Kaun Banega Next Prez

06-25-2007, 08:24 PM

QUOTE(Viren @ Jun 25 2007, 07:53 PM)Patilâs sterilisation quote âdistortedâ
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTEAccording to the Assembly records accessed, Patil had said: âWe are also thinking of forcible sterilisation for people with hereditary diseases.â 
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With so much of controversies and allegations surrounding this candidate, it is truly astonishing that the UPA firmly intends to install her as the president. Exposes the true intent of the UPA; they don't care of what kind of person their candidate is, or what her background truly is (criminal or not) - they just want someone who, as the president, will wholeheartedly do whatever they bid her to. In her spare time, she is perfectly free to do whatever she wants to - even carry a scissor around snipping at fallopian/sperm tubes. One scary candidate.

There was a time when Indian servants kept their hands over their mouths respectfully when talking to the higher-ups. Now, when talking to the next president, they will probably keep their hands over their scrotum, just in case she takes a snipe at it.

06-25-2007, 09:13 PM

The situation is getting ridiculous with this third front. Do they know it is in their best interest that they vote for shekhawat? Either they are play-acting and would finally end-up voting for shekhawat or are really dumb and want to abstain or get a candidate of their own. one month is a short period to grow a brain.

QUOTEUNPA heads for split over Prez poll
CNN-IBN
Posted Monday , June 25, 2007 at 13:34
Updated Monday , June 25, 2007 at 13:50

Play cricket on your phone and win BIG!

New Delhi: There are now reports of a split in the United National Progressive Alliance or the Third Front over the Presidential elections.

The Telugu Desam Party, the INLD and the Samajwadi Party have decided to abstain from voting in the presidential elections, sources told CNN-IBN.

The three parties have reportedly conveyed their decision to NDA leaders.

The AIADMK and the AGP, on the other hand, are in favour of putting up a separate Third Front candidate.

Last week, the Third Front had decided to call their alliance the United National Progressive Alliance and wanted the incumbent President A P J Kalam to contest in the Presidential elections.

The UNPA allies tried to coax a reluctant President though Kalam had made it clear that he was not interested if there was no political consensus on the issue.

Following that, on Friday, President Kalam announced he would not run for a second term in office âin the current scenarioâ because he did not want the Rashtrapati Bhavan to become involved in a political process.

06-25-2007, 09:20 PM

I am out of words for this stupidity! <img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ROTFL.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='ROTFL.gif' />

QUOTEShiv Sena to support Pratibha Patil

Agencies
Posted online: Monday, June 25, 2007 at 1914 hours IST
Updated: Monday, June 25, 2007 at 2022 hours IST

Pratibha Patil Mumbai, June 25: Breaking ranks with NDA, Shiv Sena decided to support UPA-Left candidate Pratibha Patil in the Presidential election disapproving BJP's âbargainingâ and âmud slingingâ campaign against her.


Sena chief Bal Thackeray said it would not support NDA-backed Independent candidate Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhwat and added âwe took this decision (to support Patil) because Shekhawat stood as a Independent candidate only so that he could get votes from other parties, which he would not have got as a BJP candidate'.

"We do not agree with this kind of saudebaazi (bargaining)," he said.

Elaborating on the reasons for Sena's decision to back Patil, he said, "the country has not had a Marathi President since independence. Now, an opportunity has been presented to make a Marathi woman a President. That too at a time when the state would be celebrating its golden jubilee in 2010."

ramana · (This post was last modified: 06-26-2007, 01:15 AM by ramana.)

How much in voter support is this SS vote for Maharashtrian candidate?

Added later

From DNA

QUOTEMUMBAI: Playing the Marathi card, Shiv Sena, a major contituent of the BJP-led NDA, on Tuesday announced its support to the UPA-Left presidential candidate Dr Pratibha Patil.

In a statement issued here tonight, party chief Bal Thackeray said Shiv Sena has decided to support Dr Pratibha Patil as she will be the first Maharashtrian to reach the coveted post and also the first woman to become the president.

The Sena, which has 56 MLAs and 15 MPs in Lok sabha and three MPs in Rajya sabha, all adding upto 22,000 votes, will be supporting a 'Marathi Manoos' Dr Pratibha Patil.

Political observers felt that this development was likely to jeopardise the 23 year old Shiv sena-BJP alliance in Maharashtra, which has so far contested seven Lok Sabha and four assembly elections together and even shared power in the state and at the centre. 

Swapan Dasgupta is right. There are little to no consequneces to stab BJP in the back. The oiseuelle BT should have supported Shekawat.

ramana · 06-26-2007, 01:23 AM

One more report from DNA....

QUOTEPratibha leaves V-P behind by miles
Shubhangi Khapre
Monday, June 25, 2007Â 09:27 IST

Shiv Sena likely to play Marathi card, thus showing that it is closer to NCP than the BJP

The buzz in the Congress is that Pratibha Patil has taken a lead of over 40,000 votes by conservative estimates in the Presidential polls and that Shiv Senaâs (22,000) votes will make no difference to her final tally. Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray would make his partyâs stand clear today. On its part, the BJP reckons that the shortage of 40,000-50,000 votes is within its reach, provided they tactically manage cross voting across the party lines in the country.

