When Leeladhar Viyogi's family got together for his 50th wedding anniversary in Haridwar five years ago, he gave his two daughters Rs 500 each as kharchi, a token allowance that's a tradition in the Viyogi family. Sushma Swaraj got it too. "She always does. She is like my daughter. She has been part of the family for 44 years now," Viyogi says.
In 1966, 14-year-old Sushma Sharma joined SD College in Ambala Cantt, where Prof Viyogi was a faculty member in the Sanskrit department and a key member of the college's `Hindi Sahitya Kala Parishad'. Sushma was not a student of Hindi but Viyogi was quick to spot her oratorical talent and groomed her for debate and declamation contests. "She was short and would get dwarfed by the podium, so she had to step aside. But once she spoke, all the competition would crumble," he says with a disarming smile. "Her talent is God's gift. I only shaped it and gave it direction," he says.
In the book Anukarniya Guru (Gurus worthy of being Emulated), Sushma has written a chapter where she has paid tributes to the "three gurus" who shaped her life--her mother, Prof Leeladhar Viyogi and Jai Prakash Narayan.
"He took me to all the debate and elocution competitions. I owe my oratory to Prof Viyogi Sushma," says Sushma Swaraj.
The BJP leadership has chosen to ignore the reported communications of the US Consulate in Chennai related to the Reddys’ revolt of 2009 and how the BJP national leadership, particularly BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj and Venkaiah Naidu, played peacemakers.
The leaked communication (Reference ID-09Chennai327) notes energy minister Shobha Karandlaje as former chief minister BS Yeddyurappa’s ‘girlfriend’ who was dropped from the cabinet in 2009 bowing to pressure from the Reddys. The cable, dated November 12, 2009, says: “While the BJP’s national leadership ensured Yeddyurappa retained his post, the Reddys got their pound of flesh, succeeding in securing the removal of both the chief minister’s girlfriend and minister for rural development, and his aide (VP Baligar), reportedly responsible for targeting the Reddys’ interests. The BJP leadership also created a ‘core committee’ of faction leaders in the state party (led by Ananth Kumar) to vet major political decisions in the state.”
Venkaiah Naidu
BJP leaders refused to comment on the communications of the US Consulate in Chennai. “It is not an official communication and we need not react to whatever internal communication that takes place in an institution. We do not agree with the opinion expressed in the cables on various issues about what’s happening in the BJP government,” said BJP state general secretary CT Ravi.
Taking exception to the cables, BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said the party would not like to comment on the issue.
“We would not like to comment on unilateral comments by the US embassy officials whether senior or junior. BJP’s action is to be seen. The BJP is the first party that removed a chief minister (Yeddyurappa) over the issue of corruption,” said Prasad.
Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, was present on the third and final day of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi's 72-hour fast in Ahmedabad on Monday.
She made an appearance at the venue to lend her support to Modi's 'Sadbhavana Mission'.
Modi has been fasting since Saturday on a goodwill mission, seeking peace and social harmony.
Maharastra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray greeted Modi at the fast venue earlier in the day.
Narendra Modi is likely to end his fast at around 5.30pm today. At 10.30am, Modi and people at the venue observed a minute of silence for the victims of the earthquake that hit Sikkim and several areas in the eastern and northern parts of the country yesterday.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley came out in support of his colleague Sushma Swaraj on the ongoing controversy with regard to PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti praising Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Confirming that Mufti had indeed praised good governance in Gujarat, Jaitley while narrating the incident where Mufti had done so, said "she narrated an incident in reference to somebody whom she knew, whose work got resolved in half an hour or so as she mentioned."
"I think this a matter of record. The entire National Integration Council heard her. And what Sushmaji has said in this context, I think, reproduces to the best of my memory what Mehboobaji has said," Jaitley told reporters here today.
Jaitley also said that "the Home Minister during the course of the NIC meeting had announced that the entire proceedings are being tape recorded and the entire transcript would be sent to all the members."
Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Shivaraj V Patil’s resignation was accepted by Governor H R Bhardwaj on Tuesday, and as if on cue, another skeleton tumbled out of the cupboard. Sources told Bangalore Mirror that Justice J S Khehar, chief justice of the High Court of Karnataka, had objected, not to the choice of Justice Patil as Lokayukta, but to the ‘unilateral’ manner in which he was appointed to the office by the BJP government. End of the farce
The Karnataka Lokayukta Act states it is mandatory for the state government to consult the high court chief justice, leaders of opposition in both houses and presiding officers at both assembly and council for selecting the Lokayukta. With the previous Lokayukta, Justice N Santosh Hegde, set to retire on August 2, the B S Yeddyurappa administration sent a shortlist of three names to all the above functionaries, and no one objected to any of the names. When it came to owning plots, even Lokayukta was ignorant of law
But thereafter, Yeddyurappa, who was indicted by Justice Hegde in the illegal mining scam, did not seek the Lokayukta selection panel’s approval while picking Justice Patil as the new Lokayukta. Two days later he was ousted as chief minister.
