Terror back in Delhi with blast

NEW DELHI, Sept 27: Terror returned to Delhi a fortnight after the serial blasts with two motorcycle-borne youth dropping a tiffin bomb in a crowded south Delhi market that exploded killing a young boy and injuring 18 people.

Meanwhile, opposition parties today accused the UPA Government of failing to combat terrorism, with BJP demanding resignation of Home Minister Shivraj Patil, even as UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi called for “immediate action” to bring the culprits to book.

Riding a black motorcycle, the two men in black dress and wearing helmets, dropped a black polythene bag containing a tiffin box opposite an electronic goods shop in the flower market in Mehrauli at about 2.15 pm, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) H S Dhaliwal told reporters.

A 13-year-old boy picked it up to give it back to the bikers. They refused and fled the place but the boy was still keen on giving it to them when it exploded killing him instantaneously and injuring 18 others. Eleven of the injured were rushed to AIIMS where doctors said six were in critical condition. Five of them suffered serious head injuries. Three or four of the injured could be required to be operated upon, Union Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta told reporters.

The explosive shattered the window panes of several adjacent shops in the market located close to the historic Qutab Minar, which was bustling with shoppers. The blast, which caused a crater, left a gory scene where blood was splattered on the road along with shattered glass panes and furniture. PTI

We can’t fight terror with Patil as Home Minister: Amar Singh

New Delhi, Sept 25: Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh on Thursday lashed out at Home Minister Shivraj Patil, saying the country did not stand a chance of winning the fight against terrorism if men like him were in office.

Amar Singh’s tirade was in response to Shivraj Patil reportedly refusing to respond to his plea for help when an alleged Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker Hashmat Ali tried to blackmail him.

The Samajwadi Party leader claimed Ali came to his residence Thursday morning demanding Rs.50 million to make a statement in his favour before the privileges committee of parliament probing the cash-for-vote scam.

“I called Shivraj Patil but he refused to send the police and instead asked me to register a complaint in the nearest police station,” Amar Singh told reporters.
“If men like Shivraj Patil are home minister, then the country cannot fight terrorism,” he said.

He claimed that Patil refused to help as he feared that the Congress party would unnecessarily get involved in an incident it wanted to steer clear of.
“If Amar Singh can get such a cold response, I can well imagine the condition of the common man,” he thundered.

He added that he had to send one of his assistants to the Tughlaq Road Police Station to register a complaint.

Miffed by Shivraj Patil’s attitude, especially as he had defended the home minister over his much discussed dress changes on the day of the Delhi blasts, Amar Singh said he would raise this issue at the coordination committee meeting of both parties.

However, the Samajwadi Party leader did not explain how the BSP party worker was connected to the cash for vote scam and why he had been asked to depose before the parliamentary panel.

The cash scandal came up during the vote of confidence won by the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in July after the Left parties withdrew support over the India-US nuclear deal.

The proceedings were marred when three BJP MPs interrupted the debate on the trust vote by waving bundles of currency notes and cliamed these were bribes offered by the government to them to abstain from the vote.

A seven-member Lok Sabha committee was formed to probe the allegations by three BJP MPs that they had been bribed. (IANS)

Trust on Government, distrust on Parliament

— Dr Akhil Ranjan Dutta

JULY 22, 2008, the day UPA government had won the trust vote in Parliament on the issue of the proposed nuclear deal with the US has also proved to be a black day for Indian Parliament. The day has invited the great distrust of the people of India across all regions and sections on Indian Parliament and Parliamentarians. The quality of debate was extremely poor, behaviour of the parliamentarians was absolutely anarchic and disrespect for the chair was something that one can ever approve. The government had won the trust of the Parliament at the cost of people’s trust on the government and the Parliament.Ironically, neither the government nor the opposition addressed the very issue for which the trust motion was moved i.e. whether the Parliament has the trust on the government who has already moved for a strategic partnership with the US through a nuclear deal. Except for a brief reflection on it by the Finance Minister P Chidambaram, the pros and cons of the deal and its possible implications on India’s national interest and also on India’s independent foreign policy were not at all discussed and debated. The speech delivered by Omar Abdullah, which has been rated highest in terms of oratory skill and content by some news channels also did not have anything substantive on the deal. Rahul Gandhi, who started with a few interesting narratives to legitimise the requirement of nuclear energy and thereby the nuclear deal spoke on the cross roads that India stands today and how a courageous move to go ahead with the deal will put India in the centre stage of global economy and nuclear energy. However, the substantive issues pertaining to the emerging concerns and controversies were missing in the whole debate. It was expected that the Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal would reflect on it. However, the acrimonious House failed to accommodate his speech. The speeches by the leader of the opposition i.e. LK Advani who took heavily on the government for its all round failure and the leader of the House i.e. External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who preferred to counter all allegations made by L K Advani hardly had reflected on the deal and its implications for India’s national interest and foreign policy. Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, who with his usual wit made everybody laughs in the House, put a few critical comments on the political juncture that India has been passing through today and the danger posed by communalism. However, he has also refrained from making any critical comment on the deal as he supports the move of the Prime Minister on it. The reply to the debate tabled by the Prime Minister in the House, who was not allowed to present the same, spoke in length on the priorities of the government and also a Story on the achievement of his government. But he not really reply to the concerns and controversies around the Ideal. In an unusual manner he took heavily on L K Advani and reminded him of the personal and political blunders committed by Advani in the past. To be precise, the debate did not have a substantive part either on the deal or on its possible impact on India’s national interest. The debate also failed to exhibit the usual oratory skills of the Indian parliamentarians. Yarana Naidu of TDP behaved like a filmy villain and Dr Salim from the Left made a dramatic presentation with unwarranted body language Guru Das. Dasgupta, otherwise a fire brand did not really have an impact on the House. The only point of consolation for the country was the Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, who despite having a potential expulsion notice on him from CPI (M) for defying the party direction to resign from his post after his party had withdrawn support to the government exhibited the rare political wisdom and patience by trying at all moments reminding the unruly parliamentarians the great responsibility that they owe to the people of the country.The trust vote was accompanied by all illegal, immoral, unethical and also unparliamentarily practices inside and outside the House. The parliamentarians were converted into horses for trading (Horse trading?) resulting in huge defection from one block to the other. Parliament had also witnessed the rare show of raising bundles of notes by three BJP members who were alleged to have been bribed by Samajwadi Party to abstain from voting. The real story is yet to unfold. Many have pointed their fingers against BJP alleging that it was stage managed by the party itself under desperation.Although not exactly uncommon in the recent history of Indian parliament, however, the behaviour of Indian Parliament on July 22 indicates the growing legitimacy crisis of Indian Parliament and its inability to uphold the people’s cause. It appears that the market logic is entering into the domain of Parliament too. And, ironically, it is the gift of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the architect of economic reforms in India. Under market logic everything in the world including a human being is a commodity that can be sold and bought under demand. Dr Singh must be happy with the fact that his market logic has now reached the highest point of fulfilment of its mission where the parliamentarians can also be bribed for anything and everything. Market also believes in ‘self-centrism’ and it considers social conduct as unwarranted. The anarchy that prevailed in Indian Parliament also reflects the realisation of this logic where parliamentarians across all parties have shown highest degree of intolerance to put one’s own views across.Under the neo-liberal economic reforms steered by Dr. Manmohan Singh in India, the public institutions are considered as burden for Indian economy as it is marked by stagnancy and non-performance. The solution lies in privatisation. The foreign companies may steps if domestic private forces are inadequate and inefficient in this regard. Now, if the ratlonale behind privatisation is really the issue of inefficiency and stagnancy then it is a high time that Indian Parliament needs to be privatised. There is no logic to waste people’s revenue for holding elections-, paying the MPs and MLAs and also the Council of Ministers; maintaining the huge Parliament buildings only to present the nation an extremely unruly and acrimonious behaviour of the parliamentarians having no substantive contents. It is more meaningful to see a college level national debate on issues related to national interest than to listen to arguments and counter arguments between L K Advani and Pranab Mukherjee. It is better to enjoy a game of wrestling than to see the muscles of the parliamentarians. It is useful to read ordinary political commentary given by any young scholar having a sense of Indian politics than to go through the reply tabled by the Prime Minister. All these are sufficient enough to portray the crisis of Indian democracy and Parliament today.However, the important question that needs to be asked is what has made Indian Parliament so impotent? What is the political economy behind? Why and how the old stars who had lesser exposure to so many things compared to the present ones could act with commitment and seriousness? There is definitely no straight forward answer to it. However, there is one important reason behind. The current crisis is the product of the growing ideological and political bankruptcy in Indian politics. This bankruptcy is the product of the neo-liberal market philosophy. As stated, market philosophy converts everybody into commodity and saleable products. Such a political economy is bound to convert Indian Parliament into a big market place. The experience of July 22 has proved it to be so. And this market saved Dr Manmohan Singh, who has been the steering wheel behind converting India’s welfare economics into market economics. But, it happened at the cost of all credibility of Indian Parliament.(The writer is Reader in Peace and Conflict Studies, Department of Political Science, Gauhati University) source: assam tribune

