2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2

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2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-18-2008


BJP to go it alone in U.P. elections

Special Correspondent

Party to contest all 80 seats

Decision taken at the recent State Executive meeting

Party to launch a fortnight-long agitation

LUCKNOW: The Bharatiya Janata Party will go it alone in Uttar Pradesh in the next Lok Sabha elections. The president of the State unit of the party, Ramapati Ram Tripathi, said here on Thursday that the BJP would contest all the 80 seats in U.P.

Mr. Tripathi said at a press conference that this decision was taken at the recent State Executive meeting held in Vrindavan ( Mathura ). He ruled out the possibility of a pre-poll alliance with any party.

Mr. Tripathi said the political situation favoured the BJP which would emerge as a viable alternative in Uttar Pradesh.

The State BJP president slammed the Samajwadi Party and said it was incapable of taking on the Bahujan Samaj Party Government. Simultaneously, he attacked the Chief Minister, Mayawati, and said she lacked the courage to arrest Samajwadi Party president, Mulayam Singh, and General Secretary, Amar Singh.

Mr. Tripathi said the BJP would launch a fortnight-long agitational programme from August 9, which would continue till August 23 in protest against corruption, deteriorating law and order situation and appeasement policy of the BSP Government.
Rallies planned

He said this would be followed by rallies with the first public meeting to be held in Varanasi on August 28 and the second in Ghaziabad on September 2. He said rallies are proposed to be held in Meerut, Agra, Aligarh, Moradabad, Bareilly, Gonda and Gorakhpur.

From August 15 to October 15, booth-level workersâ conference will be held in all the 80 Lok Sabha constituencies in the State, Mr. Tripathi added.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-18-2008

MUSLIM POLITICS"

MUSLIMS VOTED AGAINST CONGRESS IN KARNATAKA MUNICIPAL POLLS
IN NEXT LOK SABHA POLLS MUSLIMS WILL VOTE AGAINST CONGRESS

SONIAâS AMERICA CONGRESS
By SIDDHARTHA

politicsparty.com PREDICTS that most Muslims in India are gearing up to vote against the Sonia Congress in the next Lok Sabha Elections.

The Indian National Congress led by its President Sonia is now perceived nationwide as
SONIAâS AMERICA CONGRESS.

It is as bad as the CPM being perceived as the CHINA PARTY MARXISTS.

Most Muslims in India are different from Muslims in other countries.
Indiaâs Muslims understand that India is secular because Most Hindus are secular.

Indiaâs Muslims also understand the pain and tolerance of Hindus when Terrorists target Hindus.

Indiaâs Muslims appreciate the phenomenal character of Hindus in not getting provoked when Hindus are massacred by Islamic Terrorists sponsored by Pakistan.

Hindus and Muslims have failed Pakistanâs sustained attempts to divide Indiaâs Society as per violent communal hatred.

Indiaâs Muslims therefore do not approve of Islamic Terrorism.
They abhor the killing of innocent and unarmed Humans of other Religions by Islamic Terrorists.

Indiaâs Muslims completely disapprove of the Bush Administration Anti-Muslim Attitude.
Iraq is a wound in every Muslim Heart.

Most Indian Muslims therefore intensely dislike the current US Leadership.

Anyone who identifies with the current US Leadership becomes the natural enemy of most Indian Muslims.

The Manmohan Government by its prostration before the US on Iran, on Iraq, On the US Nuke Deal and on its over eagerness to make India a Slave State of the US is increasingly ridiculed by many Indians.

Most Muslims therefore perceive Manmohan as a Hate Icon.

As a result the entire mood of Muslims has become Anti-Sonia Congress.

Muslims are thus perceiving and punishing the Soniaâs America Congress.

In Karnataka, the Muslims always vote for the Congress.
The Only Exception was in 1996. After the Babri Demolition the Muslims punished the Narasimha Rao Government.

The BJP is a big factor in Karnataka.

In the next Assembly Elections the BJP will win a clear majority in the Assembly.

The BJP is in Alliance with the JD (S).

The Muslims in Karnataka voted for the JD (S) in the recent Municipal Elections.
No Muslim voted for the Sonia Congress.

The Karnataka Municipal Elections is symbolic of the Muslim Attitude against the Sonia Congress and its Manmohan Government.

In the next Lok Sabha Elections, in every Constituency Muslims will vote for any other alternate Party to defeat the Congress. In BJP vs Congress direct fight constituencies most Muslims will stay away from voting.

The BJP is evil to most Muslims.

But for Most Muslims, currently, the Soniaâs America Congress is a bigger evil that must be defeated!

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-24-2008


UPA manipulated: Nitish

Patna (PTI): Assailing the UPA for winning the confidence vote by virtue of "manipulations and poaching", Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar asserted that the government would not not have survived, had it not not taken to "unfair and illegal means".

"Entire country and world know how the UPA government survived. It survived on manipulations, poaching, unfair and illegal means. People will teach the UPA a lesson in the next Lok Sabha elections", Kumar told reporters at his assembly chamber here.

The Chief Minister alleged that on day one he was apprehensive of the UPA government indulging in horsetrading of MPs and described the UPA as "United Poachers' Association". "Had the NDA members not not been poached, the government would have fallen," he said.

"It is amply clear that the UPA government has lost people's confidence and it will be voted out", Kumar added.

On the nuclear deal, Kumar said the NDA was "dead opposed" to it.

He resented the Centre's decision prohibiting the state government from entertaining any proposals for ethanol-based bio fuel.

"On one hand the Centre is going ahead with its unilateral campaign for the nuclear deal for production of energy but it is prohibiting power-starved Bihar from
implementing projects to produce ethanol-based bio-fuel", he said

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-24-2008

Karunanidhi keeping options open on alliance: Ramadoss

Villupuram (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's reluctance to snap ties with Left parties even after they withdrew support to the UPA, shows the DMK leader has kept his options open to align with the UNPA, PMK leader S Ramadoss on Thursday said.

Talking to reporters at Thailapuram near here, Ramadoss said Karunanidhi had stated in Delhi the alliance with Left parties would continue in the state. "This clearly shows he has kept his options open," Ramadoss said.

If he wanted to continue in the Congress-led UPA, he should have shut the doors for Left parties in the state. "Instead of doing so, he had said that Left parties were still part of DPA in the state," he said.

The DMK had already snapped its ties with the PMK in June, signalling a new political alignment in the state. However, the two parties continue to be part of the UPA even after the ties were severed.

Ramadoss, who had been favouring an alliance with the Congress in Tamil Nadu for the coming polls, said his party wanted to bring a Congress rule in the state after four decades.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - Capt M Kumar - 07-25-2008

With either the UPA or the NDA not in a position to cross the critical threshold of 150 seats, the emergence of the third front cannot but be a worrying political proposition. In any case, many of the powerful allies in the two main fronts are not exactly known to be enthusiastic about the chief concerns of the core of their respective alliances, the Congress and the BJP. In many states, the Congress and the BJP are not seen on the winning track.

Unlike the SP, the BSP is not a party whose influence is restricted to Uttar Pradesh. The BSP has been making serious attempts to build the organisation in other states for the past few years. That these efforts are largely successful is evident from its showing in the last Lok Sabha poll.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/P...how/3276997.cms

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - Capt M Kumar - 07-26-2008

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) have worked out an alliance for the next parliamentary elections, the Uttar Pradesh state unit of the Congress claimed on Friday.

"The resistance shown by the BJP and BSP towards each other is only superficial. They have worked out an alliance for the next Lok Sabha elections," Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) president Rita Bahuguna Joshi told reporters in Lucknow.

"The BJP and BSP tried to give a communal colour to the India-US nuclear deal, but both fell flat on their faces," she added.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/B...how/3280970.cms

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - ramana - 07-26-2008

Pioneer, 26 july 2008

QUOTEAnger in Bolpur over Somnath's expulsionÂ

Saugar Sengupta | Bolpur/Kolkata

An overwhelming section of Bengali middleclass feel that Speaker Somnath Chatterjee was a victim of regional politics in the CPI(M), which is dominated by the Kerala line.

Many CPI(M) sympathisers in Bolpur, Chatterjee's constituency, believe that the party has lost its class character. Rather it has been hijacked by "campus elitists" who have little or no idea of mass struggle.

The anti-Marxist wave that has recently gained strength in West Bengal has suddenly caught wind in Bolpur-Shantiniketan area after Chatterjee was expelled from the party "for upholding the neutrality and integrity of the high Chair" that his party had allowed him to occupy.

Dulal Pal, a local watch dealer, downed shutters of his shop and frantically looked for Chatterjee's cell number until he got it past midnight before sending him a "shock message".

"The CPI(M) blames the Congress for dynastic rule. Now, what is Prakash Karat doing with the help of wife Brinda. The CPI(M) is not what it used to be. They will face the consequence in Bolpur," said Madan Dhali, a fruit vendor.

A professor in Shantiniketan said, "It is high time the CPI(M) changed its style of functioning. It sounds paradoxical that they are afraid of expelling thousands of criminals in the party for the fear of losing polls but it takes half-the-strength of the Politburo to decide on a personality like Somnath Babu."



Some cracks in CPM in Bengal. May Bengal be rid of these jokers. Will Somant Chaterjee beomce new rallying point of anti-CPM or he has no fight left to correct the past ills?

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-27-2008


Sangma predicts hung Parliament

Sushanta Talukdar
NCP hopes to double its strength
P.A. Sangma

Guwahati: The former Lok Sabha Speaker and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, Purno Agitok Sangma, on Saturday predicted that the next Lok Sabha polls would throw up another hung Parliament necessitating the formation of a coalition government at the Centre.

He declined to make any prediction if the next coalition government would be led by the Congress or not. He, however, told reporters here that the NCP hoped to double its strength in the Lok Sabha from 11 members. The former speaker said that the Lok Sabha elections would be held on time and not ahead of schedule.

The NCP general secretary said that the âso-called third frontâ would not sustain as the latest polarisation of political forces had been specifically on a single issue of whether to support or not the India-U.S. nuclear deal.

About his partyâs strategy for the next Lok Sabha polls, Mr. Sangma said that in Meghalaya the ruling Meghalaya Progressive Alliance (MPA), of which his party is a coalition partner, would field candidates for the two Lok Sabha seats of the State â NCP for the Tura seat and the United Democratic Party (UDP) for the Shillong seat.

About his partyâs prospects in various states, Mr. Sangma said that apart from Maharashtra, the NCP had a very good chance in Goa, Lakshadweep, Anadaman and Nicobor islands, one or two seats in Bihar while the party would also put up candidates in Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. On Assam, the party was yet to finalise its strategy and was still exploring whether to contest alone or to enter into a tie-up with any political party, he added.

He congratulated Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee âfor his decision not to resign and not to succumb to the pressure of the Left parties and upholding the dignity of post of Speaker.â The former Lok Sabha speaker said that the CPI(M) is bound to lose for expelling Mr. Chatterjee.

Asked to comment on the cash-for-vote episode, Mr. Sangma said âit was shameful and unwarranted.â âIf they had really been paid money they should have gone to the police station. I think the Speaker will order an enquiry and the enquiry is eventually a must.â

About the fate of the MPs expelled by the parties for cross voting or abstaining during the trust vote, Mr. Sangma said the expulsion alone would lead to disqualification and the parties would have to lodge complaints to the Lok Sabha Speaker that the expelled MP had violated party whips and the Speaker would have to give notices to the member concerned and decide after taking evidences.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - ravish - 07-27-2008

The recent two day session of parliament which witnessed the Government seeking a vote of confidence was indeed very special. It gave the opportunity to the millions of Indians across the globe to have a first hand knowledge, as to how our elected representatives conduct themselves. The intellectual calibre and the oratory skills of our leaders were also under scrutiny. The disruptive elements were also very much visible.

