In an unprecedented move which has left many red faces within the Congress party, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has publicly taken on the prime minister, the prime minister's office, and a senior party colleague alleging in black and white that under pressure he has to tolerate 'irregularities.'
In a decision that will come as a breath of fresh air to a large number of embattled Congressmen, the party leadership in a change of strategy has decided to play aggressive and defend party leaders charged with graft rather than sacrifice them one after the other as was happening till now.
All India Congress Committee General Secretary Digvijay Singh's statement that even the worst of criminals should be buried or cremated according to their faith has kicked up a storm in the Congress.
Thanks to an over-enthusiastic Murli Manohar Joshi, whose anti-Congress leanings became a little too obvious, the Congress with a little help from friendly parties has scuttled the report of the Public Accounts Committee on the 2G spectrum scam. This has made sure that it cannot be tabled in Parliament, even though it has been leaked through the media.
It was a day of embarrassment for the Congress-lead United Progressive Alliance as Suresh Kalmadi, the Congress member of Parliament from Pune and the former chairman of the Commonwealth Games was arrested for alleged conspiracy in awarding a contract for the Games to a Swiss company at an inflated cost of Rs. 141 crore.
Even as the media continued to dig the dirt on members of Team Anna (with a little help from politicians and political parties) Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in her reply to Anna Hazare has assured him that she does not 'support or encourage the politics of smear campaigns.'
After having been beaten black and blue by Team Anna, the Congress party and the government are finally waking up to take the Gandhian on even as media managers in the party have so far not come out actively against the anti-corruption crusaders.
Anna Hazare's decision to end his fast on Saturday comes after the United Progressive Alliance government virtually bent over backwards to accommodate all his demands, including the formation of a joint committee with five representatives of the government and five from civil society. The Centre has also agreed to bring a government order to announce the formation of the committee that will have a co-chairman from civil society.
The Congress has sought to politically tackle the issue of Anna Hazare holding an indefinite fast -- to demand the involvement of civil society in the formulation of the anti-graft Lok Pal bill -- with party president Sonia Gandhi stepping in to resolve the issue on the third day of the activist's fast.Gandhi has directed the government to show the same level of sincerity while forming laws to combat corruption that Hazare has exhibited while pursuing the issue.
In 1983, when India won the cricket World Cup for the first time under the captaincy of Kapil Dev, Pranab Mukherjee was the finance minister in the central government led by Indira Gandhi. Today, 28 years later, Mukherjee is again the finance minister of the country. And the Indian cricket team has again won the cricket World Cup.
Anil Ambani, chairman of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and a former Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, was made to wait for over an hour by the Murli Manohar Joshi-led Public Accounts Committee before he was called in for intensive questioning on the 2G spectrum issue. He pleaded that since the name of his company and some key officials figure in the chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation on the massive scam, he would not like to say anything.
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi does not think she has anything worthwhile to tell her party MPs even though Congress MPs have been more than keen to listen to her views on a number of issues, including the numerous controversies hitting the party and the government.
The government had a close shave on the penultimate day of the budget session of the Parliament when the Left demanded a division at the time of introduction of the Pension Regulatory Authority Bill.
It was after a long gap that an aggressive and united Congress took the Bharatiya Janata Party head on in both the Houses of Parliament over the WikiLeaks exposure on the cash-for-vote scam as the party fielded its brightest and the best.
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee's seat offer is unacceptable to the Congress. With Banerjee playing hard to get, the Congress may consider going alone in West Bengal. Renu Mittal reports.
The list of Congress candidates from Assam may be reviewed following pressure from state party leaders. Prime Minister Dr Manmohan may have played favourites during the selection, reports Renu Mittal.
In an interesting turn of events, the Public Accounts Committee Chairman Murli Manohar Joshi summoned two senior editors of newsweeklies to depose before the PAC in connection to the 2G spectrum scam. Vinod Mehta and Manu Joseph, editors of Outlook and Open Magazine respectively were interrogated about the transcripts of the phone conversations that corporate lobbyist Niira Radia had with others, which were carried in their publications.
After Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, the Congress is caught in a seat sharing tangle with its alliance partners in Kerala, so far the only clear winning state for the ruling party at the Centre. Senior leader and union defence minister AK Antony has landed in Kerala and has begun discussions with alliance partners of the United Democratic Front, on how best to resolve contrary claims.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's bonanza to Members of Parliament of increasing their Local Area Development funds from Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore has come as a shot in the arm for members of the Parliament cutting across party lines. All are happy except one leader, the chairman of the Rajya Sabha Hamid Ansari.
Is Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in need of a public relations image makeover? To remind the country that she is a strong leader who thinks of her party first and everything else later?
© 2025 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances