Has Rahul Gandhi been advised to go slow in his attacks on PM Modi?

Political watchers were a little surprised that Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi, who used to be continuously attacking PM Modi either via his social media accounts or via his statements had suddenly fallen silent. The buzz is that he had been advised by a senior non-Congress leader not to attack Modi. The leader reportedly cautioned him against inadvertently creating sympathy for PM Modi. The sane advice for Rahul comes in the wake of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee recently raking up the issue of Rahul being credited for good performance of Opposition parties in the 2024 Lok Sabha election whether in Uttar Pradesh or Maharashtra. The buzz is the LoP is preparing to save all his fire only for the Budget session beginning on July 22. Besides, in her meetings with NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, Mamata had emphasised on the need for all the focus and publicity to be moved away from the Gandhis and the Congress. She feels all non-Congress parties must get the credit for the performance. It clearly showed that the Bengal leader may have taken from where PM Modi had left when he had referred to the Congress as a political party, a parjeevi party or party that sustained itself more by depending on its coalition partners. Meaning, the Congress no longer had anything to add to the political basket. (By Lakshmi Iyer)

PepsiCo Fame Ramesh Vangal’s Mauritius Company Goes In For Liquidation, Prevented From Stake Sale In Kerala Ayurveda

Remember Ramesh Vangal.  Once upon a time, he was the face of Pepsi in India. In fact, he led PepsiCo’s landmark entry into India in the early 1990s.This was widely considered as a pioneer in India’s opening of FDI. Post-Pepsi, the arc light, however, continued to be on Vangal as he formed an alliance with Suresh Kalpathi, the founder of SSI Ltd. Vangal also got into a cobweb when his company, Katara Holdings Ltd (KHL) Mauritius, bought into Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB), which was mired in controversy when internecine quarrels among promoter groups led to the shares slipping into non-Nadar hands. With funding facilitation from Standard Chartered Bank (Mauritius), KHL struck a complex deal in 2007 to acquire TMB shares. But the Enforcement Directorate found Stanchart guilty of violating Foreign Exchange Management Act in this particular transaction. Stanchart took the legal route to retrieve its money from KHL. The Supreme Court of Mauritius has since ordered the liquidation of KHL. Significantly enough, Vangal’s KHL holds over 53% stake in BSE-listed Kerala Ayurveda Ltd, a pioneer in providing Holistic Healing and Wellness Solutions. The official liquidator of KHL has informed Kerala Ayurveda that since he now has the custody and control of the shares held by KHL in the company, no trades are to be allowed on this stake without his authorization. The arc light is still focused on Vangal, it appears. (By KT Jagannathan)

Is Akshay Kumar Losing His Midas Touch?

Looks like the 56-year old Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar is losing his Midas touch going by total collections of Rs 17 crore for his latest movie Sarfira. The film, a remake of Tamil movie Soraru Puttru, was based on the life of Captain Gopinath of Air Deccan fame. In fact, its budget was much less than Akshay Kumar’s film. Post Covid-19 pandemic the first Hindi film to be released was Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi directed by Rohit Shetty with Ranveer Singh, Ajay Devgn in the star cast. It did well at the box office opening with Rs 25 crore. But after that Bachchan Pandey spelt disaster at the box office and opened with just Rs 13crore. From then on films like Samrat Prithviraj, Raksha Bandhan failed miserably. He bounced back with Ram Setu and OMG 2 which did decent business at the box office. OMG 2 which was a hit had Pankaj Tripathi in the main lead but the actor was appreciated for his role as Shiva. As a producer he had to battle with CBFC for release of the film as it had given it A certification.There were Selfie, Mission Raniganj which opened at Rs 2.80cr which was better than Sarfira. Mission Raniganj earned Rs 33 crore while Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’s failure almost shut Vashu Bhagnani’s office. Sources say Akshay has not signed any new films and has reduced his price by 50%. But, the actor has quite a few films in production. Khel Khel Mein is with Taapsee Pannu and Vani Kapoor and directed by Mudassar Aziz who does not have a great track record. The only hope for Akshay is Housefull 5. Maybe his South sojourn could salvage his career. (By Our Entertainment Editor)

