|
FEBRUARY 23
THE UP CRISIS: DAY TWO
High court defers Kalyan's hearing till Monday
A division bench of the Allahabad high court deferred till Monday, hearing of the arguments against the dismissal of the Kalyan Singh government and administering of oath to Jagdambika Pal as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.
Bhandari gives Pal three more days, floor test now on Friday
With eight of the 22 Loktantrik Congress MLAs refusing to play ball with Chief Minister Jagdambika Pal and sticking by the BJP, the political crisis in UP threatens to linger for a little longer.
Jagdambika seeks more time to prove majority, will oust UP speaker
After securing a vote of confidence, he said he would invite the Samajwadi Party, the
Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which were supporting his government, to join it.
Loktantrik Congress splits down middle
Party working president Bacha Pathak claims eight ministers are with Kalyan Singh, with four others to follow.
Narayanan tied up in legal consultations
The President had an hour-long meeting with Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral followed by a meeting with the BJP president L K Advani at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Mulayam abetted UP coup to win in Sambhal
Close associates of the SP chief said the defence minister agreed
to prop up Jagdambika Pal as UP chief minister as he feared that
the Kalyan Singh government would have left no stone unturned
to ensure his defeat in Sambhal.
Bhandari says he acted to prevent horse-trading by Kalyan
In his report to President Narayanan, the governor is
learnt to have said that his decision was to avoid the question of
horse-trading to the maximum extent possible.
Vajpayee, on fast, blasts governor
On an indefinite fast in protest against the governor's "unconstitutional action", he urged President Narayanan to "immediately invoke Article 156 of the Constitution"
and sack Bhandari.
Advani seeks Bhandari dismissal
The BJP leader asks Narayanan to invoke Article 156 which states that the governor holds its post at the President's pleasure.
BJP calls for UP bandh on Monday
Former chief minister Kalyan Singh, senior ministers Lalji Tandon, Omprakash Singh, Kalraj Misra and Rajnath Singh will stage a dharna during the bandh.
ELECTIONS '98
6 killed in poll violence
The second phase of polling is not as violent as last Monday's first phase, but
three people die in Bihar. Fiftyfive per cent turnout recorded.
Sonia wows Bombay
In common with the Bofors weaponry that is inextricably linked to her late husband's name, she has perfected what in military slang is termed shoot-and-scoot strategy.
She storms into a city, a venue. She shoots from the hip, her salvoes tailored to local prejudice. And she goes, leaving the opposition in her wake, wondering how to counter her.
'Yes, I will vote for the Congress this time'
'"She is like a bahu," declared an elderly Maharashtrian couple after the speech. "She may be from some other country. But she is just like the bahus that come to our families from different castes. Once they marry into our families they become one of us.'
Warangal belies prognosis of Naxal violence on polling day
Despite the shadow of violence and the pall of suicides by farmers, the district does not turn its back on the democratic process.
FEBRUARY 22
THE UP CRISIS, DAY ONE
Kalyan sacked! Jagdambika sworn in
A B Vajpayee went on a fast unto death at midnight after UP Governor Romesh Bhandari dismissed Chief Minister Kalyan Singh. Jagdambika Pal, whose Loktantrik Congress withdrew support to the BJP government on Saturday, was sworn in as CM late last night. He has been asked to prove his majority in the assembly by Tuesday.
'The Governor did not go by the rule book'
The President is upset at the arbitrary way in which UP Governor Romesh Bhandari dismissed the state government on the yet unsupported word of two ministers. And is consulting constitutional lawyers before he acts.
'Thou shall not dismiss'
Constitutional experts read the law to the UP governor.
'Kalyan Singh did no work for the state'
'He had told us he would not spread communal hatred in the state. But after he got a majority, he did exactly the opposite and has been openly promising a Ram mandir.' UP's new Chief Minister Jagdambika Pal, in an exclusive interview.
Schism evident in Loktantrik Congress
Two Loktantrik Congress ministers claim their party members were kept in the dark about the withdrawal of support to the Kalyan Singh government.
'Kalyan Singh was adopting a Hitlerian attitude in
running the administration'
Loktantrik Congress leader Naresh Agrawal accuses Chief Minister Kalyan Singh of trying to split his party.
UP fall shows BJP the risks of coalition governments
The crisis puts a question mark on the ability of the BJP to run coalitions, and might have serious repercussions when the party seeks support to rule at the Centre.
Kalyan may have queered his own pitch
The chief minister apparently wanted to form a ministry with a simple BJP majority after the Lok Sabha elections. And the members of the Loktantrik Congress suspected what was afoot...
