Evasive Pawar

The political firestorm over the Maratha reservation demand is a hot potato for all parties in Maharashtra but is unexpectedly singeing the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) more than others. On more than one occasion, party supremo Sharad Pawar and other party leaders, including newly elected MPs, have been asked to clear their stand on the matter. When an MP said that Pawar had spoken on the issue, he was told to explain his stand. “Forget what Saheb said. We want to know what you have to say,” agitators asked the MP. Pawar has sought to deflect matters by saying he would support the intervention of the Centre in providing reservations to the Maratha community but is unable to answer whether he is unequivocally committed to the demand as this might mean risking the ire of other communities. The Bharatiya Janata Party, on the other hand, is saying that it is the only party to have actually implemented a decision in favour of the Maratha reservation. BJP has been facing protests from Other Backward Classes (OBC) leaders too, but has tried to juggle the conflicting demands by stating that there is no reduction in the quotas available to OBCs. Though the Lok Sabha results in Maharashtra went against the ruling Mahayuti combine, there are no certainties about how the Assembly election will go. The reason is that the division of votes was very fine and while the support of Muslim voters helped Shiv Sena (Uddhav), the breakaway—and now official—faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde won seven of the 13 Lok Sabha seats where the contest was between the two Senas. Overall, Shinde Sena won eight seats to Uddhav Sena’s nine, which is not much of a difference. Meanwhile, Congress’ surprise performance, winning 13 seats, is less than welcome news for the Uddhav faction as this will impact seat-sharing negotiations. Congress state chief Nana Patole has not been backward in claiming credit and the party can be expected to stake a claim to a larger number of seats in the state poll.

Liberal Tangle

The nationwide protests over the murder of a young female doctor in a Kolkata hospital have led Delhi’s liberal establishment in a twist. While always first off the block in the event of a crime in a BJP-ruled state, apologists for the I.N.D.I.A. bloc are busy seeking equivalence with other incidents or putting out commentaries on the need for improved safety in all hospitals, a convenient way of avoiding mention of the Kolkata case. The internet is being scoured for instances of cases in BJP states to blithely argue that the safety of doctors is an issue everywhere. All this is not very convincing and Congress and its ecosystem is once again caught between a rock and a hard place. Try as they might, they are unable to turn the attention away from the fury of the medical community and the people at large against the authorities in the Kolkata case. Advocates are the latest to join the protests in large numbers with a clip of a ruling party MP’s disagreement with another lawyer in the high court resulting in advocates heckling the leader for several minutes.

Hindus organise in the US

As a bitterly contested US election gathers pace, Hindu groups are raising awareness about the atrocities against the community in Bangladesh, which are continuing despite stricter action by the army. The forced resignations of Hindu teachers and lecturers in the face of threats by Islamist mobs have been taken up by the CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America), which recently organised an Independence Day parade in New York featuring the Ram Mandir. Organisations like CoHNA are increasingly questioning the silence of the Democratic nominee Kamala Harris about the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh, a pertinent point given her Indian roots. The criticism of the fallen Bangladesh Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina as an undemocratic leader was widely embraced by the US foreign policy establishment, but the subsequent chaos and the rule of the mob have become an embarrassment. The issue also demonstrates that Harris may not be able to take the support of the Indian-American community for granted even though they are a small demography because they are financially and professionally well represented.

Lateral Entry Blocked

The government’s decision to invite applications at the joint secretary level has led to predictable objections from the usual suspects with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi saying the move will deny reservations to Dalits, tribals and OBCs. This is in keeping with Congress’ latest avatar where it has become an advocate of caste identity in just about every sphere of national life. However, National Democratic Alliance partner Lok Janshakti Party leader Chirag Paswan said the reservation principle must be followed in all government appointments, even in the case of 45 posts advertised by the Centre. In a surprise move, the government asked the Union Public Service Commission to withdraw the notification as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to the principles of social justice and representation. The episode serves as a reminder of the days when regional parties held coalition governments to ransom, paralysing efforts to improve governance. Rather than making government more representative, regional parties are fanatically wedded to their agendas making consensus on even relatively routine.

Venue Problem

There is uncertainty over the fate of the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup to be hosted by Bangladesh in October given the current unrest and lack of security in the nation. Australian skipper Alyssa Healy said it would be hard to fathom holding the tournament in the country. Though the event is still a few months away, teams and national associations are worried about the capacity of Bangladesh authorities to organise the event and ensure the games are not disrupted. The event will also seem out of place given the savagery that has been witnessed in the streets of major cities in Bangladesh. The ICC requires some advance notice to ensure the World Cup can be organised elsewhere and its board is expected to consider the matter soon. The likely alternatives include the tournament being jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka as this will involve minimum dislocation. The BCCI is a competent organiser of events as its track record shows and can stage the event at short notice. The unattractiveness of Bangladesh as a venue for a marquee tournament has not diminished in the weeks after the exit of Hasina.

Political Dangal

The return of wrestler Vinesh Phogat after being disqualified for a medal at the Paris Olympics has been followed by a steady stream of political visitors. The demand for “justice” for Vinesh has become a Congress-oriented slogan with a strong undertone of caste mobilisation. This will be cause for concern for BJP despite the government having done its best to support the wrestler’s preparations for the Olympics.

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