The proceedings of the House gave an impression that for our country to progress in this Century, perhaps a sizable number of progressive and modern mindset people , including technocrats and corporate experts besides economists are required to be elected to the Lower House of the Indian Parliament. They should be people who can understand the intricacies of the modern industrialised and globalise world that India has to live in the future

Now who will elect these people? It is foolish to expect that overnight, caste based politics and ideology and cadre based polished will get banished from the Indian political scene. It is perhaps the Youths of India, particularly the educated youths in the urban areas who should take a lead in this matter. In the coming general election the urban electorate should turn up in larger numbers to vote for the right type of person as their MP. They should avoid being taken for a ride by the money power of various candidates and political outfits who often have their own agendas.

The Citizens of India in the next general election should very carefully exercise their franchise, so as to ensure that a sizable number of educated young people with progressive ideas should get election and we do here less of political necessicity as the hindrance for the Government of the day in carrying out reforms. We have seen how sixty odd chaps have held the whole nation of a billion people at ransom. It is time for the intellectuals in all the States of India to unite and form a front who should take upon themselves the task of mobilising the younger generation to exercise their franchise in a more responsible and purposeful manner.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - Naresh - 07-27-2008

Ravish Ji :

Welcome Back! <img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clap.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='clap.gif' />

You have G-Mail.

Cheers <img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' />

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 07-31-2008

How the trust vote will change Indian politics

July 29, 2008

Now that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [Images] has won the trust vote, the nuclear deal is on a fast track.

The vote has, in all probability, also ensured that the general elections are held on schedule. Neither Lalu Yadav nor M Karunanidhi nor Sharad Pawar [Images] want elections before April-May 2009. Nor for that matter does the Samajwadi Party, which is now propping up the government.

There are indications that the SP now wants to enter the government. Being in the cabinet, they would have a say in when the House should be dissolved. It may also rein in Mayawati [Images] from slapping charges against Amar Singh [Images], for action against a Union cabinet minister would need the approval of the President.

What has however changed above all is the country's politics. It is in a state of flux, but broad contours of the new alignments are getting delineated.

The prime minister is in a mood to push for another dose of economic reforms, now that he has shaken off the Left. This may bring the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party together, with the government indicating that it may seek the BJP's help on the pending bills for reforms in the pension, banking and insurance sectors. Dr Singh may wish to move swiftly, before some Congress leaders start to insist again on pre-poll populist measures.

With the Left-Mayawati handshake, the country is once again headed for a tripolar polity -- the United Progressive Alliance, the National Democratic Alliance and the third front. It is early days to talk about the third force. But already ten parties have come together, some of them belonging to the United National Progressive Alliance. The group is led by the Left and Mayawati, who has overnight become a national figure and a contender for prime ministership. These parties have decided to launch a five-point campaign against rising prices, farmers' suicides, communalism, nuclear deal and the misuse of the CBI.

Clearly, the third alternative parties are expected to make gains in Andhra Pradesh and in UP. In Andhra Pradesh, despite incumbency, Chandrababu Naidu [Images] has not revived as he had hoped to. Naidu used to sweep in the past backed by the support of the Kammas and the Kapus. Even though it is difficult to predict the impact film star Chiranjeevi's [Images] entry will have, and he is a Kapu, the Telugu Desam Party-Telengana Rashtriya Samiti-Mayawati-Left alliance could make the going tough for the Congress. The Left is also in close touch with Chiranjeevi.

The Jat-Muslim-OBC combination used to be a potent force in Western UP during the days of Charan Singh. If -- with Ajit Singh joining hands with Mayawati -- it brings about a Jat-Dalit-Muslim combination, Mayawati could sweep in the area. The Jats have traditionally prevented Dalits from voting. But now they will be on the same side, and though there are contradictions here, the Jats, like Brahmins, may see the advantage of going with power.

The Left may not bring much to the table in UP, but they had imparted a progressive image to the SP, and now will do the same for Mayawati. Their alliance with her will help wash away the stigma of her earlier tie-ups with the BJP, and is expected to make her more acceptable to the Muslims. Mayawati crossed the halfway mark when she fought elections on her own last year. Now with Ajit Singh and the Left parties on her side, she is bound to improve her performance.

If the Dalit-Muslim combination starts to click, it will change the established political parameters in an unexpected way. Then it will not be arithmetic but chemistry at play, with 2 plus 2 making not 4, but 22. Ground level stirrings are always difficult to predict.

It will not be easy for the Left to dump Mayawati. There was a time when they viewed the BSP as a casteist phenomenon. The Dalits would not forgive the Left easily if they go back on the promise making Mayawati the prime minister or if they opt for someone else. This is the first time that the Left has aligned with Mayawati. Implicit in the alliance is a greater acceptance of caste as a category of analysis, though the CPI came to accept it much earlier in the post- Mandal phase.

The Congress is on a high after winning the trust vote. But euphoria is often short lived. The party almost thought of plumping for early polls after the Rs 60,000 crore loan waiver it announced during the Budget session. But its magic had disappeared in three weeks and was replaced by the odium of rising prices all around.

With the trust voting leading to realignments, the Congress may stand to gain in UP with its tie-up with SP. It is asking for 40 seats in the ongoing negotiations between the two parties but hopes to settle for 17. It may increase its existing tally a little, but much will depend on how the SP is viewed after its vote for the nuke deal. As things stand, the BJP is likely to be further squeezed out in UP.

The Congress will be on the backfoot in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir [Images] in the next elections. It is expected to gain in Punjab, Kerala [Images] and in West Bengal, if it can have an arrangement with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress now that it has broken with the Left. Mamata abstained in the trust vote to help the Congress.

Much will also depends on how the Congress fares in Madhya Pradesh [Images], Rajasthan, Delhi [Images] and Chhattisgarh in the winter assembly elections. Mayawati will damage the Congress in these states, and also in Andhra Pradesh now that she has joined hands with the TDP, TRS and the Left. So also in Karnataka, is she remains aligned to H D Deve Gowda's Janata Dal-Secular. Nobody had expected her to mop up so many seats in the civic body elections in Delhi.

The trouble is that the Congress has not so far shown a will to fight back, and is not able to take advantage of even what it considers its achievements. How the trust vote win will change that remains to be seen.

The Congress' allies are not expected to do well next time. Nitish Kumar is expected to deflate Lalu, and J Jayalalitha is all set to defeat the DMK, having weaned away the MDMK to her side and the PMK waiting to do likewise. Sharad Pawar may hold his own in Maharashtra but post polls, all options would be open for the regional parties. It was significant that neither Lalu nor the DMK attacked the Left parties during the trust debate -- and vice versa.

The trust vote came as a setback for L K Advani [Images] and the BJP. It was no secret that the Congress would induce absenteeism from opposition ranks but that it would get so many NDA MPs to vote actively for the UPA has jolted the BJP. The rise of the third alternative is also bad news for the party which was hoping to benefit from the growing disaffection with the UPA.

Our politics is once again in a melting pot, and a three way division of the 15th Lok Sabha cannot be ruled out.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - shamu - 07-31-2008

QUOTE(acharya @ Jul 31 2008, 07:12 AM)How the trust vote will change Indian politics

The Left may not bring much to the table in UP, but they had imparted a progressive image to the SP, and now will do the same for Mayawati. 

What crap is that? How come alignment with left make them progressive? Infact they keep everything backward.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - Guest - 08-01-2008

Ravish,
QUOTEThe proceedings of the House gave an impression that for our country to progress in this Century, perhaps a sizable number of progressive and modern mindset people , including technocrats and corporate experts besides economists are required to be elected to the Lower House of the Indian Parliament. They should be people who can understand the intricacies of the modern industrialised and globalise world that India has to live in the future.
See, I am a little afraid of that. These "progressive and modern mindset people" had their chance, in 1947. They decided that other Indians were, to borrow a British phrase, "half-devil, half-child", and sought to inculcate "scientific temper" in their heads. Their instruments, the Congress, the ICHR, the ICSSR, etc. are still laying waste the country with their crazy economic ideas.
QUOTEIt is time for the intellectuals in all the States of India to unite and form a front who should take upon themselves the task of mobilising the younger generation to exercise their franchise in a more responsible and purposeful manner. 
Again No, thank you. The ideas and actions of these intellectuals (when they were the "younger generation") are partly responsible for the problems that we see today.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - ravish - 08-01-2008

Sir,
The younger generation of 2008 is quite different from the generation of 1947. You will agree at that time those who chalked out the nations destiny were not that young , although some of them pretended to be young in mindset.

In the year 2008, the ideas and visions of the younger generation is more in keeping with the hard realities of life, as very few BA (Oxford) and MA (Cantab) are available to fill up the vacancies in the Lok Sabha. I agree that any major change overnight in the outlook of the decision makers in a democracy is not possible. It has to be gradual and if the trend starts from the next general elections , perhaps the downward drift of the Indian society may come to an end.
If this does not happen, still progress will be there but in a raher slow pace.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 08-02-2008

QUOTE(ravish @ Aug 1 2008, 06:18 AM)Sir,
The younger generation of 2008 is quite different from the generation of 1947. You will agree at that time those who chalked out the nations destiny were not that young , although some of them pretended to be young in mindset.

In the year 2008, the ideas and visions ofÂ the younger generation is more in keeping with the hard realities of life, as very few BA (Oxford) and MA (Cantab) are available to fill up the vacancies in the Lok Sabha. I agree that any major change overnight in the outlook of the decision makers in a democracy is not possible. It has to be gradual and if the trend starts from the next general elections , perhaps the downward drift of the Indian society may come to an end.
If this does not happen, still progress will be there but in a raher slow pace.
[right][snapback]85591[/snapback][/right]


The word progressive is a euphemism for socialism and leftism.
This is not what the younger people want. They want development.

The leftist use of progressive is fake and it is also social engineering.
Indians do not want social engineering in the name of progress. They want economic progress.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 08-04-2008

Shivraj Patil on his way out

With terrorists cocking a snook at the government, leaders cutting across party lines have reportedly sought the removal of home minister Shivraj Patil from the cabinet. SP and the JMM meanwhile have been demanding their pound of flesh.
CJ: S Shivakumar, merinews , 22 hours ago Views:376 Comments:

NOT MUCH headway has been made in identifying and apprehending the culprits behind the serial blasts that shook Bangalore and Ahmedabad last week. The back-to-back blasts were carried out in such a brazen manner that it gave one the impression that the terrorists detonated the bombs for a dare. Although the intelligence bureau blamed SIMI for the serial blasts, no solid evidence has been collected so far. Nor has it been possible to apprehend the leading terrorists behind the blasts. It is being alleged in informed circles in New Delhi that laxity on the part of the home ministry led to the serial blasts. Even senior Congress leaders are of the view that the Union Home Minister has not been doing a good job.

The subject came up for discussion at the cabinet meeting held a couple of days ago. Some senior ministers minced no words in stating that the home ministry had been steadily losing ground to the terrorists. Ministers representing the other parties of the alliance are said to have expressed their dissatisfaction with the functioning of the home ministry headed by Shivraj Patil. Although fifteen serial blasts had occurred over the past four years, none of the culprits behind the said blasts had been apprehended.

Incidentally, senior BJP leader L K Advani, during his recent meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, is said to have remarked that the home ministry had lost ground to the terrorists. With leaders of all the political parties expressing their dissatisfaction with the functioning of the home ministry, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is said to have decided to drop Shivraj Patil from the cabinet. A section of the Congress party is said to have suggested that Patil be dropped from the cabinet even if it warrants appointing him as Governor.

As already reported, the Prime Minister has decided to accommodate some leaders of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) in the cabinet, in recognition of the help the said two parties extended to the UPA government during the no-trust motion moved in the Lok Sabha on July 22. The cabinet reshuffle is likely to be carried out in two phases. As soon as the Prime Minister returns home on Monday upon conclusion of the SAARC conference, the cabinet reshuffle-related discussions will enter the final phase. SP, waiting impatiently to join the government, wants six of its leaders to be appointed as ministers of cabinet rank. It wants inter alia, the petroleum ministry and the commerce ministry for its leaders. On his part, the JMM boss has said that nothing short of the coal ministry is acceptable to him.