BJP was confident of proving majority in UP assembly
There is no threat to the coalition government, BJP vice-president Kishan Lal Sharma claimed on Saturday evening.
ELECTIONS '98: FEBRUARY 22 ISSUE
Massive security for second phase of polling
Police, paramilitary forces in battle gear, shoot-at-sight orders, roving helicopters... The authorities are taking no chances after the violence during the first phase of elections.
To vote or not to vote? Tribals in AP's Naxalite-affected districts debate the risks
Tribals in the Manala village, which has more than 2,600 voters and is located deep in the forests of the Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency, shudder at the sight of a stranger.
NRI ahead in the Nizamabad fray
"The town elects only those who have the potential
to do something -- they should have the right connections," says one voter.
By that yardstick, all three candidates are strong in this area.
Bihar's electoral characteristics also found in Bengal
In both states, there is this uncanny similiarity -- of fierce contests between friends turned arch enemies, leading to situations where the third contestant is the real beneficiary.
Laloo's henchmen threaten to repeat Madhepura/Patna in Hajipur
What lends an explosive edge to the developing scenario is that in recent days, bands of Paswan followers are going around the constituency, openly threatening to either retaliate with violence, or commit self-immolation, at the first sign of rigging by the RJD.
The son may set in Secunderabad
Eighteen months is all it takes to turn your greatest asset into your deadliest liability.
Ask P V Rajeshwara Rao, he'll tell you.
Brothers's proxy battle in Pandharpur
Besides deciding the fate of six candidates in the fray, it will also settle a battle for supremacy between two brothers -- both of whom, incidentally, are not contesting the election.
Will Nainital be N D Tiwari's last hurrah?
The much-hyped demand for a separate hill state, which caused much heat and dust earlier in the decade, is a non-issue in the current general election.
Former President's son gives BJP a run for its money in Vidisha
Although Ashutosh Sharma is a novice in politics, he is not a stranger to the electorate. His family's political background, along with the profound impact of his father's clean image, may hold him in good stead in a constituency where BJP candidates have won the last four elections.
The goonda from Kunda
Officially, Raja bhaiyya has little to do -- his portfolio is the vaguely titled 'minister for programme implementation.' However, in his stronghold Kunda, he virtually is government, judge and jury all rolled in one.
Gadkari stakes ministerial position on Nagpur result
A strange battle is on in Nagpur. Congress nominee Vilas Muttemwar and BJP's Ramesh Mantri maintain low profiles as a proxy war is waged by Maharashtra BJP minister Nitin Gadkari and sitting BJP-turned-Congress MP Banwarilal Purohit.
Nagercoil all set to elect first BJP MP from Tamil Nadu
Going by the mood of the electorate, this constituency is ripe for a change.
Former rulers battle for public approval
Their royal titles gone, the scions of what was once the princely families of Kurupam and Chinna Merengi are now crossing swords in the Parvathipuram constituency of north coastal Andhra Pradesh.
The honest man and the filmstar'
In the north a simple man like Janardhan could have won, but this
is Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, where filmstars are rated next to gods. So Sharat Kumar will win, even while Janardhan talks about visiting
every village like Mahatma Gandhi and solving all their problems.
'The Sonia factor is there, but mainly it is the failure of the UF and BJP that is helping us'
When the whole party swears by Sonia, Rajesh Pilot boldly ventures to say that the Congress's life-force is just another factor that has brightened the party's chances.
'No party wants a watertight anti-defection law'
Union Law Minister Ramakant Khalap on his
achievements, unfinished tasks, and political future.
'No party including the BJP will get a majority by itself'
'Every partner in the coalition must participate in the government. There should not be back-seat driving or power without responsibility.' Lok Shakti leader Ramakrishna Hegde tells the Rediff Election Chat.
How to rig elections: A Primer
'He is a senior functionary of the youth wing of a political party with national-level ambitions,' says Prem Panicker on the campaign trail. 'And he is, with what for me is a stupefying calm, giving me a basic primer in how to fix an election.'
Madam's Mystique
It was the end of the rally that provided its highlight. As the star Congress campaigner flew off in a swirl of dust, her admirers on the ground fought a desperate war for the few Sonia cut-outs that were scattered across the large ground. A Rediff Election Special.
ISSUES '98:'We need a bold government to take hard decisions'
Dr S P Gupta, chairman of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, on what the next government needs to do.
India Speaks!