Sources in the Nationalist Democratic Alliance, mediating for Bhairon Singh Shekhawat in Maharashtra, disclosed that, âUnless there is cross voting across party lines from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra it will be difficult to make up for the 40,000-vote deficit in favour of Shekhwat. If Shiv Sena decides to exercise its 22,000-plus votes in favour of Pratibha, to retain its âMarathi asmita â son of the soilâ plank, the votes deficit will shoot up to 60,000 for NDA.â

The presidential college comprised of over ten lakh votes, of which Maharashtra alone accounts for one-tenth votes. If insiders are to be believed then Sena is likely to flash its âson of the soilâ card, thus further increasing the vote gap between Patil and Shekhwat by 60,000 votes.


This report was published before the news of BT supporting UPA candidate. The meaning of this report is the UPA saying that it would have won without BT's support and thus owes no favors to him or his flavor of politics. So Afzal Guru will go scot free whether BT likes it or not if she gets elected.

BT could have said he would support UPA candidate Patil as he is honor bound to support a Marathi individual, but allow his party to vote per their consience.

06-26-2007, 02:56 AM

The geriatric is truly gone senile. No doubt Rane left his party causing a split. And then his nephew. Now since UPA could care less for his support, this paper tiger meows not worth anything.
Check a post I made in Rama Setu thread - BT's SS can't renovate/demolish a toilet in Mumbai railway station, that's how pathetic the situation is.

06-26-2007, 03:07 AM

QUOTEShekawat sanguine about his victory 
PTI | New Delhi
Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the NDA-backed independent candidate, today expressed confidence that the numbers are in his favour in the next month's Presidential elections but did not reveal how he will get the required votes to get to Rashtrapati Bhavan.

"This is not correct," Shekhawat told TV channels on being asked about the numbers in electoral college tilting towards the UPA-Left Presidential nominee Pratibha Patil.

"I am fighting to win. I will say that everybody gives me support... The numbers are in my favour," he said but made it clear that he would not disclose the basis for his optimism. "The arithmetic till now shows that I will win," he stressed.

He disagreed that the Third Front were opposed to his candidature. "There is no objection to my name. There is a conflict among the Uninted National Progressive Alliance (UNPA). They are considering the whole matter," he said.

"Was he confident of getting their support?, he was asked. "I will not say that I am confident. I can say that they will think about this matter very seriously".

Now I don't know how he can say.

06-26-2007, 03:11 AM

QUOTEShekhawat joins battle 
Pioneer News Service | New Delhi
Natwar Singh, Bhim Singh among proposers
Unfazed by rival claims about numbers being heavily loaded against him, Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat on Monday filed his nomination papers for the presidential election as an independent candidate.Â Â

The election, due on July 19, is likely to see a direct contest between him and UPA nominee Pratibha Patil.

A veteran of many a poll battle, Shekhawat was accompanied by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Leader of the Opposotion LK Advani, NDA convener George Fernandes, BJP president Rajnath Singh and leaders of all NDA allies, except the Shiv Sena and Trinamool Congress.

Apart from the Chief Ministers of the BJP-ruled States, Akali Dal chief and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Biju Janata Dal chief and Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik were present at the time of filing of the nomination.

The presence of former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh and Panthers Party of India president Bhim Singh on the occasion was symbolic as the Vice-President and his backers are relying on support from his "friends" across the political spectrum, NDA sources said.

Later talking to mediapersons, Shekhawat rejected suggestions that on the basis of respective party strength, numbers were staked against him.

"I am fighting to win. I will say that everybody gives me support and the numbers are in my favour," he said. However, he declined to discuss his strategy, insisting that "The arithmetic till now shows that I will win."

NDA spokesperson for presidential election Sushma Swaraj likened the tussle to the historic battle in 1969 in which independent VV Giri trounced official Congress nominee Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy - a comparison dismissed by Congress.

She played down the decision of NDA ally Shiv Sena to support Pratibha Patil. "I have repeatedly said that presidential election is not a contest of the strength of respective parties but a contest of two personalities. Some of the NDA allies may vote against him. By the same logic, those in the UPA or the UNPA may vote for him," she argued.

Clearing the doubts about the Trinamool Congress, which has been evasive so far on the issue of support, Swaraj said Trinamool Congress MP Dinesh Trivedi could not make it as his plane was late.

Sushma sought to make the best of Natwar Singh's presence, saying that it was not a token appearance. "It will send a strong message," she said, indicating that the former External Affairs Minister's support would attract votes from the Congress.

She replied in the negative when asked if there was any communication from the Third Front, which has decided to maintain equidistance from the UPA and the NDA.

Natwar Singh, who was one of the proposers, said "Shekhawat was a very good Vice-President and he can be an outstanding President."

Asked about the prospects of Shekhawat, NDA chairperson Atal Bihari Vajpayee said, "We have just jumped into the fray."

As Shekhawat reached the office of the Returning Officer, slogans Jai Shri Ram, Ganapati Bappa Morya and Hindustan ka ek hi Singh, Bhairon Singh, Bhairon Singh rent the air. Sweets were also distributed by enthusiastic NDA supporters.