A Nation of Losers

This is the ninth trust vote that the Union government is facing since 1979. Prior to that, there was no need for any trial of strength in the Lok Sabha to determine whether a government has the right to continue because till then the Congress had always had a steam-roller majority in Parliament. In fact, the need first arose when Charan Singh was Prime Minister after an earlier split in the Janata Party. But Charan Singh who knew he was going to lose, did not come to Parliament on the day of the voting. This was the first of the two occasions when the Prime Minister had to resign before facing the vote of confidence. The other occasion arose in 1996 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee resigned on the floor of the House before the voting took place. We have nothing against votes of confidence. On the contrary, we realize that they are inevitable at times in a healthy democracy, especially when a country has to make do with a coalition government comprising disparate elements. We have nothing against close finishes either, though a razor-thin majority can make governance extremely difficult. But whatever the kind of crisis and whatever the provocation, no democracy worth its name should be subjected to the kind of unethical political games that are being played in New Delhi now — all in the name of saving the Congress-led UPA government.By the standards of the Indian polity, nothing may seem to be wrong with all this. After all, the list of criminals who are in Parliament as lawmakers is growing longer with each parliamentary election. They have successfully subverted all democratic ideals to make the wrong seem right and the unethical to seem normal. But going by the standards of a civilized democracy, there is nothing at all to be happy about. The most noteworthy sin is that a political party and the coalition it leads are taking precedence over the country and its people. It is as though the Congress and the UPA have to be saved no matter what happens to India. The second sin is perpetuating the rationalization that in politics the means do not matter at all. Look where this has taken us! The equation between the UPA (minus the Left parties and the Bahujan Samaj Party plus the Samajwadi Party) and the rest (primarily the Left parties and the BJP) is so evenly balanced that it is the tiny political parties with three, two or even one Lok Sabha MP that are going to make the ultimate difference to the equation. So the cost of ‘winning’ over even the sleepiest and most worthless MP has reportedly gone up to Rs 100 crore from the figure of Rs 25 crore that was the upper limit just two days ago. It would hardly be surprising if the price went up to Rs 200 crore for the last few MPs by today morning. And where has all this money for horse-trading come from? Not from the personal coffers of the chairpersons of coalitions or party presidents forming new alliances. Not even from the funds of our political parties. The money is most likely to have been siphoned off from one or more of the several schemes for guaranteeing rural employment for which huge sums are allotted in the budget by pious governments year after year. Such a scenario would mean that the government of the day has legitimized the misuse of funds meant for the poorest of the poor to buy MPs in order to stay in power! This is not only a total repudiation of the principle of the means being paramount, but a blatant misuse of power for staying in power.However, this is not all. What is in glaring evidence is the reliance of the Congress-led UPA government on the most untrustworthy political parties for survival. Take the case of Mayawati and the Bahujan Samaj Party. Mayawati is on record repeatedly asserting that it is not her business to form governments but rather to break them. She has demonstrated this twice at the Centre. She withdrew support from the NDA government just before a trial of strength and stage-managed its defeat at the very last minute. She had walked out of coalition governments in Uttar Pradesh three times, each time to the great benefit of her party, till she did not need any help from any quarter in the last Assembly election. Political parties that she had ditched in the past time and again should have learnt their lessons but did not. And what of the ‘untouchable’ Samajwadi Party? Can it be counted on to prop up its worst foe in Uttar Pradesh till next year?Finally, the Congress has had to make the most deplorable compromises with small political parties like the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). For its five members to return to the UPA fold, the Congress has to make its chief Shibu Soren a cabinet minister and make room for another minister besides granting scheduled tribe status to a list of tribal groups submitted by Soren. We are all aware of the criminal charges that had led to Shibu Soren’s ouster from the cabinet. Now the Congress is sending out the clear message that even criminals can become ministers if they support the UPA. Who is the ultimate loser in all this? Why, the nation itself — the people of India. The heavens would not have fallen if the UPA government were to fall a few months ahead of its time. The Congress might be able to buy itself some time today. But how much, even if it survives the vote of confidence? Maybe a few months or maybe up to March next year if it is very lucky. Are a few more months in power a good enough reason to turn Parliament into an auction centre for legislators? If it loses, the Congress will probably make a few worse bedfellows next time to save the dynasty. But who will save the nation? source: sentinel assam