Jammu’s Loss, Kashmir’s Gain, Delimitation Followed By Terror’s Pain

Delimitation of state assembly constituencies executed for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir dealt a severe blow to Bharatiya Janata Party’s Akhand Bharat perspective through skewed voter dynamics, erstwhile state’s incremental geo-political representation. Senior BJP leader, Mahendra Jain says, “New assembly constituencies were carved out prematurely using antiquated 2011 census data assessing population figures arriving at a faulty delimitation process.” Jain insists the delimitation exercise was flawed over outdated data relied upon to incrementally create 43 assembly constituencies (in Jammu) and 46 in Kashmir. Effectively hereon, portions of Jammu region (Pir Panjal) encompassing Poonch and Rajouri districts got partitioned away to political space now Anantnag seat in Kashmir occupies. Shia-dominated regions from Srinagar Parliamentary constituency were also given away to Baramulla constituency similarly, using 20-year-old statistics. The recent Lok Sabha elections from Baramulla saw independent candidate Abdul Rasheed Sheikh, currently incarcerated for espousing separatism for Kashmir, being elected to parliament as an independent candidate. An election department official says, “Census taking exercise in large states like Maharashtra can simply be accomplished within six months. J&K and Ladakh UTs’ census exercises will require far shorter timelines.” While the delimitation commission set up in March 2020 looked at the entire J&K UT as one political region, a more discriminated effort, armed with real time data may have prevented Jammu region shedding literal political space. The recent uptick in unheard of terrorism activity in Jammu region over the last couple of months has further antagonized the polity of the region. Will Jammu recover from back-to-back onslaughts by politics and new found terrorism? Only time will tell! For the moment innocent pilgrims are prime targets in Bharat’s paradise. (By Renni Abraham)

Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi Desperately Seeking Extension

Governor RN Ravi may not be everyone’s favourite former intelligence officer, but he has made a name for himself with the BJP top brass for holding the best nuisance value in an Opposition-ruled state. Now Ravi is desperately seeking an extension as his 5-year term is running out. His contention is that he served two years in Nagaland and came to Tamil Nadu capital Chennai only three years ago and so expects to stay on for two more years.  He has been shuttling to New Delhi often to meet Home Minister Amit Shah who alone can recommend the extension he seeks, besides calling on PM Modi. The former CBI and IB officer’s stay in the Raj Bhavan in Guindy has been sensational, to say the least. He has picked every possible hole in all that the DMK government does and has put a spoke in the wheel of every piece of legislation passed in the Assembly. Only under the prompting of the Supreme Court has he changed a bit to be accommodative in the sense he has been recently clearing routine bills that are non-controversial.  The moment he sees a red flag, as in the appointment of Vice-Chancellors that comes under the Governor’s jurisdiction, he would immediately take on the government. He has been the DMK government’s most acerbic critic and two more years of him may not be to chief minister MK Stalin’s liking. But being in the INDIA bloc, he knows the ruling BJP might like to keep their voice in the state for longer. (By Tamil Raja)

When It Comes To Business, Dravidian Puts Brahmin On Pedestal

In Tamil Nadu, the month of Aadi (sacred month between Jul 17 and Aug 16) holds a distinct hysterical attraction for both buyers and sellers. Retailers advertise the most attractive discounts and buyers just cannot resist those drool worthy offers. But why Aadi month? For those familiar with religion and rituals, Aadi is not an auspicious time for weddings and family events. You may be surprised to know that newly-weds are not encouraged to cohabit ….a strange social custom with strong roots in superstition. Yet, AadI is considered super auspicious for staunch devotion. Every day in the Tamil calendar has a deep religious significance. How did retail hysteria find its place in Aadi? Business and religion have coexisted profitably for ages…as religion has enabled the need to buy numerous products to appease the Gods, especially Ma Durga …offering dozens of glass bangles and sarees to the Goddess, simultaneously gifting to women devotees churning up demand for gifts galore that are sold at irresistible prices. Retailers are happy when the crowds stampede. Buyers use this opportunity of rock bottom prices to stock up for future gifting, weddings and events. Results: inventory flies out. The iconic store Chennai Silks opened Aadi sales this year with its full page ad featuring a “madisar model” draped in a nine yards saree. Religion, business and politics mesh here…the Dravidian ideology though consistently mocking Brahmin culture, is not averse to borrowing symbols of this culture to boost business. Ideology, religion, business everything has its place. (By Padma Ramnath)