06-26-2007, 08:26 AM

QUOTETrue story of Pratibha Patil, next president of India 
By Arun Shourie
'A big step for womenâ¦ This shows India has a lot of respect for womenâ¦ My nomination will inspire other women and help their empowermentâ¦' â that is how Pratibha Patil described her selection as the UPA candidate for being our President. Loyalists, of course, went one better. 'A firm believer in women's causes and a tireless champion of spreading education among girlsâ¦ One who always stands for a better deal for womenâ¦ active role in checking such evils as female foeticide and dowry...' 'Working women of Mumbai hailâ¦' 'Yes, Ma'am Commander' â Armymen look forward to reporting to first woman Supreme Commander of Armed Forcesâ¦

And all this within two days of her selection.

Her bio-data lists her 'special interests' as 'development of rural economy and welfare of women', and lists as evidence, 'Establishment of Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank at Jalgaon, Maharashtraâ¦ of Mahila Vikas Mahamandalâ¦' It records her being Managing Trustee, Shram Sadhana Trust, as her being the 'Chief Promoter and Chairperson of Sugar Factory in Jalgaon District'. It records her having set up the Engineering College 'for the benefit of rural youth'â¦Â

We start with the 'cooperative bank' she set up in her own name to help other women â the Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank.

Although this is listed in her bio-data, and although it has been referred to again and again by newspapers, how is it that neither the bio-data nor the newspapers mention that the bank has actually been liquidated? Under orders of the Reserve Bank of India, no less. And that too on the telling ground that its continuance would be prejudicial to the interests of depositors.

Brief history

Pratibha Patil established the bank in 1973 with herself as the chairperson, and with many members of her own family as its directors. She herself became a director for several terms. As for members of her family, they inter-changed, among themselves, the chairs of the Board of Directors in one 'election' after another. But while others changed places, Pratibha Patil continued as Founder Chairperson right till the demise of the bank.

Since the bank was not being managed properly, the Reserve Bank of India, in 1995, included it in its list of 'weak banks' and placed it under rehabilitation 'due to heavy erosion in its assets as observed in the inspection in March 1994.'

The RBI conducted an in-depth inspection of the bank's functioning again in 2002. In his order dated 25 February 2003, P.B . Mathur, Executive Director of the RBI, stated that the inspection revealed the following irregularities:

1: The real or exchangeable value of the bank's paid-up share capital and reserves stands at minus Rs. 197.67 lakh. Thus, the bank is not having adequate assets to meet its liabilities. The bank does not comply with the RBI's requirement of minimum share capitalâ¦

2: The ratio of the net erosion to net owned funds of the bank is as high as 312.4% and the erosion in the value of the bank's assets has not only wiped out its owned funds but has also affected the deposits to the extent of Rs. 197.67 lakh, forming 26% of total depositsâ¦

3: The gross NPAs of the bank, that is loans that have gone bad, amount to 65.8% of the total loans and advancesâ¦

4: The Board has not made any concerted effort to improve the bank's financial position and bring it out of the weak statusâ¦

As a consequence, the RBI in its order stated: 'Having regard to all the facts, the Reserve Bank of India is satisfied that allowing the bank to carry on banking business any further would be detrimental to the interest of the present and future depositors and hence the license granted to the PRATIBHA MAHILA SAHAKARI BANK LTD. is hereby cancelled.'

Who got the loans?
But how did the assets of the bank get eroded? Why did this 'cooperative bank' â functioning as it must have been in the interests of its members â not take any action to retrieve the loans and instead endanger its very existence? Remember that the order of the RBI to liquidate the bank was not a sudden bolt. The RBI had put the bank on its list of 'weak banks' in 1995, that is a full eight years before the RBI had to decide that it just must be liquidated, and cancelled its license. Throughout these eight years why did Board not make any "concerted effort to improve the bank's financial position"?

A brief list of the sorts of persons who had been given the 'loans' and were not repaying them, tells the tale.

Name of the NPA holderÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Relationship to P. PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Amount due with penalty

Rajeshwari Kishorisingh PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Brother's daughter-in-lawÂ Â Â Â Rs. 45, 82, 670

Kishor Dilipsingh PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â NephewÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 51, 02, 183

Kishor Dilipsingh PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â NephewÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 43, 87, 680

Udhavsingh Dagdu RajputÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Brother's kin

Udhavsingh Dagdu RajputÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Brother's kin and wifeÂ Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 42, 89, 602

Jayashri Udhavsingh RajputÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â

Randhirsingh Dilipsingh RajputÂ Â Â Â Â NephewÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 21, 44, 800

Udhavsingh Dagdu Rajput

Jyoti Vijaysingh Patil

Kishor Dilipsingh PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â NephewÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 10, 69, 893

Dilispsingh N. PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â BrotherÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 3, 09, 562

Dilispsingh N. PatilÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â BrotherÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 5, 62, 840

Total:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rs. 2, 24, 49, 150

____________________________________________________________
Notice that among the women that were being empowered by this cooperative for women â this Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank â were the brother and nephews of Pratibha Patil! Males behind the Muslim veil, Dr. Watson!