Satta rates: UPA win: 40p, defeat: Rs 2

18 Jul 2008, 0145 hrs IST, S Balakrishnan,TNN

MUMBAI: With the countdown to July 22 having begun, Mumbai and other cities are witnessing hectic betting activity. According to sources, the odds are 40 paise for the UPA managing to retain power. This means that for every wager of Re 1, the bettor will get Rs 1.40 if the government wins the trust vote. The odds on the government falling are Rs 2. With matka operators forced to down shutters and no worthwhile cricket matches to lay bets on, the political drama in New Delhi is generating tremendous betting activity. "The situation has become more interesting with corporate bigwigs entering the scene," a senior inspector of police said. Big-time bookies like Sunil Dubai, Sobhan Kalachowkie, Jayanti Malad, Subhash Indore, Laxmi Thana and DJ Andheri are busy accepting bets not only from within India, but also from West Asia and other regions. According to estimates, bets worth Rs 250 crore have already been placed.

Mistake to trust Congress: Karat

NDTV Correspondent
Friday, July 18, 2008 (New Delhi)
The CPM general secretary Prakash Karat has said it was a mistake to trust the Congress on the nuclear deal.Speaking to a newspaper Karat referred to the understanding between the Left and the government that it would not go to the IAEA without first clearing it with the UPA-Left coordination committee.He said: ''It was a mistake to believe in the word given by the Congress leadership which included the prime minister. On November 10, 2007, there had been a meeting in the PM's house where an understanding was arrived at.Speaking for the first time on the controversy involving Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee he said, ''All this talk of Speaker sans party and politics is hypocritical.''Karat said, ''By holding the post of the Speaker, a person does not cease to have political affiliations. After someone ceases to be a Speaker, they resume political activities.'' Karat however maintained that it was upto the Speaker to decide when to quit.The CPM General Secretary has also questioned the ethics of getting convicted MPs out of jail to ensure the government's survival in the trust vote.Karat said, ''I am reminded of the 1993 situation. Our party had moved a no-confidence motion against the Narasimha Rao government. The Congress government was in a minority then, just as now. But they managed a majority in the vote. This led to the well-known JMM bribery case. For the first time, a former PM and a former home minister were prosecuted. Let us hope, history does not repeat itself.''

Doesn't mind voting with BJP: CPM

Press Trust of India / New Delhi July 17, 2008, 14:27 IST
Facing criticism from its own ranks over its decision to vote against the UPA along with the BJP during the trial of strength in the Lok Sabha, the CPI(M) has said it cannot abandon its objective of preventing India from becoming a subordinate of the US just because the saffron party is opposed to the Government.

The party said the BJP is opposing the Government in the July 22 confidence vote for enforcing early elections which may give them electoral benefits, but it cannot be a reason for the Left to reconsider its stand.

"As a passenger in a train, one cannot determine or choose who the other co-passengers are. However, because of the co-passengers, one cannot abandon the objective of reaching one's destination.

"The Left is clear. It shall work to achieve its objective of upholding our national interests and preventing India from becoming a subordinate ally of US imperialism," the CPI(M) said in an editorial in the forthcoming issue of party mouthpiece 'People's Democracy'.

The editorial said the Left seeks to defeat the UPA in the trust vote for protecting the country from consequences of the nuclear deal that could affect the country's sovereignty, independent foreign policy and independence to tackle security concerns. Countering Congress' allegations that the Left parties were allowing the return of the communal forces, the party accused the ruling party of being primarily responsible for giving an opportunity to the NDA government to return to power. source: http://www.business-standard.com

NDA cannot form govt if UPA fails

HERALD
CORRESPONDENT NEW DELHI, JULY 17— Quite conscious that the Bharatiya Janata Party led National Democratic Alliance does not have the number and cannot secure the Left’s support to form the government if the United Progressive Alliance fails in the confidence vote on Tuesday, senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu stressed that his party would seek a fresh mandate through a mid-term polls.“I am saying it on record that the NDA will not try to form a government if UPA falls during the vote of confidence. We will go to the people and convince them about the failures of the UPA government and seek their mandate,” he said while talking to reporters at the BJP headquarters here.He boasted that the NDA may have the numbers to form the government but asserted that “election is the only solution” once the UPA government is defeated in the floor test in Lok Sabha.Already upbeat with victories in the Assembly elections in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and the latest in Karnataka, Naidu said the BJP has already got into the election mode for the new Lok Sabha and has even announced its first list of candidates.In reply to a question, he said talks were already on for enrolling more regional parties in the NDA. There may also be some post-poll alliances, he added.