Soon after Justice Patil’s appointment was notified, Justice Khehar sent a letter to the government (by that time Sadananda Gowda had become the CM), expressing his displeasure at being bypassed for selecting the best among the shortlist of three. His contention was that, the government, according to convention, should have called for a meeting of the Lokayukta selection panel comprising himself and the other functionaries to pick the best from the three as Justice Hegde’s successor.
Or, it should have consulted the functionaries individually over Justice Patil’s appointment. Anybody having objection to the choice could have recorded his/her dissent (just like the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, had done during the selection of P J Thomas as CVC). Justice Khehar, however, made it clear that he had no objection to the choice of Justice Patil as Lokayukta.
Sources said that the government wrote back a placating letter to him, stating that as Justice Hegde was vacating his office, it was in a hurry to name his successor. Not wanting to keep such a key post vacant, it went ahead with the appointment. The government further defended itself, saying, “Since nobody objected to any of the three names on the panel, we construed it as an approval that anyone from the panel could be selected for the job.” The mild-mannered chief justice did not pursue the issue further.
However, constitutional experts told Bangalore Mirror that the Yeddyurappa government had tampered with the process of Lokayukta’s appointment by circulating three names and getting “approval” for all of them.
A former advocate general told BM on condition of anonymity, “This (unilateral selection of Justice Patil) is not a healthy practice. I have witnessed the appointment of Lokayuktas ever since the Ramakrishna Hegde government enacted the Lokayukta Act. All of them were selected following due consultations; not merely through circulation of a letter with three names. Over the years, chief ministers had consulted chief justices, speakers of Assembly, chairmen of council and leaders of opposition in both houses before appointing Lokayuktas. The convention was broken for the first time with Justice Patil’s appointment. Hope chief minister Sadananda Gowda would not act like his predecessor while naming the successor of Justice Patil.”
What the Act says
A person to be appointed as the Lokayukta shall be a person who has held the office of a Judge of the Supreme Court or that of the Chief Justice of a High Court and shall be appointed on the advice tendered by the CM in consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka, the Chairman, Karnataka Legislative Council, the Speaker, Karnataka Legislative Assembly, the Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Council and Assembly.
Senior BJP leader L.K. Advani will be rushing to Nagpur on Wednesday morning where party president Nitin Gadkari will join him for urgent consultations with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat.
Sources suggested that the RSS was unhappy with Mr. Advani's announcement of a ‘yatra' between now and the start of the winter session of Parliament as it was being seen as a move to once again project him as the party's prime ministerial candidate for the next general election.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
Chief Mohan Bhagwat
The direct intervention by the RSS is expected to ensure that Mr. Advani makes a public announcement to the effect that he is not and will not be the party's prime ministerial hopeful. A public statement to this effect may be made by Mr. Advani at the party's national executive committee meeting here scheduled tentatively on September 30 and October 1.
After the 2009 general election, it was the RSS that had ensured a transition of power to the next generation. Mr. Advani was persuaded to resign from his position as the Leader of Opposition and Sushma Swaraj was given that place with Arun Jaitley as her counterpart in the Rajya Sabha. Simultaneously, the reins of the party were given to Mr. Gadkari.
It was on September 8 that Mr. Advani announced his ‘anti-corruption yatra,' but till date no formal announcement has been made on details of the ‘yatra.' There were reports that he would start his journey from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's birthplace in Gujarat, but more recently the place where Jayaprakash Narayan was born in Bihar seems to be favoured.
It is no secret that the party leadership was less than enthusiastic about Mr. Advani's ‘yatra.' There were fears that it would distract from the important task of preparing for the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab in the first half of next year. The party's stakes are high as it has government in the two hill States; is a ruling coalition partner in Punjab; and in U.P. it must improve its position dramatically to be even a contender for power in 2014 Lok Sabha election.
Matters will become clear only after the meetings on Wednesday, but if the RSS push comes to shove, Mr. Advani may even be asked to cancel his ‘yatra' altogether, party sources suggested.