For my friends, the champions of employees' unions

The Cooperative Bank Employees Union wrote one memorandum after another exposing how the directors of the Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank were systematically bankrupting the bank. They demanded dismissal of the family-controlled board. They demanded 'a CBI inquiry against Pratibha Patil, former Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, for the irregularities in the bank'. They wrote these letters, in Marathi, to the relevant authorities in Maharashtra looking after the affairs of cooperative banks. They sent them to the then President, to the then Prime Minister, to among others, 'Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition (Lok Sabha)â¦'

In one such lengthy memorandum dated 3.12.2001, the Employees' Union complained, 'Founder Chairperson Pratibha Patil â during, before and after the period when she was formally on the Board of Directors â has facilitated the loot of large sums of money in the form of unlawful loans without surety extended to her own relatives and to people close to her family.' The Union alleged that, even though the bank was on the verge of bankruptcy, Pratibha Patil got huge amounts of interest waived on the loans given to her close relatives. As illustrations, they listed three such accounts:

1) Anjali Dilipsingh Patil (Pratibha Patil's niece), who got a waiver of Rs. 21.86 lakh;

2)Â Kavita Aravind Patil (sister-in-law of Pratibha Patil), who got a waiver of Rs. 8.59 lakh; and

3) Rajkaur Dilipsingh Patil (another sister-in-law of Pratibha Patil), who got a waiver of Rs. 2.47 lakh.

The waivers given, the accounts were promptly closed!

This, the Union stated, 'is a loot of Rs. 32.93 lakh'. You will not be surprised to learn that, within the bank,Â the complaint got nowhere. And for good reason: the legal advisor to the bank was Pratibha Patil's elder brother, Dilipsingh Patil, and Dilipsingh Patil's own wife was one of the beneficiaries of the loan waiver!

'The purpose of the cooperative movement,' the Union's letter stated, 'is to promote people's economic, social and educational development and thereby strengthen patriotism in them. But (in this bank), Pratibha Patil, her elder brother Dilipsingh Patil and the Board of Directors have, through different means, robbed nearly Rs. 2 croreâ¦ The bank is thus being bankrupted through a collusive strategy.' 'What kind of morality is this?,' the Union asked.

In a writ filed in the Bombay High Court â Pratibha Patil is one of the respondents in the case -- the employees of the bank also said something else that will be of particular interest to our champions of social justice. They said, 'The respondent Directors have also appointed staff without following the recruitment procedure that the posts are reserved for reserve categories such as S.C., S.T., O.B.C. The managing Directors have appointed their relatives as employees of the Bankâ¦'Â

To rescue the bank from imminent demise, the Union demanded 'seizure of the property of Smt. Pratibha Patil, her brother Dilipsingh Patil and her relatives'. In addition it demanded an inquiry into how they had amassed 'such huge assets'.

As a result of this memorandum, the Department of Cooperatives, Government of Maharashtra, initiated an inquiry. Even as the inquiry was going on, a past president of the Employees Union, Anantsingh Patil, wrote an ever-so-helpful letter to Pratibha Patil, on the Union's letterhead, informing her that she had nothing to do with the irregularities of the bank! He even tendered an apology to her on behalf of the Union! The Union nails the lie. It points to several telling facts. For instance, it says, on 22, January, 2002, the Board had met and, much as the Congress does today !, by resolution no. 23, authorized Pratibha Patil to decide who should be on the Board of Directors and who should be the bank's Chief Executive.

But the matter did not end with the Union's letter or the inquiry of the Maharashtra Government's Cooperative Department. The Reserve Bank of India went into the waiver also. In its confidential inspection report dated 18 June, 2002, found the charge of financial fraud involving those large interest waivers to Pratibha Patil's three close relatives to be valid. It also noted that the Board had not taken approval of the AGM for the loan waiver.

Some women were certainly getting empowered!

A pattern

Memoranda of the Employees Union show that such enterprising sleights-of-account-books were part of a pattern. The memoranda and communications were sent to, among others, Pratibha Patil herself. For instance, in a letter to her on 13 March, 2002, the President, Vice-president and Secretary of the Union informed her that

Â·Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â She had allowed her elder brother, Dilipsingh Patil, to use the bank's telephone (no. 224672, which he had got installed at his residence) for running his stock exchange business. He ran up a bill of Rs. 20 lakh. Phone records showed that the calls were made to sharebrokers in Mumbai. These records were subsequently destroyed. But later the charge was found to be one of substance. It was one of the things that Amol Khairnar, who was appointed as the chief administrator of bank, asked P.D. Patil, manager of the bank, to explain in the show-cause notice that the former issued on 1 February, 2003.

Â·Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The show-cause notice also mentioned that the Pratibha Mahil Sahakari Bank had extended unlawful loans to the Sant Muktabai Cooperative Sugar Factory from time to time. As you will recall, the sugar factory too was set up by Pratibha Patil herself to help rural youth! It was inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi in 1999. As The Asian Age has reported, like the Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank, the mill too has closed down â but only after running up a loan default of nearly Rs. 20 crore and without ever producing much sugar!

Â·Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The bank also gave loans to undeserving persons to buy shares of the Sant Muktabai Cooperative Sugar Factory. Pratibha Patil and her brothers did so for a reason that my good friend of long-standing, Sharad Pawar would again find nothing extraordinary: they did so in order to retain control over the sugar factory by having these shareholders support her in 'elections' to the cooperative.

If you don't stopâ¦

'It is because of these reasons that the bank is now on the verge of going bankrupt,' the Employees Union charged. It then posed a question to her that those â like my friend Sharad Pawar -- who are making light of this state of affairs in the bank on the ground that such things are nothing new in cooperatives would like to answer: 'Whom should the society trust if politicians like you start cooperative institutions to rob the hard-earned wealth of ordinary people?'