'We are the world's largest democracy; it's time we learn to appreciate this fact and use it to further our progress in the world.'
Sunil Bafna, 39, manager, on what he expects politicians.
Rock 'n' Poll
Political parties are out on the streets making a song and dance over the election. Mud-slinging, name-calling, they are all part of the poll-time jukebox, the inspiration obviously flowing from tinseltown. Presenting the political Top of the Pops. A Rediff Election Special.
OTHER REPORTS:
'Now we know what it means for the people of
Kashmir, Punjab and Assam to live with terrorism'
Eyewitnesses in Coimbatore provided a graphic and moving description of last Saturday's catastrophe.
Curfew continues in Ajmer
Though the priests of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinnuddin Hasan
Chisti's durgah has ended their dharna, the
pilgrim town is still tense.
Clinton urged to invite Narayanan for a visit
In a letter to the US president, some 26 Congressmen said such a visit from India would be 'timely and very important' to the growing Indo-US
relations.
Comedian Om Prakash dead
The popular charactor actor, who performed memorable roles in Chupke Chupke and Namak Halal died of cardiac arrest in Bombay. He was 80.
FEBRUARY 21
Bihar poll countermanded, EC transfers top officials
Declaring the election process as 'null and void', the Election Commission ordered the state administration to immediately transfer the deputy inspector general, the senior superintendent of police, the district magistrate and several other officers of the Patna district who were in charge of the polling which was held on Monday.
Campaigning ends in 183 seats, EC gears up for second phase
Barring the bomb blasts in Coimbatore which forced postponement of polling there to February 28, electioneering for the second round of voting was peaceful.
Coimbatore blasts part of a bigger conspiracy, says BJP
The intelligence agencies, BJP sources told Rediff On The NeT, had information in November of an impending serial bomb blast once Ramzan was over.
More bombs recovered in Coimbatore
The Coimbatore rural police recovered 75 petrol bombs from a bush near Salamat street in suburban
Karumbukkadi during combing operations late on Thursday night.
Kesri sticks to stand, blasts RSS out of the sky
The Congress president described the RSS as a "fascist organisation" and alleged it was involved in every single communal riot the country has witnessed since Independence.
BSP makes little headway in UP
The BJP wins most of the reserved seats in the state.
No post-poll alliance with Congress, UF: BJP
"We are fighting both these parties in the elections and there is no question of forming any alliance with them," says Arun Jaitley.
The Church and the Christian vote
Which way the Christian vote swings will decide the fate of about half a dozen sitting MPs and the final tally of the two coalition fronts in Kerala.
'The BJP is not willing to accept
any Muslim. They only want people with Muslim-sounding names'
'Whatever the RSS, the VHP, the Bajrang Dal says, Vajpayee will be compelled to dance to their tune.' Arif Baig, the only Muslim ever to win a Lok Sabha seat for the BJP, in a revealing interview.
After Madhepura, Laloo plans Paswan's ruin
The contest in Hajipur is not about Paswan versus Das. Not about upper castes versus the rest. Not about development or the lack thereof. At bedrock, the undercurrent is simple, and clear -- this is an election where the voters are asked to make a simple choice: are you pro-Laloo, or anti-?
Swamy is firing at CPI-M in Madurai from Jaya's shoulder
The last time round he polled almost 150,000 votes riding the crest of an anti-Jaya wave. And this time he is fighting the poll with Jaya as his main canvasser.
Of neglect, caste, and a world famous finance minister
Sivaganga, despite its grand name, looks parched, industries are non-existent, and caste equations play a role.
The battle of the kamals
Kamal Nath is doing everything to win back the constituency while Sunderlal Patwa is fighting hard to retain it.
Sudhakar Naik is out to avenge his 1996 defeat
For the former Maharashtra chief minister, it is a do-or-die battle.
For Arif Baig, Rajesh Khanna's tantrum is all in a day's work
Even Chief Minister Digvijay Singh fails to make yesterday's superstar change his mind.
V Gopalsamy may walk away with Sivakasi
Like Jaya's corruption. Vaiko's LTTE connections do not seem to matter in this election.
Sports Minister D Adithan faces a tough match
He has one advantage that cannot be matched by any of his Nadar rivals. In his vast constituency that stretches over three districts, there must be more than 1,000 villages. In every village Adithan knows at least a couple of people by their first names.
Jena finds the battle tough and tiring
For the first time in 40 years, the Congress has an edge in Kenderapara, Orissa,
a legendary Janata Dal stronghold.
Stymied by Naxalite threats, candidates avoid interior Rajnandgaon
Former UP governor Motilal Vora is finding the going tough.
Sushil Shinde has to redeem Solapur for Congress
The onus of redeeming the party's lost pride has fallen on his shoulders.
Jaipal Reddy takes on PCC president in Mahbubnagar
The constituency presents a conflicting picture with the ruling Telugu Desam having won all the seven assembly segments.
Parties find women candidates an unattractive proposition
West Bengal and Bihar are perhaps the only states where the number of women contestants did not see a downslide whereas in Karnataka, it touched
a low of ten, down from 70 in the last election.
'There is a very strong Vajpayee-Hinduja connection'
Vishwajit Prithvijit Singh, the Congress party's top spin doctor, tells the Rediff Election Chat.
What ails Indian governance?
"We have combined the executive, legislative and watchdog functions
into one body, the Parliament, and that is at the root of our current problems," says Shalab Kumar.
The Untold Story Of The Coimbatore Blasts
The T V R Shenoy column.
Issues '98: 'We must create a sense of national integration'
Zafar Futehally speaks on the concerns of environment and integration for India's future.
'I am still keen to know what happiness means'
Bharatiben Pandya, 65, housewife, on what she expects from this election and the politicians.
Rock 'n' Poll
Political parties are out on the streets making a song and dance over the election. Mud-slinging, name-calling, they are all part of the poll-time jukebox, the inspiration obviously flowing from tinseltown. Presenting the political Top of the Pops. A Rediff Election Special.
OTHER REPORTS:
56 hurt as fresh violence erupts in Ajmer
A violent mob, annoyed with the administration's refusal to let them
pray near the Sufi saint Khwaja Moinnuddin Hasan Chisti's
durgah, resorted to heavy stone-throwing. The curfew continues for the fourth consecutive day.
Assam: Minister quits AGP govt
Haryana: Three mill workers killed in police firing
FEBRUARY 20
Everybody knows who got the Bofors money, Gujral blasts Congress for the first time
The prime minister says the inquiry into the Bofors gun deal began in the middle of November to find out who the beneficiaries were, and after that his government was toppled.
Nine youths arrested in Kerala for involvement in Coimbatore blasts
A police team arrested them on the night of February 17 at Kalathode following a tip-off that the youth were hiding in a house there. All the nine hail from Ukkadam area in Coimbatore, and one of them was Abbas alias Sabu, said to be the brother of Mujibur Rehman, alleged supplier of bombs and an accused in the Coimbatore bomb blast case.
Farooq warns of street fights if Article 370 is scrapped
Coming down heavily on the BJP for spreading rumours that all Hindus have left his state, he disclosed his plans to set up village defence committees to protect the Hindus in the villages, and providing them with sophisticated arms for self-defence.
AP's violent first phase points to encore on Sunday as well
Out of the 599 booths in which the Election Commission ordered a repoll, a whopping 238 are in 13 constituencies in Andhra Pradesh alone.
Congress, TDP workers clash in Guntur
The police opened fire in the air to quell a clash between Congress and Telugu Desam Party workers at Dondapadu village in Narsaraopeta constituency in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh on Thursday.
Naxalites threaten to disrupt poll in 3 MP districts
The police in Balaghat, Rajanandgaon and Mandla districts have been alerted after the People's War Group issued the threat.
Security beefed up in Bombay on poll-eve
Intelligence reports have cautioned the state election authorities against the possible intervention of foreign hands to disrupt the election process in Maharashtra.
The Other Mrs Gandhi
Maneka refuses to allow son Varun to take any part in the campaign -- again in marked contrast to Sonia, who never attends an election meeting without at least one of her two children in tow. "I think children are too precious to be exposed to politics," she says.
Nalgonda cries for water, but politicians want its votes
"Give us river water by 2003, or face the consequences," Jala Saadhana Samithi president Dushherla Satyanarayana seethes with rage. "The Srisailam dam will be blown up if our district does not get river water by then."
Arjun Singh lost Satna. Hoshangabad has never been kind to newcomers
VIP constituency Hoshangabad will witness a bitter fight when it goes to the polls on February 22.
The communal divide cleaves Charminar country
"The credentials of the candidates do not matter to the electorate,
what matters to them is seeing the candidate
of their community get elected," says one voter.
More stars than there are in heaven in AP
Film stars, campaigning for the Telugu Desam Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party in Andhra Pradesh are providing humour, albeit unwittingly, to the electorate.