More Muslim MPs against UPA

Rebel SP MP to vote against UPA, claims support of seven more
New Delhi, July 18 (PTI) Rebel Samajwadi Party MP Munnawar Hasan today announced that he would defy the party whip and vote against the UPA government on July 22."I will defy the party whip and vote against the UPA government on nuclear deal during the confidence vote on July 22. I have support of around seven party MPs. The deal is anti-Muslim and we are against it more so because it is being promoted by the US, which is an anti-Muslim country," Hasan told reporters here.The Muzaffarnagar MP, who has been offered a ticket for the next general election by the BSP, said that he has not formally joined Mayawati but would do so after July 22."Once me and my other fellow MPs defy the SP whip, then we will join BSP," Hasan said.He claimed that he was persistently being wooed by "various people" to vote in favour of the UPA government. "In fact on July 10, one Rupesh Kumar who identified himself as a chartered accountant of a company, offered me a bribe of Rs 25 crore to vote in favour of the government," the MP claimed.When asked as to why he did not register a complaint against the person or inform BSP supremo Mayawati about it, Munnawar said he found the media an appropriate outlet to disclose this information.Though he avoided uttering anything against SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, Munnawar said the SP's Muslim votebank had "slipped" and many of its MPs, who did not turn up for the Parliamentary Party meeting held earlier today, were against the deal."In fact some Congress MPs too are in touch with me while SP MPs like Raj Narayan Budholiya and Jai Prakash Rawat are already with us," he claimed. PTI

Maya stands to gain : Ajoy Bose

The break-up between the Left and the Congress, forcing the latter to join hands with the Samajwadi Party before facing a trust vote, has come as a shot in the arm for the Bahujan Samaj Party. Irrespective of the outcome, Mayawati will have reason to smile

The fates appear to be conspiring with each other to give Mayawati a larger-than-life national profile just when she needed it in the lead up to the next general election. One palpable outcome of the crisis engulfing the UPA Government after the withdrawal of support by the Left is the way it has catapulted the BSP supremo to political centrestage. Almost overnight, the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister has become the crucial lynchpin whose success or failure in influencing the trust vote in Parliament on July 22 can decide who gets to occupy the throne of Delhi.

This is a quantum leap forward for a leader who remained a regional phenomenon even after her spectacular victory in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly poll last year. It is true Ms Mayawati's potential as the most promising leader of the future had already started casting a long shadow on Indian politics. But until now she has had a marginal role to play in operative national politics dominated as it has been by the Congress, the BJP and the Left.

An extraordinary turn of events has ended this marginalisation in barely a week. Even as the Left seemed bamboozled at the defection of its staunch ally, the Samajwadi Party, to the Congress, and the BJP remained torn between gloating over the plight of the Left and worrying whether this gave the UPA a huge political leg-up, it was Ms Mayawati who changed the dynamics of the political situation with reports that the BSP had managed to poach some of the Samajwadi Party MPs who felt that they had better prospects by going with Behenji rather than Netaji (Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav). Although the number of confirmed defectors from the Samajwadi Party to the BSP is so far only three, the entire contour of the numbers game has been changed because nobody knows how many from the Samajwadi Party and perhaps even the Congress, the BSP supremo can ultimately wean away.

In a further boost to Ms Mayawati's stature, CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat himself drove down to her residence to publicly declare an alliance to topple the UPA Government. This has been followed by discussions on the phone by her with Telugu Dasam leader Chandrababu Naidu as well as Telengana Rashtra Samiti (TRS). Mr Naidu is expected to meet the BSP leader this weekend and she may even attend and address the UNPA meeting, an indication of her growing clout within the national Opposition.

For a leader who has so far had little do with regional parties with the BSP always determinedly staying away from any Third Front formation or national party-led coalition, this political interaction is of enormous significance. If the Opposition does manage to pull down the UPA Government in the trust vote, Ms Mayawati would soar into a different orbit and she would undoubtedly emerge as the main political victor of the battle while Mr Prakash Karat can at best claim a pyrrhic victory in the spat over the India-US nuclear deal. Indeed, a defeat on the floor of the Lok Sabha could trigger a major revolt within both the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, resulting in massive defections to the BSP not just in Uttar Pradesh but in many other States as well.

For Ms Mayawati, such a denouement of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party on the eve of the general election is precisely the kind of tail wind she requires to make a serious bid for power at the Centre. Her critical role in toppling the UPA regime cannot but have a huge impact on voters across the country in an election held within a few months at the end of the year. In many ways, this would largely overcome the BSP leader's handicap of being a dominant force so far only in Uttar Pradesh.

The survival of the Manmohan Singh Government in the trust vote would of course mean a temporary setback to Ms Mayawati. It could also bring in its wake considerable personal harassment in the shape of a vigorous pursuit by the CBI of the disproportionate assets case against her. There is little doubt that both the Congress and the Samajwadi Party would have a common interest in cornering her.

Yet, even if she loses her bid to oust the current regime, the central role being played by the BSP leader in the Opposition campaign to unseat the Manmohan Singh Government will be a major political asset to her. She has already managed to get support from virtually every single party in the Opposition, including the NDA, Left and the UNPA, on the fresh CBI bid to prosecute her. This would have been unimaginable even a few weeks ago.

The fact of the matter is whether she succeeds in toppling the Government or not this time, Ms Mayawati has already acquired the reputation of a major national player who holds the key to the future of Indian politics. Her new found stature with regional parties and the Left, along with her old contacts in the BJP and the RSS, provides her a huge number of options that will come in very useful after the next Lok Sabha election whenever it is held -- whether at the end of this year or in the early summer of 2009. It is highly doubtful whether the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh or the Congress in the country can change political logic at the grassroots level regardless of what happens in the trust vote.

Finally, one should not underestimate the reaction of Dalit voters across the country to television images of Ms Mayawati leading the current conflict against the UPA regime. Already an icon, particularly among young Dalits beyond Uttar Pradesh, the more the BSP leader steps out of her State to do battle, the more she and her party gains ground within her core constituency across India. Considering that Congress is heavily dependent on the Dalit vote in many States in the country, this spells trouble for that party in the next election even as it promises to make Ms Mayawati a potent nationwide force. source: http://www.dailypioneer.com

