Bored faces
The prime minister, Narendra Modi, remains the undisputed numero uno in the Bharatiya Janata Party. But the ‘Modi magic’ seems to be on the wane. This was evident in the Lok Sabha last week when Modi replied to the motion of thanks to the president’s address. As the PM rambled on for two hours and fifteen minutes, some first-time BJP members of Parliament looked bored. Many were spotted yawning frequently while others had to face jeers from the Opposition for being seen with their eyes closed. The thumping of the desks, too, lacked the enthusiasm witnessed during Modi’s previous terms. The height was when one MP from the BJP was seen leaving the House while Modi was speaking. As the Opposition benches jeered, the MP sheepishly raised one of his fingers to indicate a toilet break.
Broken vow
The deputy chief minister of Bihar and BJP state chief, Samrat Choudhary, recently went to Ayodhya to get his head tonsured, take a dip in the holy Saryu river and offer the turban he had on for 22 months to Lord Ram to signal the fulfillment of his vow.
Samrat Choudhary
Choudhary started donning the headgear soon after the CM, Nitish Kumar, ditched the National Democratic Alliance in August 2022 to form the Grand Alliance government in the state. He took a vow to remove the turban only after Nitish was removed from the CM’s chair. Politics in Bihar, though, took an unpredictable turn this year and Nitish came back to the NDA. Sporting the turban thus became unnecessary and Choudhary finally took it off in Ayodhya. However, Opposition leaders insist that his vow has not been fulfilled since Nitish is still the CM. They are asking him to put the turban back on.
Future secured
Despite the BJP’s tally dipping way below the majority mark in the Lok Sabha, the Union home minister, Amit Shah, Modi’s trusted confidant from Gujarat, continues to be the most powerful minister. Shah is also functioning as the de facto BJP president. Many in the party feel that a major reason behind the BJP’s reduced tally, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, was the decision to retain sitting ministers despite surveys indicating anti-incumbency against them. Whispers say that many sitting MPs were not changed because of their closeness to Shah. Party insiders claim that Shah is trying to strengthen a set of leaders loyal to him to ensure he has enough backers when the question of picking Modi’s successor arises.
History’s mystery
Very few people know about the connection between the Bihar CM, Nitish Kumar, the new Nalanda University and the Turko-Afghan general, Bakhtiyar Khalji, who is said to have burnt the ancient Nalanda in the 12th century. But the senior Janata Dal (United) leader and Rajya Sabha member, Sanjay Kumar Jha, revealed this link. Nitish was brought up in Bakhtiyarpur, which is named after Bakhtiyar Khalji. “Who would have thought that a boy from Bakhtiyarpur would rise to rebuild and revive the ancient Nalanda University, which was recently inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the JD(U) leader pointed out.
Some leaders added that this nugget would make the BJP happy. The JD(U) is part of the NDA and, as such, Nitish undoing the carnage done by a Muslim ruler would suit it. However, they forgot that this is the same Nitish Kumar who had rejected the demand of BJP leaders to change the name of Bakhtiyarpur just because it was associated with a Muslim invader. Incidentally, after cutting through Bihar, Bakhtiyar Khalji’s next destination was Bengal.
Oil the wheels
The Mohan Charan Majhi-led government in Odisha is trying to generate public goodwill by ensuring a smooth rath yatra. Any hitch in the event would jeopardise the support that the BJP had garnered during the state election campaign by underlining how Odia pride is linked to the Jagannath temple. Majhi, accompanied by his two deputy CMs, KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida, flew to Delhi to invite political bigwigs to the rath yatra. This year, the president, Droupadi Murmu, who hails from Odisha, is also scheduled to attend the rath yatra, making it even more special for the state government.
Unscientific temper
Congress leaders in Kerala are tearing their hair following the discovery of an object associated with black magic at the house of the state party president, K Sudhakaran. The so-called ‘discovery’ is occupying considerable space in prime time television and the question foremost on people’s minds is this: who was behind it? Sudhakaran’s loyalists are both overtly and covertly accusing another senior leader who is trying to clear all obstacles in his race to the the CM’s post (the state polls are due in 2026). But the Congress is in a tough spot trying to explain the raging controversy over a superstitious discovery roiling the party of Jawaharlal Nehru who advocated scientific temper.