Bihar: An Area of Darkness
The investments ushered elsewhere in the country by liberalisation have clearly not made their way to Bihar. "There is no electricity here, how can you have any industry without basic infrastructure?" argues a state government official.
Frugal meals, hard talk and Mulayam's ability
'I am equally at ease while ploughing fields and disposing of files," says the defence minister.
Caste, not anti-Laloo wave, will help Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar led the charge against Laloo Yadav; yet in Barh, he will win because it has the right caste combination.
Eight-time winner Shukla seeks more
Both Vajpayee and Sonia Gandhi have campaigned in Raipur, which has usually voted for the party that wins, save the last time.
Victor and vanquished meet again in the battle of the Patils
In the fray to retain the seat he has held since 1980 is Congressman and former Lok Sabha speaker Shivraj Patil. For the third time, his main adversary is Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Dr Gopalrao Patil, a Rajya Sabha MP.
Shivaji's descendants to help Sena storm Kolhapur
With the descendants of Maharashtra's most famous leader in the party, the Sena will clearly sweep the poll
'The RJP government is preventing Kutch's development
Former Gujarat chief minister Suresh Mehta in a candid interview.
'The BJP is running everywhere like a venomous snake after Sonia started campaigning'
Controversial Kerala politician Abdul Nasser Madani, in a provocative interview.
Candidates belonging to other parties need not apply!
Ponnani, in fact, has returned IUML's national president, Ghulam Mohammad Banatwala, with impressive winning margins, in every single general election since 1977 (with the exception of 1991) -- and Elections '98 seems set to continue the trend.
House of the Rising Son
'India is a tolerant, secular and slave country. We
shouldn't mind being ruled by foreigners and by those following
religions that are seeking to displace the primary religion of the
land,' says Varsha Bhosle.
The BJP should sit it out in the Opposition
When the Congress makes a UF-backed bid to assume power, says Saisuresh Sivaswamy, the view from the street is that such a government is a readymade recipe for disaster. And when that happens, not even a Gandhi can keep the nation from turning to the BJP in the following election.
INDIA SPEAKS!
'I want stability, and elections only once in five years'
S Vishwasam, farmer, 50 years, Panickanadarkudieruppu, Tamil Nadu, on what he expects from politicians.
Rock 'n' Poll
Political parties are out on the streets making a song and dance over the election. Mud-slinging, name-calling, they are all part of the poll-time jukebox, the inspiration obviously flowing from tinsel town. Presenting the political Top of the Pops. A Rediff Election Special.
FEBRUARY 19
V P Singh is working for a Pax Indica between UF and Congress
The Raja of Manda now wants both the Congress and the UF to come to the negotiating table soon after the poll results are out.
Coimbatore poll shifted to Feb 28, car-bomb defused
The decision had been taken because of the prevailing situation in the textile city, the EC said, adding that reports from various sources were taken into account before the decision was taken.
RSS files criminal complaint against Kesri
The president of the RSS's Delhi unit filed his complaint under the Indian Penal Code, urging the court to take cognisance of the complaint and punish the Congress chief for his February 15 statement.
'If the bomb was planted by somebody other than the BJP, they would definitely have killed Advani'
Tamil Nadu Congress president K V Thangabalu defends his party's charge that it was the RSS which caused the Coimbatore blasts.
BJP softpedals on Coimbatore blasts to wean away DMK, post-poll
High-ranking BJP leaders admit that the feedback after the first phase of polls indicates that the BJP and its allies might fall short of a simple majority. And if the BJP only needs a score of members' support it might seek the support of the United Front constituents, especially the DMK and the TDP.
EC orders repoll in 821 polling booths in Bihar and UP
Of these, 700 polling booths, covering 30 Lok Sabha constituencies, are in Bihar and the remaining 121 are in Uttar Pradesh covering 14 parliamentary constituencies.
Curfew in Andhra town after post-poll clashes
At least three clashes between the Congress and Telugu Desam Party supporters were reported in Narsaraopeta town, Guntur district, since Monday evening.
Sonia to blitz nine states starting Thursday
Her week-long programme is to commence with a public meeting at Chandrapur, in Maharashtra. She will address election rallies at Hingoli, Nanded and Aurangabad in Maharashtra and Karimnagar and
Nizamabad in Andhra Pradesh, the same day.
'You give them 50 years, all I ask for is 5'
Atal Bihari Vajpayee is in fine fettle in Arjun Singh territory.
The mantri versus the ganglord
The complex relationship between Mulayam Singh Yadav and D P Yadav has its root in friendship.