Cong MP from Haryana attacks UPA, hints at voting against govt

New Delhi, Jul 18 (PTI) In more bad news for the UPA, Congress MP from Haryana Arvind Sharma today attacked his party and the Manmohan Singh government for "targeting" BSP chief Mayawati and indicated that he may vote against the ruling coalition in the July 22 trust vote.Criticising the Congress for cosying up with Samajwadi Party, the 45-year-old dentist-turned-MP from Karnal said he was "pained" at seeing the "falling standards" of his party."The government is succumbing to the pressure of Mulayam Singh and Amar Singh which is not acceptable," Sharma told reporters here.He said the Government was using the CBI to target "popular Dalit leader" and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati at the behest of the SP leaders to remain in power."We are witnessing worst days of political bargaining in the country's democratic history," Sharma, who is also member of the Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare, said.In an indication of his closeness with Mayawati, Sharma said by targeting the UP Chief Minister, the Government has insulted the Dalits, minorities and people of Uttar Pradesh.Asked whether his outburst against the party and the government was an indication that he may vote against the government on July 22, the Congress MP evaded a direct reply and said he was not leaving the party.Sharma said the people of his constituency are "unhappy" with the decisions taken by his party leadership which is forcing him to "rethink" about his future course of action.There were reports that BJP was trying to rope in some MPs from Congress in Karnataka on promise of tickets in the next Lok Sabha elections. PTI

Independent MP Nagpal to vote with BJP against UPA

New Delhi, July 17 (PTI) In yet another ominous sign of the tough battle ahead for the UPA during the July 22 trust vote, an independent MP from Uttar Pradesh who was supporting the ruling coalition switched over to the opposition camp.Harish Nagpal, independent MP from Amroha, announced his decision to oppose the UPA at a press conference held at BJP headquarters here today. He alleged that the Government had failed to check price rise and was not transparent on the nuclear deal, forcing him to take this decision.Nagpal, however, said he is not joining the BJP.The 44-year old MP had unsuccessfully contested the UP assembly elections in 2007 on a Congress ticket from Ghaziabad constituency.Senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu announced Nagpal's decision saying, "he had come to us to convey that he wants to work with the BJP". Nagpal said he had made the decision to vote with the saffron party as he was "satisfied with the style of functioning of the BJP".Naidu said no inducements had been given to Nagpal to vote against UPA. "No assurances were sought, and no assurances were given," he said.While there are reports that MPs are being lured with money power to switch loyalties, BJP said it was not indulging in such activities. Naidu pointed out that Nagpal was one of the richest MPs from the cow belt.Naidu alleged that Congress was indulging in horse-trading to win MPs. "The ruling party is very desperate and is using all sorts of methods. It is indulging in unethical acts," he alleged. PTI

UPA govt will not win the trust vote: Nitish

Press Trust of India / Patna July 18, 2008, 16:06 IST
Even though the outcome of numbers game during the July 22 trust vote appears too close to predict, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today said the the UPA government's defeat in the floor test is imminent.

"The Manmohan Singh government's defeat in the trial of strength is imminent and the stony silence being maintained by usually-blustering union ministers from the state points in that direction," he said.

Kumar returned here after attending a meeting of NDA chief ministers in Delhi where they mulled over the strategy to pull down the UPA government.

"Now that it is clear that the government will not survive, the 'bayan bahadurs' (leaders thriving on statements) RJD ministers from Bihar have suddenly stopped making unsavoury remarks aginst me and my government."

He charged the UPA ministers, particularly those from RJD, with not cooperating with the state government in execution of several development schemes and said the NDA will make it an election issue.

"We will go the electorate with facts and figures and seek their support to bring the NDA to power at the Centre if they want their problems to be solved," he said.

Referring to the Indo-US nuclear deal, Kumar said the Centre should suspend and keep in abeyance all further action till it has proved its majority in the Lok Sabha. source: http://www.business-standard.com

'SP offered my MP Rs 15 cr to vote for UPA'

Krishnakumar P

July 18, 2008 18:54 IST
As the race to pouch Independents and single-member parties heats up ahead of the July 22 trust vote of the United Progressive Alliance government, Uttar Pradesh-based National Loktantrik Party on Friday alleged that a senior Samajwadi Party leader called his party MP and offered him Rs 15 crore to vote in favour of the government and threatened the party and the member with dire consequences if he does not do so.

"On July 16, we had a press conference to declare that our party MP Baleshwar Yadav will vote against the government. After the conference, at 10.30 pm, a man walked in to meet the MP and handed him a cell phone saying a senior Samajwadi MP wanted to speak to him. "SP leader Parsavnath Yadav, who was on the line, asked the MP to take Rs 15 crore and vote for the government," NLP President Arshad Khan claimed in New Delhi.

Khan said his party, which had been lending outside support to the United Progressive Alliance, had decided to vote against the government as it was opposed to the Indo-US nuclear deal.
"The government never bothered to reach out to smaller parties like us to clear our doubts. In such a scenario, we see the deal as one that will make India a subordinate ally of the United States. We can't allow India to be subservient to US and Israeli interests," Khan said.He said the UPA, instead of taking smaller parties like his into confidence, has turned the Samajwadi Party on to him.

"Either Sonia Gandhi or Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could have approached us to get our support. But they are not interested in that approach. They, instead think Mulayam Singh Yadav will do the trick for them and has turned him on us. That shows to what level the UPA can stoop," Khan said. Unbelievable as it may sound, after the SP submitted a fresh letter of support to President Pratibha Patil on July 9, Mulayam Singh Yadav had said that the NLP lawmaker will vote with the SP. "Baleshwar Yadav is basically of Samajwadi Party origin," Singh had said.

Baleshwar Yadav was with the SP before he switched to the NLP and won his seat from the Padrauna constituency.

Asked whether he had the confidence of his MP, Khan was evasive. "Last week, Baleshwar said he will vote against the government in a handwritten letter to me. The last I spoke to him on the phone, he maintained his stand. Why should I keep asking him constantly? I have issued a whip to vote against the government. He will face the consequences if he ignores the whip. And then we will go to the people with the facts of how the SP has played this game with us," Khan said.

Baleshwar Yadav, who is now is Lucknow, is incommunicado.
Khan, however, leaves scope for the UPA to right the perceived wrong. "If the UPA approaches us and satisfies our conditions, we will reconsider our decision," he said.

His conditions are:
Implementation of the Rangnath Mishra Commission that went into the status of minorities
Allocate 9 per cent of the 27 per cent OBC reservations to minorities
Provide reservation for Dalit converts.

Though he knows the UPA might not agree to these conditions and that he might well lose his MP to Mulayam's might, the July 22 controversy is just the latest episode in the running battle he has had with the SP.