And then come two paragraphs that should be weighed in the scale of the high office to which Pratibha Patil is being catapulted. Before concluding, the Union's President, Vice-president and Secretary state, 'You are the Founder Chairperson of this bank, but you are today attempting, out of selfish reasons, to lead the bank to its demise. You know that the RBI has decided to cancel the bank's license if its financial condition does not improve by March 2002. Once the license is cancelled and the bank is liquidated, you are quite capable of covering-up the fraud you have committed on the bank and the people of this region by using your influence on the Government of Maharashtra.'

And then comes the last para. To get to know our next President, the one who will be the Guardian of our Constitution, do read it twice: 'There is threat to our lives and to the lives of our family members from you. You have already communicated this to us in our meeting with you. Although you have made us aware of this threat, we are prepared to lay down our lives for the pursuit of truth. If something happens to us or to members of our families, accidentally or otherwise, you will be responsible for it, which please note.'

And a letter from the women who were to be empowered
We have focused on 'women' who got loans. But who were the depositors? They were the poor women of the area â who were eking out a living by selling vegetables, by collecting ragsâ¦ What were they telling our 'firm believer in women's causes', our 'tireless champion ofâ¦'? A representative, and typically plaintive letter from them, awakens us to their wail:

'We opened accounts in your bank trusting that it had been established to help poor women and to come to their aid in times of need. You know that the bank is now on the brink of bankruptcy. Therefore, a crisis is looming before ordinary depositors. Politicians plant saplings on Tree Plantation Day and get their photographs printed in newspapers the next day. But they don't take care of the sapling thereafter. This bank too was a sapling that you had planted. It was growing well and promised to bear fruit. It had given shelter to you too. Then who killed this tree? Once the bank is liquidated, those who took the loans do not have to worry, just as when a sahukar dies, the persons to whom he had lent money heave a sigh of relief. But what about poor women depositors like us who are vegetable vendors, fruit-sellers, rag-pickers, etc, who saved our meager earnings in your bank, hoping that the money would be useful to us in our old age or for the marriage of our daughters? Pratibhatai, we tried a lot to meet you personally. We were unsuccessful. But you know everything. Therefore, we urge you to disclose the names of all those culprits who are responsible for the bankruptcy of our bank.'

And what did our tireless champion of women's rights, our devotee of rural development do?

06-26-2007, 08:27 AM

QUOTE'It is all a BJP-conspiracy'
A murder they don't care about
Arun Shourie

The 'cooperative' bank for empowering women liquidated under orders of the Reserve Bankâ¦ The sugar mill bankrupt, having swallowed over Rs. 20 crore of unpaid loansâ¦ We see the very same pattern in the other endeavours of our next President. Her bio-data speaks of the Shram Sadhana Trust that she has set up. It runs an engineering college â for rural youth, as the bio-data says.

What do documents show? A Medical Aid Account is set up for students. Naturally, money from it goes to doctors â and, lo and behold, her brother, Dr. GN Patil's name stands out by a mileâ¦ Employees of the college turn out to be working at the residences of the various directors â some in Mumbai. A guest house is built, and comes to be used, not by academicians visiting the college, but by members of the familyâ¦ Money collected from the students goes to the soon-to-be-declared bankrupt sugar millâ¦ Money is taken from the teachers' salaries as compulsory deposits in that family-controlled 'cooperative' bank; these deposits are used to enroll 'shareholders' in the bank â who in turn help the family win the 'elections' of the cooperative bankâ¦ A pattern through and through.

Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, who has been so exercised about enforcing morality on the media, is unmoved. 'A visibly upset Dasmunsi hit out at the NDA for trying to malign Patil's image,' The Indian Express reports. 'In the process, he drew a parallel between Patil's case and "many political leaders" whose brothers, sisters and relatives were loan defaulters and also "electronic media industry" which has been slapped with plenty of notices.'

Surely, the answer is to bring them to book too. Surely, the answer is to do what so many of us have been demanding for so long â namely, to publish the names of all bank-defaulters. Not to pick one of them at random and make her or him President of India!Â

In any case, even Munsi, in spite of his fertile imagination, will not claim that murder has brushed the hem of the 'electronic media industry' as closely as it has in this instance.

Names and dates
But first a few names and dates.

Vishram G. Patil: Professor of English at a college in Jalagaon affiliated to the North Maharashtra University. A Congressman for thirty years. Elected President of the District Congress Committee not once but thrice. Murdered on 21 September, 2005.

Rajani Patil: his wife. Professor of Marathi at the same college.

G.N. Patil: brother of the UPA nominee for the Presidentship of India. Rival and adversary of Vishram Patil. Defeated by Vishram Patil in his effort to become President of the District Congress Committee.

Ulhas Patil: former member of Parliament. Close associate of G.N. Patil. Rival and adversary of Vishram Patil. Runs a number of NGOs.

Raju Mali and Raju Sonawane: two arrested for murdering Vishram Patil. Raju Mali tells Aaj Tak correspondent that they are just being made sacrificial goats. The real perpetrators of the murder are at large. Who are they, he is asked. "The persons who are being named by Rajani Patil," he says. He suddenly dies in police custody â three days after, at long last, the CBI team visits Jalagaon on its first visit.