A 15-member delegation of Madhya Pradesh BJP-led by State BJP president Prabhat Jha called on Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The delegation demanded support for the release of former party parliamentarian Faggan Singh Kulaste. Swaraj assured that the whole party was in favour of Faggan’s release and she accepted the proposal to visit home town of Kulaste Mandla on September 29.
Besides, the delegation would call on President Pratibha Devisingh Patil on September 21 and hand over a memorandum demanding release of Kulaste. Later, the delegation would also meet senior party leader LK Advani and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley and chalk out strategy of agitation. On the same day, the delegation would also meet Kulaste and Mahavir Singh Bhagora in Tihar Jail.
Smt. Sushma Swaraj
Senior party leader Kailash Joshi, Dilip Singh Bhuria, MPs — Makan Singh Solanki and Jyoti Dhurve, Cabinet Ministers — Vijay Shah, Jagannath Singh, Ranjana Baghel, Jaisingh Maravi and Devi Singh Sayyam, BJP SC Morcha State president Om Prakash Dhurve, Dalpat Singh Paraste and MLAs Kunwar Singh, Sudama Singh and Mukam Singh Kirade were in the delegation.
A statement made by leader of the opposition and senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj in Gujarat has stirred a storm in Srinagar.
A statement to highlight Modi's secular credentials turned into a full-blown controversy, involving a wide variety of people - from PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah to minorities panel chief Wajahat Habibullah.
On the concluding day of Modi's three-day fast in Ahmedabad, Swaraj said even People's Democratic Party leader Mufti, who had always been opposed to the BJP, praised Modi at a meeting of the National Integration Council in Delhi.
Swaraj while endorsing the 'Brand Modi' recounted the incident where Mufti had called Modi 'secular and muslim friendly'.
"Mehbooba Mufti, the leader of the PDP, a party opposed to the BJP, said that a muslim friend of hers wanted to invest in Gujarat and was astonished to be quickly granted an appointment. And when he did meet Mr Modi, had a decision in half an hour."
Omar Abdullah
She added, "You can accuse an Advani or a Sushma of bias when they praise Modi. But this was Mehbooba Mufti," she said.
Reacting to the statement Mehbooba Mufti expressed shock at 'being misquoted' by the leader of opposition.
"Its very unfortunate that the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha has misquoted me. Saying that I endorsed Modi's secular credentials is completely baseless," Mufti told Hindustan Times.
"I have requested government of India to release the full text of my speech and I have also asked for a copy and will release it for people to see," she added.
Mufti however refused to comment on what she had said exactly. "I cant say what I said until people know the full context and contents of the speech," she added.
On Tuesday, Swaraj who started the storm, again stood by her word.
Swaraj tweeted in the afternoon, "I correctly quoted Ms Mehbooba Mufti in Ahmedabad yesterday... It was not a private conversation... I only quoted what she spoke in the presence of over a hundred people in the afternoon session of the NIC meeting on 10th September."
Mufti's statement, however got state chief minister Omar Abdullah on a tweeting spree.
Abdullah critised Mufti for denying her remarks and sparked a war of words.
"I'm not surprised Mehbooba praised Modi, she can praise who ever she likes; I am surprised she'd deny it knowing others heard her speech," Abdullah said on the micro-blogging site, Twitter.
Mehbooba on her part reacted to the tweets in the same language.
"All of us know Mr Abdullah's tweeting habit. Had I said something like this why would he have waited 15 days for Sushma Swaraj to make such a statement and not tweeted it immediately as he was present through out the meeting. This in itself is unbelievable," Mufti hit back.
"As far as Omar's tweet goes, he should recall that he was a minister at one point in time and he did not offer to resign in protest and his father was the only Muslim leader who stood by Narendra Modi at the time when Gujarat riots took place and its his father who should have actually been quoted as he is present at iftar parties given my Modi. He praises Modi all the time," Mufti said.
Abdullah was minister of state for external affairs in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government when the riots took place.
Immediately after Mufti's statement came in a section of media Abdullah tweeted.
"Have never denied being a part of the NDA Ms Mufti but I've also said it was a mistake I regret & will never repeat nor let my party repeat."
A minute later, he tweeted again.
"At least I've had the guts to admit our mistake, why don't you have the guts to admit what everyone heard you say - your praise for Modi."
And four minutes he reminded Mufti.
"Lest I forget Ms. Mufti - the record in parliament will show how I voted on the resolution abt Gujarat riots even though I was a minister."
Later in the day National Confernce in a press statement 'lambasted' Mufti for praising Modi.