His is a party launched 14 years ago and he has nurtured it in an environment where there is no Muslim political party to cater to Uttar Pradesh's large Muslim population. He has had to always fight the obstacles that the Congress, SP and the Bahujan Samaj Party have thrown in his way. "In these 14 years I have run this party, it has progressively grown. In recent years, we began having electoral success," he said. The party has so far seen 11 municipal chairmen, one legislator and one parliamentarian come through its ranks.

Observers say it is developing into a formidable power in UP where Muslims have so far been seen only as vote banks. They say this is the party that might politically empower them. Khan also claims Hindu-Muslim unity is a key ideology and points to his MP and MLA, both Hindus. "Mulayam, when he came to power in UP the last time, tried to break my party. He was unsuccessful but he succeeded in poaching my MLA," Khan said.

So, the SP move, which is a short-term attack as well as a roadblock in the run up to the next general election, has doubly angered Khan. Asked one last time how his MP would vote, he said: "An MP is like a child. His party is mother and the party president -- in this case me -- is his political father. I have told my child what he has to do. Let Mulayam take care of his children. Let him not mess with my children." source: http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/jul/18upavote10.htm

UPA’ s trust vote

The count down to the crucial trust vote to be moved by the UPA government on the 22nd July in the Lok Sabha has begun. Hectic parleys by political parties are going on to garner as much support as possible to their view point. The UPA and its allies strongly supporting the Indo-US nuclear deal are trying their best to rope in the undecided MPs numbering 11 belonging to smaller parties like the JD(S) of Deve Gowda (2 MPs), National Conference of Omar Abdullah (2 MPs), Rastriya LokDal of Ajit Singh (3MPs) etc whose votes would decide the fate of the trust vote. The Left Parties are leaving no stone unturned to defeat the trust vote at all cost, making friends with erstwhile enemies and joining hands with fundamentalist party like the BJP, which the veteran communist leader Jyoti Basu considered greater enemy than the Indo-US nuclear deal. The CPI(M) MPs from West Bengal expressed their uneasiness at the prospect of voting along with their enemy– the BJP. The issue of resignation of Somnath Chatterjee, as Speaker of the Lok Sabha seems to have divided the party. Somnath Chatterjee was unhappy for dragging the name of the Speaker in the list of MPs withdrawing support to the government submitted by CPI(M) General Secretary, Prakash Karat to the President of India. He has indicated that if he had to resign as the Speaker, he would like to resign as MP also. The CPI(M) has now joined hands with Mayawati and expect 17 BSP MPs to vote against the trust motion. It would a be neck to neck fight and every vote would be crucial.The bone of contention between the UPA and the Left Parties-the India Safeguard Agreement submitted to the IAEA has now been made public. It is doubtful if all the parties and all the MPs have studied this important document. Brajesh Misra, National Security Adviser during NDA regime and a trusted policy adviser of the then Prune Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee has termed the document as the best possible agreement under the present circumstances .He also commented that renegotiation of the deal after coming to power by the BJP would be difficult and might be impossible. The BJP has distanced itself from Mishra’s well considered opinion but did not dare to silence him by taking disciplinary action. Nor is the deal anti Muslim as propogated by Mayawati. Muslim MPs have found that the deal has nothing to do with religion and several of them have openly given support to the deal. The future of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Congress president, Sonia Gandhi rests on winning the trust vote. Let us hope that every one will see the light today so that tomorrow will not be dark. source: assam tribune editorial 15.07.08

Left withdraws support to UPA

From Kalyan Barooah NEW DELHI, July 8 – The UPA Government at the Centre plunged into its worst crisis till date, with the Left Parties withdrawing support over the nuclear deal, leaving the Dr Manmohan Singh Government high and dry. However, the Congress Party put up a brave front and declared that there was no threat to the Government. The Congress Party’s confidence followed Samajvadi Party’s unanimous support to the UPA Government.An upset Left said the time has come to pull the rug. Not content, the Left is also planning to request President, Pratibha Devisingh Patil to ask the Prime Minister to seek a vote of trust in the Lok Sabha to prove his government majority, when they call on her here tomorrow to submit the letter of withdrawal of support.In a day fast paced with political developments that saw almost all big and small players confabulating on the fate of Dr Manmohan Singh Government, leaders quickly picked up their calculators, to see if the UPA combine had the numbers to survive.The Left parties were first to set the ball rolling when it met in the morning at its headquarters to draft the letter to External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee. They accused the ruling Congress-led coalition of refusing to provide the text to the members of the Committee on Indo-US Civil Nuclear Cooperation and said the proposed meeting on July 10 would not serve any purpose in this context.It is critical for the country that the safeguards agreement was discussed with full transparency and not kept secret, said CPM general secretary, Prakash Karat.“Why is the Manmohan Singh Government keeping the draft of the IAEA agreement secret from the people,” the Left leader asked.The brief announcement by Karat-led the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi convene an emergency meeting of its senior leaders. In the evening, the all-powerful Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) was held, which was presided over by Mukherjee, in absence of the Prime Minister, who is away in Japan. The meeting was convened to fix a date for the special session of Parliament. Indication was that the government could go in for a trust vote on July 28.The Congress Party later described the Left action as most unfortunate. “When the entire nation is mourning those killed in the Kabul blast, the Left has chosen to make the announcement. It is most unfortunate. They think their prestige is more important than the nation’s prestige,” chairman of the AICC media department, Veerappa Moily said, reacting to the Left’s announcement.Yet, perhaps the biggest set back was suffered by SP, when at least six of its MPs gave broad hints they might oppose the opportunistic alliance with the Congress. Party chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav announced in the morning that all was well in the party after a meeting of the party Parliamentary Board, only to be contradicted by his colleague, Jai Prakash in Lucknow that a section of them opposed the move.He said each of its 39 MPs is solidly behind the Indo-US Nuclear deal. He requested the Left parties not to join the communal forces.Fishing in troubled waters, BJP president, Rajnath Singh attacked both the Left Parties and the UPA and demanded that a special session of Parliament should be convened immediately and the Prime Minister should seek a vote of confidence. He said the BJP leaders would approach the President of India to direct the present government to seek the trust vote. His statement came after an emergency meeting of the party’s office bearers, here this evening, to discuss the current political scenario and draft its future strategy. The day also saw a war of words between the Congress, Left and opposition parties. The Left held the Prime Minister responsible for precipitating the crisis, when he declared that Government would very soon approach the IAEA to move forward on the deal. The four parties- CPI (M), CPI, Forward Bloc and RSP lost no time in firming up plans to pull out of the coalition government, which it was supporting from outside.Karat also released the draft of the letter to Mukherjee. Since the UPA has refused to provide the text of the Safeguards Agreements to the members of the UPA-Left Committee, no purpose will be served by having a meeting.Further, the proposal for a meeting on the 10th is rendered meaningless since the Prime Minister, while travelling abroad, has chosen to announce that the government will be going to Board of Governors of the IAEA “very soon”.Previously, the Left parties had decided that if the government goes to the IAEA Board of Governors, they will withdraw support, the letter said.Meanwhile, allies rushed to extend support, ruling out any threat to the survival of the UPA government. RJD president Lalu Prasad said the alliance has majority support and it will be proved in Parliament. Later, Union Agriculture Minister and NCP president Sharad Pawar also said that the government is stable. source: assam tribune