The Congress party has already made it clear that the finance ministry, home ministry, defence ministry and external affairs ministry will be headed by Congress leaders alone. All the same, it is being felt in informed circles that to keep its alliance partners happy, the Congress party may replace the leaders heading these ministries with other Congress leaders. If Shivraj Patil is dropped from the cabinet, either Pranab Mukherji or Kamalnath will become the home minister. Pranab is said to be in favour of heading the home ministry. If his wish is granted by the Prime Minister, Kamalnath may get the external affairs ministry.
Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh believe that shifting Kamalnath from the commerce ministry will make the SP leaders happy.

Meanwhile, another section of the Congress party has been insisting that Finance Minister Chidambaram be shifted from the finance ministry. It is being rumoured that if Chidambaram is shifted from the finance ministry, Pranab will get the finance ministry and Kamalnath will get the external affairs ministry. Some senior leaders of the Congress party are opposed to conceding the Petroleum ministry to SP. The stand-off showing no signs of abatement, Sonia Gandhi is said to be thinking in terms of advising some senior Congress leaders to attend to party affairs.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 08-05-2008


Karat dares PM to convene Parliament

Sushanta Talukdar

âThird force will emerge in the countryâ

Left parties trying to mobilise secular forces

Trust vote exposed the corrupt norms of UPA government

Agartala: Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat on Monday dared the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to convene the monsoon session of Parliament and try passing the finance bills, including the pension, banking and insurance sector bills. The government was not ready to face Parliament as it did not have the majority, he said.

Inaugurating the three-day 19th State conference of the Tripura unit of the party, Mr. Karat said that a third force opposed to anti-people neo-liberalisation policies, communalism and imperialism would emerge in the country.

The emergence of the third force would prove wrong the theory that there would be only two-party combinations in the country â one led by the Congress and the other by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Rally in Delhi

Mr. Karat said the Left parties had been trying to mobilise all non-Congress secular forces on a common platform. A rally would be held in Delhi in August end to launch a vigorous campaign by the Left parties, the UNPA, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Janata Dal (Secular) against anti-people policies and the strategic alliance which the Manmohan Singh government had entered into with the United States.

He said the August 20 general strike called by a trade union would mark the beginning of a strong countrywide movement and every section of society would take part in it.

Alleging that the July 22 trust vote exposed the corrupt norms adopted by the minority UPA government, Mr. Karat said the trust vote had not given the government the mandate to go ahead with the India-U.S. nuclear deal. Recalling the no-confidence motion moved by his party against the Narasimha Rao-led Congress government in 1993, Mr. Karat said seven MPs were then purchased and Rs.50 lakh was paid to one MP. Rao and Buta Singh were sentenced to three years imprisonment for alleged corrupt practices by the trial court and later acquitted by a single bench of the Delhi High Court. He alleged that this time the bribe was paid in crores. âMaybe because of inflation the rates have gone up,â he said sarcastically, stirring a laughter among the delegates.

He alleged that offers of a berth in the Union Cabinet, threats of unleashing investigating agencies against unwilling Opposition MPs and bribes running into crores of rupees had enabled the Manmohan Singh-led government to survive the vote. He dared the Congress to go to the people and explain what steps had been taken by the government to check the spiralling price rise, inflation, farmersâ problems and unemployment, and how the nuclear deal was going to benefit the country.

He alleged that the BJP had been whipping up communal sentiment while trying to cash in on the strong discontentment among the people against the Congress-led UPA government.

Mr. Karat told the delegates that the Left had not been isolated on the nuclear deal and its stand on the trust vote as had been propagandised by the Congress. On the contrary, it had managed to mobilise various parties after its withdrawal of support to the UPA. He asserted that the Left parties would continue their efforts to bring about a new political alignment to fight the Congress-led government as well as the BJP.

The inaugural session of the conference was also attended by CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and Assam CPI(M) secretary Uddhab Barman.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - ramana - 08-05-2008

In any reshuffle the petroleum and finance ministry changes would mean that SP as got its pound of flesh for the confidence vote.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 08-06-2008


Fascist threat looms large: IUML

Staff Reporter

MALAPPURAM: The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has chalked out a long-term campaign aimed at parrying âthe clear and present fascist threatâ in the wake of the withdrawal of support to the Congress-led coalition government at the Centre by the Left parties.