Kanshi Ram's tirade finds many takers in Nagpur
The BSP, he thunders, has held power twice, in UP, the most politically crucial state in the country -- and this time, the BSP is poised to hold the key to power at the Centre.
Chidambaram working on margins
Victory is assured for the finance minister in his constituency and hometown, Sivaganga. The people are proud that someone from their town is advising the prime minister and has an international reputation.
Siwan reeling under RJD candidate's terror
If proof were needed that the Siwan parliamentary constituency is reeling under the terror of the regional crime overlord and the Rashtriya Janata Dal candidate Mohammed Shahabuddin, just take a tour of the town. It is bereft of any other party's symbols except the green and white lantern banners and flags of Shahabuddin.
In Berhampur, the fight is between Jayanti Patnaik and Vajpayee
Even Congressmen, while accepting that the Vajpayee factor may result in a tough fight on their hands,
hope that the BJP's organisation is not strong enough to convert this popularity into votes.
'The Congress has come to such a pass that it has to depend on this housewife'
A rare interview with Jyoti Basu, who might just be the next prime minister
Politicians hardsell US-Iraq tension to Kerala voters
The American threat to Iraq has emerged a major election issue in the
state where thousands of families are dependant on Gulf countries for their living.
Congress goes all out to halt saffron march in Vidarbha
It is a straight contest in all the 11 constituencies between the Congress-RPI combine and the BJP-Sena alliance, with the Janata Dal candidates in Nagpur and Wardha expected to make but a small dent in the votes.
Ghani Khan towers over Malda, despite the CPM's best efforts
Barkatda, who has virtually made the seat his monopoly since 1980, faces CPM nominee Jibon Moitra and the BJP's Muzaffar Khan -- both newcomers in the fray.
BJP attacks Congress bastion of Sangli
But Madan Patil of the Congress seems securely placed against Anna Dange.
Professors roll up sleeves in Mavelikkara
P J Kurien of the Congress has against him Ninan Koshy, a theologian backed by the Left Democratic Front
For AMU students, BJP represents a bleak future for Muslims
The number of companies that came for campus recruitments in 1992, the year the Babri Masjid was demolished, was 20; in 1998, this figure had fallen to just five
'Now is the time to reconsider our decision to globalise'
Professor K N Panicker in Issues '98.
Death and the Dynasty
'The Dynasty cannot keep expecting sympathy caused by untimely deaths
or crumbling opposition nor can they keep selling nostalgia,' says Amberish K Diwanji. 'Frankly, what we are seeing at present might well be the last flicker of brightness of the Nehru-Gandhi flame, before it finally dies down.'
INDIA SPEAKS:'If you are unable to keep your promises, why do you make them in the first place?'
'If Indians have lost hope in their leaders, it is because of this
stark reality,' says Shakeel Vazir, electrician.
Rock 'n' Poll
Political parties are out on the streets making a song and dance over the election. Mud-slinging, name-calling, they are all part of the poll-time jukebox, the inspiration obviously flowing from tinseltown. Presenting the political Top of the Pops. A Rediff Election Special.
OTHER NEWS REPORTS
Bharat Ratna for C Subramaniam
The former Union minister and Maharashtra governor has been awarded the nation's highest award, the third in recent months.
•
A magician's dilemma
The ongoing election wizardry seems to have cast an evil spell
on the flourishing trade of a prominent magician.
FEBRUARY 18
Four boys killed in fresh Coimbatore blast
The police said the boys, who were playing cricket in an open ground, stumbled upon a bomb while retrieving the ball from a bush.
Bihar death toll goes up to 31
Reports are filtering of more deaths in landmine blasts. The government claims that the press
reports are exaggerated, while it prepares for repolling.
EC orders detailed probe into Patna, Madhepura, Baghpat polls
The Election Commission said it had received reports of
vitiation of the poll process from some constituencies. While most
complaints were of a minor nature, others like those of Patna,
Madhepura and Baghpat were very serious. Allegations of extensive
booth-capturing had come in from these three constituencies.
Curfew in Ajmer, 20 hurt in community clashes
Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat said the action was
necessitated following incidents of stone pelting and arson in
the Durgah bazaar. The curfew has been clamped in municipal
ward numbers 20, 4, 5 and 32.
Congress alleges massive rigging by Badal family in Faridkot
While claiming that the Election Commission has been informed of all the malpractices, the Congress demanded "justice from the Commission."
Shadow of violence looms over MP poll
State electoral officer A K Vijayvargiya admits that tension has gripped the electoral battle in the state because of close contests and the presence of many stalwarts in the fray.