BJP lambasts UPA for illegal influx

From Our Spl Correspondent NEW DELHI, July 7 – Strategising along expected lines, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is all set to rake up the issues of Chinese intrusion into Arunachal Pradesh and illegal influx from Bangladesh and its devastating impact on the North-East, in a major way. Come Lok Sabha polls, the BJP is going to enter the election scene in the North-East, particularly in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, with all guns blazing, targeting the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre and the Tarun Gogoi government in the State.Releasing BJP’s own version of the Report Card on the four years of UPA Government here today, Rajya Sabha MP and party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy said it was hardly anything to be proud of, and for all intents and purposes, the UPA has been a total failure on every front, gasping for its last breath.The 118-page booklet brought out by the main Opposition party has 18 chapters, and elaborately deals with the North-East. The BJP countered the Centre’s claim on the internal security, asserting that it has in fact deteriorated. In Assam, the Congress Government is turning a blind eye to a sinister bid to create tension between Karbis and Dimasas. The Congress Government has colluded with the perpetrators of these assaults on the nation’s integrity.In Manipur, it looks like the writ of the UPA government does not run there. Returning to its pet theme, the saffron party said that Assam’s Muslim population has trebled in the last 50 years. The Muslim population in Assam has increased by over 313 per cent as against the Hindu population growth rate of 193 per cent, in half-a-century between 1951-2001. Again quoting former Director General of Census Operations, NC Dutta, the BJP booklet held that it was due to illegal influx from Bangladesh that lower Assam and Barak valley districts had registered a high rate of population increase.The UPA Government has adopted a myopic and selfish approach towards the grave problems of demographic invasion by Bangladeshi infiltrators, giving no thought to the long-term harm that this could do to India’s security, unity and integrity, it said.The BJP criticised Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi for describing former Governor Lt Gen Ajai Singh’s report on illegal migrants as being “totally baseless”.The Congress governments at the Centre and in the State are responsible for the current state of affairs in Assam, as they have always followed the policy of vote-bank even at the cost of national interests, the BJP alleged.The party, quoting an Intelligence Bureau report, also expressed concern at the high growth of madrassas in 12 States, including Assam. The border State of Assam has 2002 madrassas, which is lower than West Bengal (2116). The highest number of madrassas is in Kerala (9,975), it said.Touching on the ULFA issue, the Report Card pointed towards the outfit’s links with ISI and alleged that the ULFA is ultimately fighting the Jehadi war on behalf of ISI, which is calling the shots. “The ULFA is outsourcing explosives and IEDs from ISI. The Home Ministry’s report also confirms that ISI has succeeded in bringing ULFA, MULFA and MULTA together to carry out subversive activities”.The BJP held the Assam Government’s soft stand on insurgency responsible for the continued targeting of the Hindi-speaking people in the State. “It is a well-known fact that the Congress had taken the help of ULFA in elections and because of this, it is unable to deal with the banned outfit firmly,” it alleged.“Indecisiveness in tackling ULFA militants might unleash forces that would be injurious to inter-state cohesion and national unity,” it opined.The BJP Report Card also took a close look at the reports of intrusion by Chinese Army, mainly into Arunachal Pradesh. The UPA seems to be groping in the dark on its relations and dealings with China. It has no definite policy, the Report Card charged, attacking the Left parties as well.The villain of the piece is the UPA’s total dependence on the Left for its survival. For the CPM, the interests of China are superior to those of the nation, it said. The BJP has demanded that a Joint Parliamentary Committee should visit the spot to verify the situation, but UPA Government has so far not taken any steps to clear the mist, it said referring to intrusions in Sumdorong Chu Valley, Asapila and Taksin areas. The BJP booklet had, however, some major errors. It mentioned that its MPs Khiren Rijiju and Tapir Gaon were from Sikkim.The party questioned the UPA Government’s policy on Tibet, repeated incursions by China, refusal of visa to an IAS officer of Arunachal Pradesh cadre, alleging that the UPA Govt is indulging in blatant appeasement of China. The BJP also described the proposed road to Mount Everest as a security threat to India. The Chinese efforts to divert the Brahmaputra river away from India would have serious ramifications. The project envisages a series of 11 dams around the Brahmaputra loop. India can ignore thee developments on India-Tibet border only at its peril, it said. source: assam tribune

Creamy Layer: Icing Thicker than Cake

In India, the phrase "creamy layer" refers to the icing on a cake. In the lucrative world of reservation politics, "creamy layer" thus means the icing on the cake of each 'disadvantaged' group (like the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, the Other Backward Classes and the More Other Backward Classes) that comprises people within the group who have transcended their disadvantages and really do not need reservations any more. Not surprisingly, when several States of India had taken the reservation business to absurd lengths (reserving even 80 per cent or more of their seats in IITs, IIMs, medical colleges and engineering colleges, the Supreme Court intervened and placed a ceiling of 50 per cent on reservations. Later, when the extent of reservations for OBCs was mooted, the apex court, apart from setting a ceiling, also ruled that the reservations should not include the creamy layer. This foxed our clever politicians because it was a directive that kept out the hopeful OBC beneficiaries who did not have any disadvantages any more, had all the money but lacked the merit to get seats where they wanted. One way out of the problem was to make the creamy layer a real thick one. The ruling UPA identified the creamy layer as families with an annual income of above Rs 5 lakh. Most of us would regard this as a very thick layer of icing. But now Karnataka wants to identify the creamy layer as families with an annual income of over Rs 25 lakh or a monthly income of over Rs 2 lakh. In other words, families with incomes higher than that alone would be deemed to belong to the creamy layer and hence disqualified for the benefits of reservations. One fails to see how families with monthly incomes of Rs 2 lakh can be deemed to be 'disadvantaged' and needing reservations. We have a case of the icing being thicker than the cake. All that this implies is a concerted effort to reject merit of any kind on the plea of reservations. source: sentinel assam

