Regional journal: Legacy war again in Devi Lal clan

Another legacy war has begun in Haryana’s famous Devi Lal clan. Months after the demise of ex-CM Om Prakash Chautala, who headed the INLD, its splinter group JJP is looking to cash in on his legacy by including his photo on all its publicity material. The decision underlines Chautala’s ideological and emotional importance to the JJP, claims former Deputy CM Dushyant Chautla. His uncle and INLD leader Abhay Chautala, however, has opposed the move tooth and nail. Well, only voters can now decide who the true heir is!

Rijiju and the tour swap rush

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju who was tasked with engaging political leaders for inclusion in the diplomatic delegations for global outreach on Operation Sindoor had a hard time finalising the lists. After he contacted MPs and informed them of the countries they would travel to, Rijiju was flooded with requests for a swap. Most MPs wanted to be assigned to the US, UK and European regions. The last minute rejig led to the final list being put out very late on Saturday night, nearly 10 hours after the minister had announced delegation leaders.

 A wish for farmers on VP’s b’day

Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, who turned 74 on Sunday, was flooded with good wishes from across the political spectrum but one wish stood out. This one came from Congress chief whip in Rajya Sabha Jairam Ramesh, who often finds himself at the centre of the VP’s ire in the Upper House. Jairam described the VP as irrepressible and said, “While wishing the VP on this happy occasion, it has to be recalled that it is extremely unfortunate but not entirely surprising that the Modi government continues to ignore his impassioned pleas on behalf of the agitating farmers.”

Claiming credit for tenders

In Punjab, a minister normally convenes a press conference to inform the public about the government’s achievements. But at a time when the ruling party seems to be in a hurry to claim instant success, Rural Development Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond was propped by AAP media strategists to announce “floating of tenders” for the repair of a fraction (828 km) of the 18,900-km rural link roads. The minister spoke about how it would benefit people in several Assembly seats. Interestingly, he is the Rural Development Minister and the initiative is being taken by the Mandi Board, which comes under the Agriculture Department.

Smitten by the media bug

Himachal BJP leaders appear to be vying for media space, competing among themselves to remain under the media glare and also to ensure their counterparts don’t earn a brownie point by articulating views more effectively. At times, senior leaders even put on hold briefings by those they see a threat. Be it Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur or state unit president Rajiv Bindal, all are smitten by this bug. A few have even been rebuked for breaching the party line over their verbosity, leaving the media wondering whether there is an identity crisis within the party.

Office move divides Cong

The shifting of government offices from Shimla to Dharamsala seems to have divided the ruling Congress. While leaders from Kangra like MLAs Raghubir Bali and Kewal Pathania have lauded the move to shift the offices of HP Tourism Development Corporation and the wildlife wing of the Forest Department, others aren’t too enthusiastic. While Congress MLA Kuldeep Rathore has aired his reservations, there are others who fear political repercussions of the decision. They have not openly aired their feelings but feel the party might face a backlash in upper Himachal in the elections if too many offices are shifted out of the state capital.

Contributed by Pradeep Sharma, Aditi Tandon, Ruchika M Khanna, Ambika Sharma and Pratibha Chauhan