Low voter turnout worries Tamil politicians, pollsters
All poll calculations went for a six when 14 of Tamil Nadu's 39
Lok Sabha constituencies registered a miserable 48 per cent polling
average.
'Hindutva is a fascist agenda'
'Hindutva is nothing but a struggle to make 85 per cent majority Hindus the permanent majority in India. Permanent majority means no dissent, no opposition, no democracy and no competitive system.' Professor Zahoor Mohammad Khan explains why Muslim intellectuals don't trust the BJP.
In Hoshangabad, David may have the last laugh
"All politicians make money after they
get elected, but the 5 trucks that Sartajji once owned have
been sold," discloses one BJP worker.
'L K Advani, a sharnarthi, is telling us to go to Pakistan'
They didn't go 50 years ago. The Muslim population of Sambhal fear they will have to go now, if the BJP come to power
Mahant hands over baton to disciple, but ex-associate could spoil the BJP's party
In the last three elections, Mahant Avaidyanath won the Gorakhpur seat for the BJP. However, this time he has handed over the responsibility to his successor.
'But I am not the BJP! I am the Pune Vikas Aghadi'
Former Congress leader Suresh Kalmadi is confidence
personified.
Congress struggles to wrest Marathwada back from BJP-Sena
In the 1996 Lok Sabha poll, the Congress received a major jolt when its candidates were defeated by the Shiv Sena and BJP in six of the eight constituencies in the region. This time it is out for revenge.
2 Congress candidates in Saurashtra withdraw from electoral race
The move can only benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party, while Congress fortunes in what was considered its citadel is bound to nosedive.
Voters play hide-and-seek in Tenali
And at stake is the political future of the award-winning actress, Sarada.
Where the father fears to tread
Can the son win where the father lost? Can K Muralidharan better Kunnoth Karunakaran?
A triangular contest
Kozhikode is traditionally a Congress bastion. But this time it will see a keen fray
between the Janata Dal, Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party.
Gomango on verge of parliamentary record
Even his bitterest critics admit that Koraput is the only seat
not only in the state but in the country which the Congress can win
without difficulty.
Royalty continues to seek legitimacy through the ballot
Shorn of their regal splendour, scions of erstwhile royal families in the country have never fought shy of
rubbing their shoulders with the commoners -- at the hustings. This time also, they are in full strength.
In Tenkasi, it is worldly matters that matter
Union Minister M Arunachalam's presence in the fray, on the TMC ticket, makes this a prestigious contest, moreover since he has represented this constituency for 20 years.
Communications minister Verma faces 2-pronged attack from BJP, BSP
Despite setting up fantastic telephone exchanges in the Kaiserganj constituency, his victory
is by no means guaranteed.
I want my normalcy
'A life free of rioting is the normal course of things, just as
the sun coming up in the East every morning. The BJP and Shiv Sena can ask for no credit for either. It's a sign of how low our expectations have been driven that these leaders can sing us this siren song and have it applauded as a profound accomplishment,' says Dilip D'Souza.
The race could well be between dark horses
Janardan Thakur on how the odd men out may well be contenders for the prime ministership.
Issues '98: 'The function of today's caste system has changed'
'Indian society does not show a total U-turn in terms of change.
Yes, there is a new evolutionary hierarchy that is emerging in
society, which in one way is good. But it doesn't represent a radical
shift from the traditional to the modern.' Professor D Sundaram examines the changing face of India.
OTHER NEWS REPORTS
Time for the Battle of Basmati, says expert
A patent has been issued on basmati to Rice Tec, a US firm. Time, says Dr Suman Sahai, that India girded its loins again
Kerala: Congress, Lefties to fight it out keenly
Uttar Pradesh: Home guards clash with police
•
Rajkot royale
Gambling in Saurashtra is like never
before. On a high, a real, concrete high, all
thanks to the electoral process underway.
FEBRUARY 17
Violence mars polling, 26 killed
Crude bombs were hurled and landmines blasted. Rival groups and extremists exchanged fire as 26 people were killed in the first phase of polling on Monday. Twentythree of those victims died in one state alone, Bihar.
Two deaths were reported from Andhra Pradesh and one from
Assam.
Official toll at 49, army's bomb disposal experts called in
Even as the nearly 200 people injured in the blasts are undergoing treatment in various hospitals, Coimbatore District Collector G Santhanam and city Police Commissioner Nanjil Kumaran told reporters that no untoward incident had been reported since Sunday night and the situation was well under control.
