The PMO, the coal scam, the missing sentence and the CBI
Did the principal secretary to the prime minister authorise the controversial meeting a joint secretary at the PMO had at the CBI headquarters to discuss the coal scam report, asks T V R Shenoy. BJP follows Congress path of ruin
'If the activities of the BJP government in Karnataka fostered dissidence, the Gadkari era saw the same sin crop up elsewhere, notably in Uttarakhand. (Both states would see multiple chief ministers in the course of five years.) Gadkari's leadership saw the BJP drift away from its moral moorings,' says TVR Shenoy. Why India's top law officer is under attack
'On April 30, the Supreme Court spoke on the need to further insulate the CBI from political interference. Come May 8, perhaps their Lordships could also extend protection to the law officers too -- simultaneously sending out the message that the Attorney General is much more than a professional doing his duty to the ministry of the day, that he owes a higher duty as an officer of the court,' says T V R Shenoy. Why should the people of Bengal suffer lung cancer?
Mamata Banerjee has announced a Rs 500 crore relief package to assuage those who lost their money to the Saradha chit fund. As West Bengal is dancing on the edge of bankruptcy, this money will be raised from taxes on tobacco. Having already seen their savings go up in smoke the people of West Bengal must now puff away whatever is left, says T V R Shenoy. Strange Salman, the Saudis and Kerala
The Saudi leaders were willing to walk the extra mile to solve India's problem, but the external affairs ministry in New Delhi wanted to dawdle. Why did External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid not find time for his Saudi counterparts, and that too on a matter that is of great interest to Indians, asks T V R Shenoy. Elections soon after Diwali!
The state of the economy which is in a far worse condition than the government wants us to know; the UPA's instability and the Robert Vadra factor may force a Lok Sabha election this winter, predicts T V R Shenoy Marines and chopper deal: 'Italian Hand' at work?
'We seem to be reliving the sleaziest days of the 1980s,' says T V R Shenoy. 'Defence purchases are made under controversial circumstances, and nobody is held accountable... Shoddy staffwork leads to suspects leaving India, and it is virtually impossible to lay hands on them again once they are out... The same shabby acts of commission and omission. The same stale excuses...' The BJP needs to declare its PM today!
If a party is indecisive while in the Opposition, what does it say about its capacity to govern effectively, asks T V R Shenoy. Why I'm pessimistic about Congress or BJP coming to power
The decline of the two national parties is palpable. Neither can hope to reach the mark of 272 on its own. One can only hope that India is spared another 1996-1998 experiment where the prime minister's party has fewer than one-tenth of the seats in the Lok Sabha, says TVR Shenoy.