The party State committee, which met at Manjeri on Monday, entrusted senior leaders with the task of carrying out the campaign at different levels.

âThe danger of the fascists returning to power is looming large. And that is the biggest threat the country faces now,â said IUML State general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty here on Tuesday. He said the Left had cleared the ground for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to stage a comeback by withdrawing support to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

He said the Leftâs withdrawal of support and projection of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati was an act of drama staged as part of a pre-election alliance struck between the CPI(M) and the BJP. âThe CPI(M) has ignored the bigger danger at the threshold by magnifying a distant possible danger,â he said referring to the Leftâs stand on the

Indo-American nuclear deal.

He said the theme of the IUML campaign would be âthe politics of the 15th Lok Sabha.â âWe will expose the Left and the organisations that support it in the Indo-U.S. nuclear issue,â he said.

The party would hold a national convention in Kozhikode on August 27 to explain the politics of the 15th Lok Sabha, elections which will be held in less than a year. Several national leaders of the party would attend the meet.

Mass conclaves would be held at all district headquarters in the State on August 22 evening to press the Muslim Leagueâs demand for withdrawal of the controversial Class 7 social sciences textbook.

The respective district committees of the party would organise the agitation.

The Muslim League would try to ensure participation of other parties and leaders who supported the agitation against the textbook.

The party would hold conventions in all districts except Malappuram on August 11. The convention in Malappuram was already held.

Former Minister M.K. Muneer would inaugurate the conventions at Kasaragod and Kannur.

2009 Poll Prospects And Alignments-2 - acharya - 08-06-2008

SONIA CONG SCARED OF PARLIAMENT SESSION
POSTPONING PARLIAMENT TO SURVIVE IN GOVT

SONIA TRIES TO KEEP DEAD MANMOHAN GOVT ALIVE
By P.R.SIDDHARTHA
31 JULY 2008

MANMOHAN GOVT HAS NO MAJORITY

The Manmohan Government is a Minority Government.

The Lok Sabha has a Total of 543 MPs.
1 MP from the Kerala Congress Thomas is on orders from the Supreme Court in an Election Petition and cannot vote.

25 MPs Cross-Voted, Abstained and thus Violated the Party Whip during the Confidence Vote on 22 July 2008 and have thus ceased to be MPs.

Thus the current Total Voting Strength of the Lok Sabha is:
543-1-25=517 MPs ONLY.

The Majority Figure is 259 MPs.

The Manmohan Government got 275 votes but out of that 20 MPs are now Disqualified.
The Manmohan government is now supported by a Total of just 255 MPs.

The Manmohan Government is thus short of 4 MPs.

The Manmohan Government is a Minority Government.

MANMOHAN GOVT WILL LOSE NO CONFIDENCE MOTION

If the Parliament Session is held then the Opposition will bring a No-Confidence Motion against the Manmohan Government.

The Combined Opposition has 256 MPs.

The No Confidence Motion is likely to be moved by Lok Dal president Ajit Singh or Telugu Desam Party. Then the Communists, Mayawatiâs BSP, Regional Opposition Parties, BJP and BJP Allies will all Vote against the Government.

The Manmohan Government will lose the No Confidence Motion.

Manmohan Singh will Resign.

SONIA POSTPONING PARLIAMENT SESSION

The Sonia Congress is sure of losing the Government if the Parliament Session is convened.
The Parliament must meet for a Monsoon Session in July-August.

The Manmohan Government is scared of being DROWNED DEAD in a Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Technically speaking the Lok Sabha Session must be convened every SIX Months. Now the Parliament must be convened before 21 January since it met on 22 July. The sonia Congress is using this Excuse to postpone the Parliament Session to survive in Power, as long as possible.

The Manmohan Government is therefore under the Temptation to postpone the Lok Sabha Session to the winter to avoid losing the Government just Now.

There will be Nationwide Shame for the Sonia Congress if the Parliament is Postponed to keep a Dead Manmohan Government Alive.