Better half

Selecting a suitable yajman (a patron who performs religious rituals as per the instructions of the priests) for the pran pratishtha ceremony at the Ram mandir in Ayodhya, scheduled for January 22, was not a piece of cake for the organisers. While the prime minister, Narendra Modi, was the obvious choice for the task, he was not eligible because it is required for the yajman to be present at the religious function with his wife. The occasion is such that the yajman has to be of great stature. Finally, the organisers settled on the Vishva Hindu Parishad national president and reputed orthopaedic surgeon, R.N. Singh. Singh was more than happy to take on the responsibility. “Presence of wife is necessary for religious functions. My wife and I will leave for Ayodhya on January 18 or 19. We will be ... responsible for performing all the rituals ... on January 22,” Singh told this newspaper. While the prime minister is also preparing for the big day, it will be Singh and his wife who will fast for the main event. “I am diabetic and hoping that panditji will allow me [to have] some fruits. It will be okay even if he does not, because it is a big occasion for us,” Singh added. Sources said that the couple would initiate the ceremony but then hand over the reins of the rituals to Modi. When asked about the unusual arrangement for the consecration ceremony and the significance of a wife in a man’s life, several senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders remained mum. By now they know better than to voice their opinions on matters concerning ‘Modiji’.

Quick as Flash

The former cricketer, Ambati Rayudu, perhaps played the quickest ‘Twenty20’ political innings when he joined and then resigned from the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party headed by the Andhra Pradesh chief minister, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. The former national as well as Chennai Super Kings middle-order batsman, who has some fine knocks to his credit, beat several seasoned politicians in making a quick exit from a political party citing disaccord with the party’s ideology.

After quitting the YSRCP, Rayudu met the Jana Sena Party chief, Pawan Kalyan, and found that his ideas resonated with the party ideology. Rayudu, who calls himself ATR, is currently in Dubai representing the Mumbai Indians in the International League T20.

Over the hill

The sidelining of the old guard in the saffron party, including the former CMs, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Vasundhara Raje Scindia, has sparked apprehensions about similar action for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Most BJP MPs in and around 70 years of age fear that the axe could fall on them. Though the unofficial retirement age in the BJP is 75, party leaders fear that even those below this benchmark could be dropped using the ‘winnability’ factor.

The party leadership is extremely secretive about its moves and even the senior leaders are unaware of what is being planned. Narendra Modi and Amit Shah seem keen on replicating the ‘Gujarat model’: the duo in one stroke had replaced many of its state leaders — from the CM to the ministers — with new faces in 2022. A similar exercise could be in the offing after the successful experiments with candidate selection in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Many senior parliamentarians would thus find themselves on the sidelines. Notably, Narendra Modi is also 73 years old. But he, of course, is an exception.

Thorny presence

The Lok Sabha member, Sumalatha Ambareesh, is proving to be a thorn in the side of both the BJP and its new ally, the Janata Dal (Secular). The actor-turned-politician, who took the field as an Independent candidate in the 2019 elections after the Congress denied her a ticket despite her husband being a loyal member of the party, eventually won with the backing of the BJP. But now that the JD(S) wants to field its own candidate — possibly a kin of the former PM, HD Deve Gowda — the BJP has been trying to wean her away from the Mandya constituency that is part of the Vokkaliga heartland. But Sumalatha is hell-bent on contesting. It remains to be seen whether the Congress would support her this time.

More whispers

A meeting between the Biju Janata Dal member of Parliament, Bhartruhari Mahtab, and the Union home minister, Amit Shah, at the latter’s residence in New Delhi early this week has fuelled speculation about the former joining the BJP. Mahatab has an excellent rapport with the BJP leaders, including the PM. The Cuttack MP had earlier earned the wrath of the BJD leadership for criticising the party in the daily newspaper edited by him. No wonder, then, that Mahtab’s meeting with Shah has raised eyebrows in the BJD.