Leeladhar Narkhede and Damodar Lokhande: two who are named as having financed the murder of Vishram Patil. Phone records show several calls between them and G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil on the day before the murder, on the day of the murder and on the day after. The two are picked up. But four months later, they are let off. The FIR about them is withdrawn.

A few dates: 21 September, 2005: Vishram Patil murdered. Great commotion in Jalagaon. People openly say that he has been killed as the result of a supari having been given to murder him. By the fourth day, Police say they have completed '90 per cent' of the investigation, and will soon get the killers and those behind them. Police arrest the two who confess to the actual murder.

October 2006: Aaj Tak puts out a detailed story by Manish Awasthi cataloguing the murder. In it, Aaj Tak takes viewers through the records of the mobile telephone company that establish that numerous calls were made between the two reported financiers of the murder and the brother of Pratibha Patil, G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil â the calls were made on the day before the murder, on the day of the murder and on the day after the murder. The channel shows the exact times and duration of the calls from the records of the mobile phone company. Awasthi's story contains a devastating interview of Raju Mali from within the jail. In September 2005, they had gone on an indefinite fast inside the jail. Raju Mali says in the interview that they had stopped taking food to protest against the Police for not arresting, for not even questioning the real culprits, 'the persons named by Rajani Patil'. 'We have simply been made sacrificial goats in the case while the real culprits are untouched.'

4 April, 2007: a year and a half after the murder, and after vicissitudes that we shall soon encounter, the CBI team comes to Jalagaon for its first visit.

7 April, 2007: the CBI team interrogates Rajani Patil, the widow of the murdered DCC President. But something else happens in the jail not far away: Raju Mali dies in Police custody.

Events

The brother of Pratibha Patil, G.N. Patil -- who, as we have seen, has been a close collaborator in her endeavours to empower women and bring succour to rural youth â is a frustrated rival of Vishram Patil. The latter has defeated him to the Presidentship of the District Congress Committee.

Congress workers collect funds â ostensibly to provide relief to tsunami victims. These are never deposited in the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

Congress workers again collect funds â this time to felicitate Pratibha Patil upon her appointment as Governor of Rajasthan. No one hears what happens to these funds either.

Several office-bearers of the District Congress Committee send a memorandum to Prabha Rau, head of the Maharashtra Congress, asking her to institute an inquiry into the missing funds. They receive no reply.

15 August, 2005: nine office-bearers of the DCC issue a press release saying that G.N. Patil, the brother of Pratibha Patil, has not submitted accounts of funds that were collected by Congress workers for felicitating Pratibha Patil.

Vishram Patil commences an inquiry within the Congress into the misappropriation of the funds. He also commences an inquiry into financial dealings of Ulhas Patil and his NGOs. He brings the matter to the attention of the high-command of the Congress.

He receives three anonymous letters. Written in hand, they state that a supari has been given out to kill him, that he should be careful. He persists with the inquiry.

He is killed. Local dailies are full of the murder. They surmise that it is the result of political rivalries in the District Congress Committee.

Because of the enormous commotion among the local people, the Police act. Within a few days, they nab the killers.

They make swift progress in the investigation. They tell Rajani Patil, the widow, that 90 per cent of the investigation is over, that they will soon get the ones who instigated the murder also.

Suddenly, the investigation goes off the rails. The police now put out a story that the murder actually took place because of a dispute over money that Raju Mali had borrowed from Vishram Patil. Rajani Patil strongly refutes the insinuation. Local papers puncture holes in this new concoction of the Police. As suddenly as the concoction had been put out, the investigation is taken out of the hands of the local police entirely, and turned over to the CID of the state Government.

26 September, 2005: alarmed at the way the investigation is being derailed, the widow, Rajani Patil writes to Sonia Gandhi. She says, 'The brain behind the crime is pressurizing the investigation process.'

27 September, 2005: a local paper, Deshdoot, reports that at a press conference, Rajiv Patil, the parabhari adhyaksha of the Congress, has said that Raju Mali, the killer, is an agent of G.N. Patil, the brother of Pratibha Patil, Governor of Rajasthan. Another report in the paper says that everyone in Jalagaon is talking about the contract killing, about how much was paid for it, and by whomâ¦

The same day, 27 September, 2005, thirteen office-bearers of the District Congress Committee write to the local Superintendent of Police. They name G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil as being the persons behind the murder and express grave concern that the investigation is being dragged down to a crawl.

28 September, 2005: Local papers like Deshdoot and Deshunnati carry a tell-tale photograph. It is the day the election of the District Congress Committee President takes place. A group is standing around the victor, Vishram Patil. In the picture, mysteriously, is Raju Mali â the very man who is to kill Vishram Patil soon. He was not and is not a member of the Congress, the papers say. Who let him into the party office? With whose blessing was he roaming inside the office? With who is he linked? They have no doubt about the answerâ¦Â Â

On 28 September, 2005, Manik Rao Gavit, the Minister of State in the Home Ministry at the Centre, writes to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. He writes that he has received a letter from the Working President of the Jalagaon District Congress Committee, Rajiv Patil, in which the latter has named G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil as the conspirators behind the murder. Gavit says that there is haa-haakaar in the local Congress, hence he is sending Rajiv Patil's letter. He urges the Chief Minister to have the matter investigated in this direction and to do everything necessary to get at the real culprits and have them punished.Â Â

The local papers are full of the inaction that has overtaken the investigation. The real culprits are at large, they say. The names of G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil are splashed across the headlines of stories connected with the murder. Rajani Patil, the widow, writes to the local Police chief: 'This murder has been committed out of political enmity. I therefore urge you to investigate the case from this angle and arrest the persons concerned. I strongly believe that, under somebody's pressure, there is an attempt to misdirect the Police investigation by fabricating cock-and-bull stories.'