Rajnikanth blasts attempt to unseat DMK-TMC combine
Superstar Rajnikanth made a veiled attack last night on the All-India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-Bharatiya Janata Party front for the serial blasts in Coimbatore. He said the blasts were part of an attempt to scuttle the chances of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-Tamil Maanila Congress combine in the general election.
Was Tamil Nadu government at fault?
Though such a conclusion flows naturally from reports on hand, it is not clear whether it was a failure on the part of the political leadership, or the top echelons of the bureaucracy which may not have briefed Chief Minister M Karunanidhi properly.
Former DGPs blame government policy for spread of bomb culture
When politicians tried to restrict the freedom of the police, K Mohandas had warned MGR, the then chief minister, that it would soon lead to a bomb culture in the state, a warning that has proved prophetic.
Kesri suspects RSS hand in Coimbatore blasts
Asked what made him to suspect a RSS hand in the blasts, Kesri replied, ''We all know what happened on January 30, 1948 (the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi).''
Surjeet blames foreign powers for Coimbatore blasts
The CPI-M general secretary said the evil designs of 'imperialist' forces should not succeed, and appealed to
the Opposition parties not to take advantage of the present situation.
DMK may reap a grim harvest in Coimbatore
The BJP is going all out to exploit the resentment among Hindus against DMK leaders for their alleged patronage to the Al-Umma and its leader Kovai Basha.
Blasts will not make a crucial difference to poll outcome
Indications are that the AIADMK-led alliance, particularly its partner the BJP, may stand to gain in 'marginal constituencies', where it had a fighting chance on hand.
The President votes!
In a marked departure from tradition, K R Narayanan on Monday cast his vote at a higher secondary school in the sprawling Rashtrapati Bhavan complex. He is the first President to do so.
Bihar makes a mockery of election
'Although paramilitary forces are deployed in Patna, people claim they largely remained spectators...' Tara Shankar Sahay reports from the state where 15 people were killed on Election Day.
The host is absent at his own party!
'On the day Jalandhar is scheduled to vote for or against Prime
Minister Gujral, all three theatres are booked solid for all four shows...' Prem Panicker reports from the premier constituency.
'I know what you have done, you bastard. You just wait...'
Savera R Someshwar reports from Deve Gowda country.
Gurdaspur sees stars
Vinod Khanna says he deliberately kept the stars out of the campaign. "As it is, the Congress is trying to trivialise my candidature -- a lot of stars running around would only have given them more ammunition!" But four of his insistent friends from Bollywood set the Ravi on fire.
In volatile Rayalaseema, it's only a war of words as yet
Dump fragile egos into poverty and idleness, add a dash of the scorching sun, plus red hot chillies which are a staple in every meal, and you understand what is it that makes Andhra Pradesh's answer to Bihar, a Molotov cocktail that explodes during election-time.
Anger is the most dominant mood in Tamil Nadu
By the time Jayalalitha's entourage reached Pondicherry, people began trickling in. It was a disappointing crowd. They did not applaud or whistle or dance when Amma spoke except, of course, when she mentioned MGR's name.
The return of Shankaranand?
Or will the Lok Shakti dash his hopes in Chikkodi?
'Earlier people voted for me because of my father's name. But now they are voting for me because of my achievements'
The goodwill the lady has earned among the electorate is, without exaggeration, astounding: Be it brahmin, scheduled caste or bania, in Aligarh they all want to vote for the BJP's Sheela Gautam.
Belgaum has nil independent candidates!
Belgaum in Karnataka, where polling had to be postponed by
a month in 1996 due to a record number of Independent candidates, 452,
has none this time!
Sonia for Congress PM, says Ghulam Nabi Azad...
Alliance only if Congress apologises, says Basu
V P Singh seeks action against Bofors guilty
Killer instinct
Varsha Bhosle reacts to the Coimbatore blasts.
Lies, damned lies and politics
Pritish Nandy is disgusted by the choices confronting the electorate.
The Backroom Boys
Rajiv Shukla on the invisible hands who, to a large extent, manufacture the poll prospects of political parties.
Issues '98: 'Police can improve only if the political structure changes'
K Mohandas, a former DGP of Tamil Nadu, on the state of the police.
'I know for sure the kind of leader that I want does exist somewhere'
Pravin Soni, jeweller, on what he expects from his leaders.
•
The gods of Shankaranand
The former Union minister has three deities: Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi and
Laxmi, the goddess of wealth.
Archives
|