For India Olympics Means A Gold From Neeraj Chopra

With the Summer Olympics in Paris a few days away, the focus, from the Indian point of view, is on a handful of individuals and the men’s hockey team upon which interest never diminishes. After lacklustre performances in the quadrennial Olympics for 41 years, the men’s team won the bronze medal in field hockey at the Tokyo Olympics 2020, but put off to 2021 because of the pandemic. Apart from the men’s hockey team’s fortunes which has oscillated like a pendulam, much to the chagrin of the game’s die-hard fans, attention has riveted on the likes of the undisputed queen of badminton, PV Sindhu and the track and field super star, javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra.  Sindhu’s form has slipped significantly in the last year, but she has countless supporters who believe that a big stage like the Olympics could see her rise to the occasion. Chopra seems to be on another planet though, startling the athletics world with consistent displays in the last eight years. The armyman from Sonepat has won everything that has been before him and hence the expectations are high — for him to win the gold medal in Paris; he had won the gold medal for the first time in Tokyo. There is also much hope on the men’s doubles pair in Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and from the rifle shooters. In all 117 Indian athletes will be in action in the French capital. For a long time winning the men’s hockey gold was deemed as the ultimate victory, but these days the name that’s in everybody’s lips is Chopra, Neeraj Chopra!  He will get a chance to defend the gold he clinched in Japan, three summers ago. (By G Viswanath)

Is Kollywood On A Pick-Me-Up Spate Of Strong Films And Super Heroes?

Tamil film fans are on a high …just salivating in anticipation of a star cine line-up. Keenly awaited is Lyca Productions’ thriller Vidaamuyarchi with Ajit and Trisha swinging to Anirudh’s merry music under Magizh Thirumeni’s direction. The news about Trisha taking on the director for some obscure issue and other roadblocks put the fear about Vidaamuyarchi becoming Vitta Muyarchi or effort abandoned. But all is well and Diwali is to be lit up by this film. Thangalan, the much talked about Kolar Gold Mines is a film that may take veteran Vikram to new heights in acting. This film, directed by PA Ranjit with music by GV Prakashkumar will be released on August 15. The very first song Minikki Minikki is already a hit for its rural beat, rustic voice and lyrics. Thangalan to be released worldwide in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi is predicted to be a creative and cash hit on the lines of KGF and RRR. Dhanush and his 50th film Rayan with a promising story and solid acting line up — Selvaraghavan, SJ Surya, Kalidas and Aparna Balamurali. AR Rahman has tuned the lyrics written by Dhanush with SUN Pictures gearing up for July 26 show time. Suriya’s Ganguva in 3D tech, directed by Siruthai Siva with Disha Patani, Bobby Deol and others is an epic historical film that has been long delayed. No wonder Suriya announced its Fire Song to be out on his 49th birthday on July 23 to keep interest alive in Ganguva. There are several small budget modest films too. Who can predict which of these films will grab audience attention? (By Padma Ramnath)

Madhya Pradesh Govt Collaborates With UK-Based Doctor’s Training Body

In a path breaking move the Madhya Pradesh has entered into collaboration with BTA (British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin) Training Academy, the UK’s reputed, education training body that offers excellence in educational innovation. The BTA, it is learnt, will draft the academic curriculum and the knowledge will be imparted to the MP government medical staff through its partner hospitals Link Hospital and Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences in Gwalior and Indore respectively. This MoU is designed to upskill medical staff in the MP state who will receive top-class education based on the cumulative rich experience of England’s 75-year-old National Health Service (NHS) experience. The NHS is globally recognized as one of the best in the world in the primary, Emergency, and definitive care sectors. Doctors at the BTA who are trained and who have worked in the NHS for several decades will be instrumental in ensuring the best educational model will be created for Indian conditions and appropriate curriculum will be shared with its partner hospitals. In 2005, the World Health Organization published recommendations for actions regarding emergency medical systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In LMICs, it is gauged that by improving pre-hospital and Emergency care, deaths may be reduced by half. According to the World Bank, India is home to just 10% of the world’s registered vehicles yet accounts for 22% of traffic deaths. Indicating an immediate need to strengthen post-crash care. (By Rahul Laud, London)