National Conference while reacting to Mehbooba Mufti's tribute to Narrendra Modi in her NIC speech said that the PDP leader has only exposed the real face of her party's political ideology.
Senior National Conference leader and Member of Parliament Sharif-ud-Din Shariq said in the statement "PDP has always indulged in double speak in a bid to hoodwink the people and her eloquent praise of Modi is only a testimony of their true colours and dubious machinations".
He said, "why should Mehbooba not praise Modi, after all Modi is responsible for the killing of thousands of people of a particular community in Gujarat and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed as the Union home minister was responsible for the killing of thousands of Kashmiris."
Chairman of the Commission for Minorities and a National Integration Council member Habibullah, however, told HT: "I was sitting close to her (Mehbooba). I don't recall her saying any such thing. In any case, Omar (Abdullah) had left by the time she spoke."
Union home secretary RK Singh said the proceedings of the meeting will be circulated to all members.
"We will examine it... NIC proceedings are distributed to members every time and we will do this time also."
Leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley also joined the fray, saying that Mufti narrated an incident in reference to somebody whose work got resolved in half an hour or so.
The three-day fast of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was the "biggest political stunt of the decade", Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said Tuesday.
"The rise in stature of such people is not a good sign," Dwivedi said a day after Modi ended his Sadbhavana fast in Ahmedabad.
He said no sensible person could say that Modi could stand against communalism.
He said Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders were under certain compulsion in matters relating to Gujarat.
"The person against whom there are complaints of injustice, he has gone on a fast," Dwivedi said.
Taking a dig at BJP leaders like L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, who had gone to Ahmedabad to be with Modi during his fast, Dwivedi said there was a struggle in the BJP for supremacy.
Answering a query about Modi being projected as the prime ministerial candidate, he said such leaders who do not accept an all-inclusive society should not be projected.
NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sushma Swaraj tweeted on Tuesday that she has "correctly quoted" People's Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti as praising Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, which the Kashmiri politician has denied.
"I correctly quoted Ms. Mehbooba Mufti in Ahmedabad yesterday," Sushma Swaraj tweeted after Mufti's stout denial.
"I only quoted what she spoke in the presence of over a hundred people in the afternoon session of the NIC (National Integration Council) meeting on 10th September," she said.
"It was not a private conversation."
Sushma Swaraj said in Ahmedabad Monday: "Not just the BJP supporters, even rivals like the PDP's Mehbooba Mufti have praised Modi's work ethics at the recent National Integration Council (NIC) meeting. This makes us proud."
Mufti denied it, saying: "I have been misquoted saying I praised Modi. I request the government of India to release the text of my speech so that the record is set straight."
Mufti and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah are engaged in a slug-fest since Swaraj in Ahmedabad revealed Mufti's praise for Modi.
Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday denied the claim that she had praised or supported Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi at a recent National Integration Council meeting.
In her speech after Narendra Modi broke his 3-day 'Sadbhavana fast' at Ahmedabad in Gujarat, Sushma Swaraj had said that Mehbooba Mufti, at a recent meeting of National integration council in New Delhi had praised Modi.
Leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha had further claimed that a friend of Mehbooba Mufti had sought a favour from the Gujarat chief minister which was granted immediately.
The BJP leader said: "A Muslim friend of hers wanted to invest in Gujarat and was astonished to be quickly granted an appointment, and that when he did meet Modi, had a decision in half an hour."
Mehbooba on Tuesday hit back and described Sushma's claim as baseless and untrue. "I have never praised Modi nor recommended any businessman to him for favour. It is all rubbish," she said.
Mehbooba Mufti has demanded that her NIC speech be made public. Union home secretary RK Singh said: "We will examine that demand....the proceedings of the NIC are distributed to the members every time and we will do it this time also."
Sushma Swaraj, in her response to Mehbooba's denial, wrote on her twitter page: "I correctly quoted Ms Mehbooba Mufti in Ahmedabad yesterday. It was not a private conversation. I only quoted what she spoke in the presence of over a hundred people in the afternoon session of the NIC meeting on 10th September."
Mehbooba's denial immediately evoked a strong reaction from Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah. He slammed her in a tweet saying that he was not surprised that Mehbooba had praised Modi. "She can praise who ever she likes. But I am surprised she'd deny it knowing others heard her speech," the chief minister posted on his twitter page.
"Why can't she just admit what she said rather than deny the whole thing. So much more graceful to accept rather than call Ms. Swaraj a liar," he added.