5 October, 2005: Rajiv Patil, the parabhari-adhyaksha of the Congress , writes to the Chief Minister, to the Director General of Police, and to the head of the Pune Branch of the CID. He records his concern that the investigation is going nowhere. He urges that some of the officers who were handling the initial investigation and who know the facts should be involved in the inquiry. He gives the names of the concerned officers. He receives no reply.

15 October, 2005: Rajiv Patil writes to the authorities again pointing to the connection between the killers and G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil. He says that the killers who have been nabbed were never Congress activists, that they were brought to the Congress office by G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil only at the time of the DCC election.

1 December, 2005: two months have gone by since the murder, the investigation has been steered into the wrong direction all too-patently. Rajani Patil, the widow, writes to R.R. Patil, the Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister of the state. She expresses her anguish at what has been done to the investigation. It is going nowhere, she says. The police had assured us that 90 per cent of the investigation is over and that they will soon get to the real conspirators. But as 'the real conspirators have high-level connections, when only 10 per cent of the investigation was left, the case was taken out of their hands and given to the state CID.'

8 December, 2005: Rajani Patil again writes to the Chief Minister and Home Minister of the state. She strongly repudiates the police insinuation that there was some financial dispute between her husband and the killers. My husband was killed because of the supari given by the political rivals of my husband, she writes. You can find out who gave the supari by asking the two who are in custody, she tells them. There is no response.

Rajani Patil travels to Delhi. She meets Sonia Gandhi personally in January 2006. She narrates the sequence of the case. She also meets other Congress bigwigs â Ahmed Patel, Sushil Kumar Shinde, Margaret Alva and others.

They move not a finger. Instead, the FIR against the two who are said to have financed the murder is dropped. Having first snatched the investigation away from the local police and transferred it to the state CID, the Government now decides that the investigation is best done by the CBI!

Three months pass â ostensibly waiting for the CBI to respond. Eventually, the CBI informs the state Government that it is overwhelmed with work, that as the case has no 'inter-state or international ramifications', it is not a fit case for the agency.

Everyone sees through the attempt to kill the inquiry and thus protect the real conspirators. The intrepid widow files a petition in the Aurangabad Bench of the High Court. On 23 February, 2007, by a detailed order the Court dismisses the CBI's objections about there being no 'inter-state or international ramifications'. We are aware of this as well as of the work which the agency is already handling, the Court records. That is why only in exceptional cases does the Court direct it to take the case in hand. This is a case of that kind. 'We have scrutinized the record with the help of counsel of both sides,' the Court records in its order. 'We have considered the chequered history of the present case, the developments which have taken place after filing of the chargesheet, issues involved, and the reference to alleged conspiracy by influential political leaders of the region. Having regard to the importance of the issues involved and the alleged complicity of the influential political leadersâ¦, in our considered opinion, this is a fit case where the investigation should be conducted by the CBI.'Â

Of course, by knocking the investigation around â from the local police to the state CID to the CBI, only to have the CBI turn down the case â the powers-that-be have already achieved one objective: by now, more than a year and a half has passed since the murder was committed.

5 March, 2007: disheartened and broken, Rajani Patil again writes to Sonia Gandhi. As you also lost your husband, you are the one person who will understand my wound, she writes. She recalls the anonymous letters that her husband had received warning him to desist from the inquiry, warning that 'a supari to murder my husband had been given by Dr. Ulhas Patil and Dr. G.N. Patil, the brother of Smt. Pratibha Patil, Governor of Rajasthan. On the morning of 21.9.2005, my husband was brutally murderedâ¦' 'I fear that my whole family is likely to get liquidated by these brutal murderers if they continue to get politically patronized by the party,' she concludes.

She receives no reply.

Recounting all this in the memorandum she submits to the President later on, and driven to despondence by the fact that no one has paid the slightest heed to her tears and pleas, she adds, 'I feel anguished that they are indeed getting politically patronized by the party.'Â

The CBI team comes at last to Jalagaon on 4 April, 2007. It interrogates the widow on 7 April. On the same day, the killer, Raju Mali dies in police custodyâ¦

Throughout this period, the widow, Rajani Patil, is pleading before the state and Congress authorities. Not just she, but functionaries of the local Congress themselves, in particular Shridhar Bapu Chaudhury, the party's General Secretary keep dispatching letters and memoranda pointing to G.N. Patil and Ulhas Patil. All these letters as well as those of Rajiv Patil, the prabhari adhyaksha of the Congress in Jalagaon, are on letterheads of the Congress.Â

The response
'It is all a BJP ploy. It shows their desperation at not being able to find a candidate of the stature of Pratibha Patil,' proclaim the Congress spokesmen. But the record consists of letters, memoranda, press conferences, writ petitions of Congressmen.

