differences among parties and contestants as wine and money flow during the elections, comments Jitendra Singh, a pan shop owner at Jhumri Tilaiya. The Election Commission has, however, now deputed observers to oversee and prevent such flows. Teklal Mahato has influence in the Mandu segment and also a following in the Ramgarh and Sadar segments. Ramendra Kumar claims he has his “following throughout”. Being president of the United Coal Workers Union, he has the edge in the coalfields. Until 1977 Raja of Ramgarh Kamakhya Narayan Singh had Hazaribagh tremendous influence in wresting 12 to 14 seats in the Bihar assembly under his party’s banner. He “gave away” the Hazaribagh Lok Sabha seat to his younger brother, Basant Narayan Singh, who won six Lok Sabha elections from here. In the post-Bangladesh war elections in 1971 the Congress won this seat. Raibahadur Raja Kamakhya Narayan Singh had distributed all his land among people of his region after the abolition of zamindari and this gesture had earned him their loyalty. After 1989 the BJP’s electoral profile has taken an upward turn in Hazaribagh. A riot in Hazaribagh in 1989 changed the polling pattern drastically in favour of the BJP, the CPI nominee observed. From a mere 7 per cent vote in 1984 the BJP massed 44 per cent during the 1989 elections. In 1991 it dropped to 29 per cent only to surge again to 34.4 per cent in 1996. And last year with Yashwant Sinha in the fray the party polled a record 46.4 per cent valid ballots. The CPI has solid vote banks in this area dotted with collieries and divided along caste lines. The party polled 39 per cent during 1989. It lost the seat (38 per cent) in 1991 to win it again but subsequently favour dropped to 28 per cent in 1996 and further to 23 per cent during the last Lok Sabha poll. JMM(U) MLA Teklal Mahato has constantly been hovering around 1.2 lakh, fetching him the third slot regularly for the past three elections. During the past one decade BJP’s poll performance demonstrates a rising curve replacing the falling CPI graph. The CPI has this time replaced Bhuwaneshwar Mehata, strong Kieri leader who won one but lost five Lok Sabha elections, by Ramendra Kumar. The caste constitution of the constituency has been relegated to secondary consideration. Out of an electorate of 12,00,000, nearly 5.34 lakh are backward castes and the Scheduled Tribes, one lakh minorities and 1.2 lakh “forward” castes, among others. “Caste does not matter in the present circumstances,” says Ramendra Kumar saying “both of us (he and Mr Sinha) do not belong to the predominant section”. The Congress is divided over ticket allocation. In place of experienced Lambodar Pathak, the ticket was given to young Harijan Ishwari Paswan. The RJD candidate, Bihar
Institutional Finance Minister Aklu Ram Mahto, holds the
card to upset the equations. Minority votes that had
tilted towards Yashwant Sinha in the absence of the RJD
may this time shift towards him. Block voting by minority
community members may make a difference if the margin is
very low.— UNI |
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I don’t remember it. I don’t dispute it. At that time we turned-down the proposal because we did not think that the Congress would elect a “foreign” born person as its party president. — L.K. Advani on whether He rejected the proposal for banning a “foreign” born person from holding high office in 1989-90 Even Maneka Gandhi lost here once. When the ‘desi bahu’ did not find favour, “videshi bahu ki to koi” baat hi nahin hai. (When the ‘desi bahu’ failed, how can a ‘videshi’ stand a chance?) — Sanjay Singh, MP from the Amethi constituency, on Sonia Gandhi being called ‘Amethi ki bahu’ People here dislike the Shiv Sena and they want a change. They are convinced that the ability to change is not with the Congress. It is with the NCP and their friends. — Sharad Pawar on the triangular contest in Maharashtra It shows her total disregard for the law which is the most fundamental law in any country, that is, the law of citizenship. — BJP spokesperson Narendra Modi on Sonia Gandhi’s remark that her citizenship was only a “technical matter” The Karan Singh move is part of a large strategy to elevate the battle in Uttar Pradesh to a Congress versus BJP affair. — Report in The Hindu Many politicians come to us with a hoarse voice and a ringing sensation in the ears after elections. Some even complain of dizziness and temporary hearing loss. — Dr R.C. Deka, Head of ENT, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi I am shocked people are questioning my patriotism. Both my husband and mother-in-law sacrificed their lives for the nation. What has the BJP done for this country except allowing foreign intrusion and sowing the seeds of communal disharmony? — Sonia Gandhi at an election rally in Gujarat (Compiled by Mukul Bansal)
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