Fashioning a comeback

Shahnawaz Hussain went into deep depression when he was first transferred from the high profile Civil Aviation Ministry to the less visible ...

Shahnawaz Hussain went into deep depression when he was first transferred from the high profile Civil Aviation Ministry to the less visible Ministry of Textiles. The general consensus in the media was that he had been demoted. Officials in his new ministry convinced Hussain otherwise, pointing out that he was handling an important portfolio. Textiles, after all, account for 10 per cent of the GDP and 30 per cent of our exports. The ministry has been held in the past by such political heavyweights as V P Singh, Pranab Mukherjee, Nathu Ram Mirdha, Sharad Yadav and G Venkataswami.

Heartened by the pep talk Hussain decided to make the most of his new job. The enterprising Hussain has discovered that his ministry runs the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) and he has smartly exploited the NIFT connection to garner publicity for himself. In contrast to Sharad Yadav, who as textiles minister wanted to close down the institute taking prudish objection to some of the plunging necklines and see-through creations designed by the institute students, Hussain has become a regular at fashion shows. He was so dazzled by the Lakme fashion show he has decided that NIFT will hold a national fashion show next March, which will out-rival all other ramp shows in glitz and glamour.
Family concern

Congress President Sonia Gandhi was so perturbed by the dengue epidemic in Delhi that she asked the DPCC President Prem Singh to prepare a paper on how the municipal corporation, Delhi government and the local Congress could fight dengue which has afflicted some 1800 people in the Capital. Delhi Congressmen assumed that Sonia’s special interest was sparked off by fears that that it might become a major issue in the upcoming assembly poll with even senior Congressman Ghulam Nabi Azad struck by dengue. Actually Gandhi’s concern was because her grandson Rehan was down with dengue fever last month.
Jaya Missing Link

Story continues below this ad

Jayalalithaa is furious with the Vajpayee government for not granting Jaya TV’s request for uplinking so that it can start a 24-hour news channel. The channel’s application for uplinking has been pending since last April and two AIADMK MPs have been regularly meeting DPM L K Advani to push for clearance. Jayalalithaa’s absence from Advani’s son’s wedding, after promising to attend, probably reflects her annoyance over the government’s dilly-dallying over her request.

The problem is that Jaya TV and its proprietor T T V Dinakaran have been investigated by the Enforcement Directorate for a FERA fraud and violation of several rules. Most importantly Dinakaran is a citizen of Singapore.

Last month at a meeting attended by senior officials from several departments it was decided that the license could not be granted to the present proprietor despite the powerful political pressure. Still the government has kept a window open by suggesting that the matter could be considered afresh if the ownership of the channel is changed. Dinakaran has reportedly decided to transfer his shares to his wife, but it is debatable whether this will be a sufficient sop for the Central Government.
Star after Sonia

Former Prime Ministers Deve Gowda and V P Singh are anxious to offer their services for campaigning on behalf of the secular forces in the forthcoming assembly polls, but as of now no one is interested. The Congress is, however, planning to utilise the oratorical skills of Laloo Prasad Yadav — who proved to be such a big hit even in Pakistan — in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Delhi. In fact, Laloo will be the party’s main star after Sonia Gandhi. So keen is the Congress for Laloo’s help that negotiations are on to offer the RJD two of the 70 assembly seats in Delhi as part of an electoral tie-up between the two parties in the Capital.
Rapped for gifts

Story continues below this ad

The Chief Vigilance Commissioner gave instructions that PSUs should not waste money doling out expensive gifts for distribution this Diwali at the behest of their nodal ministries. But not all heeded the warning. Some continued to present lavish gifts, ranging from clocks and digital diaries to crockery sets and suits, at the request of the concerned minister. Incidentally, Health Minister Sushma Swaraj put a notice outside her Safdarjung Lane residence stating that she would not be receiving Diwali presents. But to those callers who came bearing gifts despite the notice, the minister insisted on providing return presents.
Shining Example

Former CBI chief Joginder Singh’s wife Surinder Kaur is in a spot of trouble with the Information and Broadcasting ministry. Kaur heads the Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity and the ministry feels that she needlessly focussed the attention of the Election Commission on the rash of print advertisements highlighting the achievements of various state and Central governments, even though the commission had received no formal complaint. A TV news channel had carried an investigative report pointing out that state and Central governments were putting out advertisements extolling their achievements after the dates for the assembly polls had been announced. Kaur, after watching the programme, got nervous that she might be hauled up for violating the election code and unilaterally wrote to the CEC asking for guidelines on what sort of ads her department could release. To make the commission’s task easier she even gave specifics of various ads which had already appeared in print. The upshot was a ban on the Government’s ‘‘Shining India’’ campaign.