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How BJP trumped PDP in J&K

Why did the BJP pull out of its alliance with PDP so suddenly? According to those familiar with developments in…

How BJP trumped PDP in J&K

(File Photo: IANS)

Why did the BJP pull out of its alliance with PDP so suddenly? According to those familiar with developments in Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP moved in haste because it suspected that Mehbooba Mufti was planning to end the alliance. It was a game of oneupmanship and the BJP wanted to beat her to it.

It seems Mehbooba was under huge pressure from her party to pull out of the coalition with the BJP after the Centre revoked the ceasefire. Mehbooba and her party wanted the ceasefire to be extended. They did not want security forces to resume their anti-militant operations. They were worried about the civilian death toll in these operations.

Mehbooba was to come to Delhi during the week for a last-ditch attempt to persuade the Modi government to extend the ceasefire. According to sources in touch with PDP, she had planned to quit if the Centre rejected her plea. If Mehbooba withdrew from the alliance first, it would have damaged the BJP politically, not just in Jammu but also with its hardline supporters across the country. As it is, the Modi government was under a lot of flak for the ceasefire. It was seen as a concession to terrorists and suggested that the Centre had softened its Kashmir policy.

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The BJP is gung-ho that it has managed to outwit Mehbooba in the endless game of oneupmanship that plagued the coalition government in J & K. For Mehbooba, the loss is a huge blow to her politics. She has lost considerable ground because of her alliance with the BJP and after the shabby treatment by the BJP on the withdrawal of support, she looks a loser. She had no inkling that her partner had planned to pull the plug on her government two days after Eid.

In defence of Indira

Jairam Ramesh has stepped on many toes in the Congress with his latest book “Intertwined Lives: P N Haksar and Indira Gandhi”. Indira loyalists in the party feel that the book is unnecessarily critical of the late prime minister while praising Haksar.

But the most upset is Shashi Tharoor. Long regarded as the Congress party’s leading intellectual because of his many books and his command over the English language, his position is now being challenged by two persons. One is Jairam Ramesh and the other is Salman Khurshid. Both are churning out books at a rapid rate and establishing themselves as movers and shakers in the literary world.

Tharoor is believed to have shot off a letter to Rahul Gandhi complaining about Jairam’s book and the poor light in which it shows Indira Gandhi. There’s no response from Rahul but Tharoor is carrying on a relentless campaign against Jairam.

So far, Khurshid has played it safe and desisted from writing on the Congress and its leaders. He’s sticking to issues related to the Muslim community like triple talaq, the Muslim identity, etc.

But it’s clear that Tharoor now has challengers and may soon lose his exclusive right to be called the Congress party’s resident intellectual.

Article 370

Subramanian Swamy and Arun Jaitley are at loggerheads on almost every issue except one – Article 370 which gives the state of Jammu and Kashmir special status in the Constitution. Both believe that the withdrawal of the specific clause relating to J & K’s special status does not need Parliament’s approval.

According to them, the clause was inserted in the Article by a Presidential decree much later. They say that it’s an executive order and can be scrapped by another Presidential order without having to seek sanction from Parliament.

Talk of scrapping this particular clause in the Article and taking away J&K’s special status has revived after the collapse of the BJP-PDP government. In fact, Swamy has already tweeted the demand, emphasizing the point that it can be done through a Presidential decree. He says he has sent a detailed note to the PMO on this.

Interestingly, Jaitley is also believed to have given a similar legal opinion to the PMO. He did this many months ago as part of an information seeking exercise on the issue of Article 370.

The scrapping of Article 370 has been one of the top items on the RSS-BJP agenda. It was not taken up because it was felt that scrapping it would need Parliament approval and the BJP never had the numbers to get the resolution passed.

Is Swamy’s tweet an indication of the ruling dispensation’s thinking now that the administration of J&K has passed to the governor? It’s interesting that Mehbooba Mufti had flagged the protection of Article 370 as one of the reasons for the PDP’s decision to ally with the BJP and form a government in Srinagar. Maybe she has heard something in political circles in Srinagar.

Vegetarian Eid

A vegetarian Eid Milan is almost unheard of. But a gathering held to celebrate Eid at one of the prominent dargahs in the Capital turned out to be a chaat party instead of kebabs and biryani.

It seems that social activist Swami Agnivesh was one of the hosts for the Eid Milan. Being a strict vegetarian, he did not want the menu to include the traditional non-vegetarian fare that is associated with Eid. So the menu consisted of chaat, paranthas and other vegetarian delights from Chandni Chowk.

The Eid Milan was organized as a secular celebration and hosted by a Hindu, a Muslim and a Christian.

Where is Sandeep?

Has Sheila Dikshit’s son and former Congress MP Sandeep Dikshit retired hurt from Delhi politics? It seems Sandeep has shifted base from Delhi to Bhopal and is neck deep in his NGO work with tribals.

According to a little bird in the Congress, he’s hoping for an entry into Madhya Pradesh politics. Delhi is virtually closed to him because AAP has taken over the Congress base. Despite Ajay Maken’s best efforts, AAP remains in a dominant position.

Maken’s longstanding rivalry with Sheila Dikshit is another reason why Sandeep has been shut out of Delhi. The question is: will the Kamal Nath-Jyotiraditya Scindia-Digivijay Singh trio allow him a toe hold in MP?

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