<p>Hard season!<br /><br />Political developments in recent past have changed many things in the political circle of national capital. Fear of getting into a scam has changed behaviours. The scare is so pervasive that many of ministers are avoiding decisions. Railway Minister CP Joshi is one among them. Joshi has hardly taken any decision after assuming additional charge of railways following Pawan Kumar Bansal’s exit over a bribery scam. Last week, he sat with high officials only to suggest that do take decisions, but with caution.<br /><br />A strange silence is there in corridors of powe. Despite being an election season, some important states are going to the polls this year and Lok Sabha elections next year.<br />However, some other “brave” ministers are also there. Kapil Sibal is one of them. He has become extra vocal and active soon after his taking over additional charge of the Law ministry. <br /><br />Within hours, he invited criticism and allegations from anti-corruption activist Prashant Bhushan over his decision to negotiate in Vodafone case. People are wondering what has prompted him to revert to his old style of being extra-aggressive. But they are sure that it may soon drive him into some trouble.<br /><br />Anil Sinha, New Delhi <br /><br />Missed flight<br /><br />Union Minister of State for Home Affairs RPN Singh got a taste of wayward traffic in Patna when he missed his Delhi-bound flight on Friday night.<br /><br />Singh was in Bihar to campaign for Congress nominee Jitendra Swami in the ensuing bypoll for the Maharajganj Lok Sabha constituency.<br /><br />Since Maharajganj is in North Bihar, one has to cross the Ganga through the Mahatma Gandhi Setu, which these days mostly remains jammed due to closure of one flank which is under repair.<br /><br />The Union minister, while returning from Maharajganj, too, got stuck on the Mahatma Gandhi Setu. After the police party escorting the minister’s vehicle cleared the way, Singh was again caught in the traffic snarl-up at Chiraiyantand over-bridge in the heart of the Capital.<br /><br />Singh had booked an Air India evening flight which had a scheduled departure of 8.40 pm. Being a VVIP, Singh’s proxy check-in had already taken place, but the minister was still held up in Patna’s errant traffic. The flight was delayed by 15 minutes. But when the passengers on board came to know that the flight was held back due to the minister, they created ruckus. As such, the AI mandarins gave in to public pressure and allowed the aircraft to take off without the minister.<br /><br />By the time, RPN Singh reached the Patna airport, the doors of the plane had been closed and the flight started taxing. The junior minister was ‘off-loaded’.<br /><br />Abhay Kumar, Patna<br /><br />Among equals<br /><br />President Pranab Mukherjee doesn’t like to be the first among equals. That’s why, before he was to address the MLAs in the Himachal Pradesh state assembly on May 24 in Shimla, he made sure his office issues an advisory asking the hosts to ensure that all chairs on the dais for the function are of equal in shape and size so that he doesn’t appear bigger in anyway for anyone. Now that was something which had never happened before and left the secretariat staff wonder what to do. Prior to this, a huge decorated chair for the President with four other smaller-sized chairs for the other top dignitaries, including the governor, the chief minister, was planned for the occasion. Next was an exercise by the state assembly secretariat to look for befitting chairs equal in every way. They found four.</p>.<p>The President had issued another advisory asking the hosts not to address him with glorified titles as His Excellency, instead just prefixing his name with ‘Shri’ would suffice. If “power drunk” politicians are listening. <br /><br />Gautham Dheer, Chandigarh </p>
<p>Hard season!<br /><br />Political developments in recent past have changed many things in the political circle of national capital. Fear of getting into a scam has changed behaviours. The scare is so pervasive that many of ministers are avoiding decisions. Railway Minister CP Joshi is one among them. Joshi has hardly taken any decision after assuming additional charge of railways following Pawan Kumar Bansal’s exit over a bribery scam. Last week, he sat with high officials only to suggest that do take decisions, but with caution.<br /><br />A strange silence is there in corridors of powe. Despite being an election season, some important states are going to the polls this year and Lok Sabha elections next year.<br />However, some other “brave” ministers are also there. Kapil Sibal is one of them. He has become extra vocal and active soon after his taking over additional charge of the Law ministry. <br /><br />Within hours, he invited criticism and allegations from anti-corruption activist Prashant Bhushan over his decision to negotiate in Vodafone case. People are wondering what has prompted him to revert to his old style of being extra-aggressive. But they are sure that it may soon drive him into some trouble.<br /><br />Anil Sinha, New Delhi <br /><br />Missed flight<br /><br />Union Minister of State for Home Affairs RPN Singh got a taste of wayward traffic in Patna when he missed his Delhi-bound flight on Friday night.<br /><br />Singh was in Bihar to campaign for Congress nominee Jitendra Swami in the ensuing bypoll for the Maharajganj Lok Sabha constituency.<br /><br />Since Maharajganj is in North Bihar, one has to cross the Ganga through the Mahatma Gandhi Setu, which these days mostly remains jammed due to closure of one flank which is under repair.<br /><br />The Union minister, while returning from Maharajganj, too, got stuck on the Mahatma Gandhi Setu. After the police party escorting the minister’s vehicle cleared the way, Singh was again caught in the traffic snarl-up at Chiraiyantand over-bridge in the heart of the Capital.<br /><br />Singh had booked an Air India evening flight which had a scheduled departure of 8.40 pm. Being a VVIP, Singh’s proxy check-in had already taken place, but the minister was still held up in Patna’s errant traffic. The flight was delayed by 15 minutes. But when the passengers on board came to know that the flight was held back due to the minister, they created ruckus. As such, the AI mandarins gave in to public pressure and allowed the aircraft to take off without the minister.<br /><br />By the time, RPN Singh reached the Patna airport, the doors of the plane had been closed and the flight started taxing. The junior minister was ‘off-loaded’.<br /><br />Abhay Kumar, Patna<br /><br />Among equals<br /><br />President Pranab Mukherjee doesn’t like to be the first among equals. That’s why, before he was to address the MLAs in the Himachal Pradesh state assembly on May 24 in Shimla, he made sure his office issues an advisory asking the hosts to ensure that all chairs on the dais for the function are of equal in shape and size so that he doesn’t appear bigger in anyway for anyone. Now that was something which had never happened before and left the secretariat staff wonder what to do. Prior to this, a huge decorated chair for the President with four other smaller-sized chairs for the other top dignitaries, including the governor, the chief minister, was planned for the occasion. Next was an exercise by the state assembly secretariat to look for befitting chairs equal in every way. They found four.</p>.<p>The President had issued another advisory asking the hosts not to address him with glorified titles as His Excellency, instead just prefixing his name with ‘Shri’ would suffice. If “power drunk” politicians are listening. <br /><br />Gautham Dheer, Chandigarh </p>