Devendra Fadnavis Asks BJP Workers To ‘Bat In Full Swing

 Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has given a clarion call to the BJP rank and file. “Do not wait for a directive, jump into the ring,” he told a BJP conclave held in Pune to strategize for the upcoming assembly election in the state. Always lauded for his measured words and restraint, Fadnavis has surprised even his disciple by ordering the party organisation to become aggressive. Repeatedly castigating the so-called ‘Fake Narrative’ used by the opposition to spread disinformation about the BJP for the parliamentary election, Fadnavis lamented the fact that even the BJP’s elected representatives were reticent on this count. “Our workers await directives. I now ask you to start batting in full swing,” he said amidst great cheers. Pune is the BJP stronghold as well as that of NCP leader Sharad Pawar. In this connection, he rationalised the alliance with rival NCP’s Ajit Pawar. Following the BJP’s poor show in the election, many party functionaries and even RSS mouthpieces have started questioning the justification for taking Ajit along. Fadnavis said on some occasions, it becomes necessary to retreat a couple of paces to attain the objective. The saffron party is known to operate according to the directives (Aadesh) received from the top. The fiat issued by Fadnavis is seen as a signal to the BJP workers to show initiative at local levels and deal accordingly with the opposition.(By Dilip Chaware)

Can BJP Fulfil Its Poll Promise In Odisha Budget?

 All eyes are on the BJP government in Odisha as it presents its maiden Budget on July 25. BJP’s national president JP Nadda was on a two-day visit to review the party’s overall plan and budget allocation under the leadership of chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi. All signals indicate that BJP will bite the welfare bullet albeit with pragmatism. BJP’s immediate objective is simple. It wants to meet the aspirations of the people and keep its poll promises. It is understood that Odisha budget outlay for 2024-2025 is likely to be around Rs 3 lakh crore — an increase of around Rs 40,000-50,000 crore over BJD’s earlier budget, say sources. To push welfarism, Majhi’s government has already made provision in the budget. Majhi plans to increase MSP of paddy to Rs 3,100 per quintal to meet its Samrudhi Krushak Yojana plan. To empower women, BJP had promised to pay Rs 50,000 per woman through its ambitious Subhadra Yojana Scheme which will be launched some time in September to coincide with the PM’s birthday. Sources say to cover 2 crore women beneficiaries the state government would require a budget provision of Rs 80,000 crore and it is expecting help from the Centre to partially fund this scheme. It will implement Ayushman Bharat Arogya Yojana as well as replace BJD’s KALIA cash incentive scheme. However, BJP sees wisdom in Naveen Patnaik’s Aahar scheme, the subsidised cooked meal scheme of rice and dal in 2015 to provide meals at Rs 5. This will be continued. However, BJP’s Urban Development Minister Krushna Chandra Mahapatra hinted that the KALIA scheme will be renamed. Like all other BJP ruled states, the party is saying cheers to welfarism in Odisha too. (By Sangram Mohanty)

Sena Factions Battle Over Movie Sequel On Anand Dighe

A verbal war has triggered between two Sena camps, both followers of Balasaheb Thackeray, over a movie sequel based on the life of fierce Shiv Sainik late Anand Dighe of Thane. The fuse for the skirmish was the show of the trailer held on the eve of Guru Purnima. Chief minister Eknath Shinde feels proud to call himself Dighe’s soldier. The first flick on Dighe was called Dharmveer. It had provided indication about two and a half years ago that Shinde was extremely unhappy in the then unified Sena. Soon thereafter, he walked out of the party along with over 40 of his followers to form the present Mahayuti government. Ever since, Shinde is the principal target of the Sena (UBT). Shinde’s close confidant and Thane’s MP Naresh Mhaske has lashed out at rival Sena spokesman Sanjay Raut, who immediately  raised doubts about the veracity of some portions of the sequel, named Dharmveer-2. Mhaske alleged that ‘Matoshri’ never liked Dighe’s popularity and in fact Uddhav had pressurised to cancel a condolence meet at Thane after Dighe’s demise. The trailer show was attended by deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis along with several BJP leaders. The Sena (UBT) is livid because of the Dighe movies. To sharpen the attack, Shinde’s followers have started saying that a third instalment, too, is being considered. The sequel will be screened for the public from August 9. (By Dilip Chaware)

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