Life line to UPA

The suspense about the survival of the Congress-led UPA government appeared to have ended with Mulayam Singh and Amar Singh of the Samajwadi party publicly endorsing the government move on the Indo-US nuclear deal after seeking clarification on the deal from the ex-President and noted scientist Dr. APJ Kalam. The Left led by Prakash Karat, stunned by the U turn of the Samajwadi Party, issued a letter to the government giving a deadline of 7th July to indicate the government time frame to approach the IAEA so that formal parting with the UPA could be operationalised,so to speak.The Left’s anti US phobia made it blind to the benefit India would derive on signing the 123 agreement which would end India’s nuclear isolation and allow trading with 45-country nuclear supplier group(NSG) for Uranium to run the idle power plants. This is a historic blunder like the one committed earlier when the politbureau refused to allow the veteran CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu to become the Prime Minister of India. The Left leaders, most of whom had not contested election in their life time like Prakash Karat,Sitararn Yechury,Brinda Karat would not care for the consequences of their action, particularly in West Bengal where ground beneath the Left had been eroding as evident from the results of the local body elections.Dr Manmohan Singh,Prirne Minister frequently dubbed as the weakest Prime Minister by Prime Minister aspirant L.K.Advani of the BJP must be having the last laugh. He proved to the nation that he could be tough when the situation so demanded and the Indo-US nuclear deal arranged after prolonged negotiation with safeguard to national interest could not be sacrificed at the insistence of the Left parties-a millstone that had to be got rid of. He could now go the G-8 summit in Japan with his head held high and move IAEA in mid July and expect to complete all formalities before September to meet the US dead line. The Indo-US nuclear deal would be one of the lasting legacies of the Congress led UPA government plagued by price rise and high inflation before it goes to next Lok Sabha election. The new found friendship between Congress and the Samajwadi Party ending long standing animosity might have given temporary reprieve to the UPA government but how long lasting it would be? Amar Singh in a television interview admitted that they committed a blunder in not extending support to Sonia Gandhi in 1999 to form the Government. The Samajwadi Party leaders would now demand a pound of flesh for their support. Already they have raised their voices against two central Ministers, Murli Deora for rise in petroleum prices and Chidambaram for failure to control inflation. Besides.Mulayam Singh has a disproportionate assets case pending against him. He would expect the Central government to go slow in the case. The Congress- Samajwadi Party alliance proves the adage that in politics there were no permanent foes. source: assam tribune

Can the AGP ever make up its mind?

Can the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) ever make up its mind? If this question is being asked today, it is because the flag-bearer of regionalism in Asom manages to give out the impression, again and again, that it is directionless. At a time when some euphoria or hope was generated among the regional forces or backers of regionalism in the State with the talk of unity of regional political parties, came news that the AGP was talking to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the possibility of an alliance to face the Lok Sabha elections. Senior AGP leaders have commented saying there was no harm in talking to the BJP, or for that matter, other like-minded parties. Well, no one is contesting that!The sense that one gets after the AGP-BJP parleys is that Asom’s main opposition party, which is also the pioneer of regionalism in the State, may have concluded that unification among the two AGP factions (the other one being the AGP-Progressive of Prafulla Kumar Mahanta) may not take place after all. AGP leaders are saying the AGP(P) has placed certain ‘demands’, a claim denied by Mahanta and his group. For the consumption of the people and the media, Mahanta has been saying he was in favour of regional unity and that he is ready to be an ordinary party worker in a united AGP. But, Mahanta is certainly kidding. After all, the two-time chief minister and founder president of the AGP has not shed all his ambitions yet. And yes, AGP president Brindabon Goswami may not be ready so far, even for the sake of regional unity, to vacate his chair for Mahanta. Well, I cannot help asking at this point as to what may have happened to AGP’s bonhomie with the flamboyant Amar Singh? Yes, Amar Singh, the Samajwadi Party high-flier who was a key figure in the so-called regional alliance called the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA)? The AGP aside, one of its old allies, the Telegu Desam, too, has been a part of the UNPA. Only the other day, Amar Singh was in Asom, lambasting the Congress, including Congress leaders from the State. Now, Amar Singh is the main points-man, cobbling up a deal between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress and come to the latter’s aid on the Nuke deal. So, Amar Singh and the UNPA must now be out of the AGP’s radar. The void has to be filled. So, it has to be the BJP. Who are we to talk about ideology? That can change with the times man!Now what? The AGP may go to the Lok Sabha polls with a tie-up with the BJP (some seat adjustments or things like that), and, if the regional unity does not take place by then, face some regional party candidates as their rivals, including those from the Congress. The end result in that scenario will be a split in the non-Congress votes, leading to Congress candidates sailing through. This is not some fantastic prediction that I have managed to make. This is a simple possibility. In case the AGP comes to have a tie-up with the BJP this time, as in the past (who bothers about the disastrous result of the earlier AGP-BJP alliance), the party’s slogan could well be this, ‘we are a regional party with a national outlook!’Regional unity, to my mind, is a distant dream in Asom. This is because of the ambitions nurtured by every regional party leader who wants to be king, or king-maker. The lack of a positive election agenda, lack of leadership, shift in ideologies, failure to forge tactical winning combinations, and, above all, failure of some key regional leaders to sacrifice their personal ambitions and goals are the key stumbling blocks to a possible unification of regional parties in the State. This is one of the reasons for the Congress’ dream run in Asom since 2001. Yes, there is no harm in believing that things may change. source sentinel assam