But I am on another point: assume that everything is a conspiracy of the BJP. What about the facts? What about the facts, for instance, set out by Aaj Tak?

'But why now? The timing of these allegations itself shows that they have been manufactured only to tarnish the image of Pratibha Patil as she is standing for the Presidentship of the country. After all, why are they bringing up these things now?' This is their other, wholly predictable defence.Â Â

It so happens that all the events, documents, proceedings in court, communications, etc., pertain to the period before Pratibha Patil was plucked from nowhere to be the Presidential candidate. And they are being recounted today precisely because Pratibha Patil has been nominated to become the President of the country. Till the other day, these were frauds of some district politicians. The murder was of concern primarily to the Jalagaon people. Precisely because Pratibha Patil is likely to become the President, each facet -- the financial frauds, the murder, the deliberate derailment of the investigation -- becomes a matter of urgent national concern. If the frauds and murder are not exhumed today, why, that would be a real conspiracyâ¦

The politics
Could it be that the Congress high-ups, in particular Sonia Gandhi, did not know about these associations of Pratibha Patil? I was at first inclined to think so. After all, Pratibha Patil's name had been picked out of a hat at the last minute. There might have been no time for a background check.

But on going through these letters after letters, these memoranda after memoranda â one and all of them written and sent by Congressmen, one and all of them sent to Congressmen; after reading Rajani Patil's account of her meeting with Sonia Gandhi and other Congress leaders in Delhi; after going through the proceedings in courts; after seeing the screaming headlines of the local papers, I just can not believe that neither Sonia Gandhi nor her immediate colleagues remembered nothing of the case. After all, the head of their own party in the district, the very man who had been thrice elected to the post, had been killed. After all, all concerned in the party unit had been pointing to an ex-MP of the Congress and the brother of the Governor of Rajasthanâ¦ how could everyone have forgotten? Murders of district Congress chiefs are still not that common.

So, the only inference is that they knew of the antecedents of Pratibha Patil and for the very antecedents selected her.

And that stands to reason. A person who is weak and dutifully submissive is already Prime Minister. But he has one defect â being financially honest, he is not vulnerable. There is always the danger, inconceivable though it seems at present, that at some point, he may throw up his hands...

So, what is needed is not just a weak person. What is needed is a person who is weak and vulnerableâ¦

06-26-2007, 08:01 PM

<img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/india.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='india.gif' /> BJP asks UPA to think again about Patil

PTI | New Delhi

Stepping up its attack on Pratibha Patil, BJP today asked UPA to reconsider its decision of fielding her to avoid a "tainted occupant" in the Rashtrapati Bhavan and called for a 'conscience vote' in favour of Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

Senior party leader LK Advani told the BJP National Executive meeting here that "never in the past nearly six decades has a candidate for the election to the highest Constitutional office faced grave allegations."

Noting that the BJP as also the NDA went to Rashtrapati Bhavan on several occasions seeking action against "tainted Ministers" in the UPA Government, Advani said, "but what if Rashtrapati Bhavan itself gets a tainted occupant? This is a question the entire nation must seriously ponder over," he wondered.

"I, therefore, urge all constituents of the UPA to reconsider their decision," he said adding that the BJP and its allies should organise a mass awareness campaign soon to mount public pressure on MPs and MLAs of the UPA constituents to cast a 'conscience vote' in favour of Vice President Shekhawat, contesting as an 'independent' with NDA support.

He said in 1969, Indira Gandhi had given a call for a 'conscience vote' to split Congress. "In 2007, let us appeal for a 'conscience vote' to unite all pro-democracy forces," he added.

06-26-2007, 11:05 PM

Congress trust criminals, they should propose Afzal or Dawood or Arun Gawli name for Vice President.
Whole top admin is full of criminals why leave one post? Even Shiv Sena will vote for Arun Gawli, a Maratha.
Surprisingly, aam janta is just watching. They just don't care.

06-26-2007, 11:33 PM

Pratibha invokes the gods, speaks to a ghost QUOTEThen now, in a truly cosmic conundrum, on the day her name was announced as UPAâs presidential candidate she was at Mount Abu, at an ashram when she was still governor of Rajasthan. She said she communicated with the spirit of the godman of the ashram, who died 38 years ago.

âBaba entered Hriday Mohini Devi's (the godmanâs deciple) body and had a conversation with me,â a visibly moved Pratibha said.

So, the UPA presidential candidate at a celebration in the Ashram in Mount Abu claimed to communicate with Baba Lekhraj, who founded Brahma Kumari sect.

In fact, the godmanâs followers believe Pratibha has become a candidate precisely because of the late godman.
..................
Policymakers have swarmed to the Sai Baba temple in Shirdi and APJ Abdul Kalam also visited the Brahma Kumaris before he took up position at Raisina Hill. <img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ohmy.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='ohmy.gif' />Â But communicating with the dead is an unlikely talent perhaps for the future defender of India's Constitution


Now secular media is in shock, they were batting for Secular candidate, Gosh !!, she is religious person and openly against Muslim invaders, Now what they can do?

06-27-2007, 01:22 AM

BJP asks Congress to rethink about Pratibha
link
QUOTEAdvani alleged that the Congress president had devalued the office of the Prime Minister by hand-picking a person who exercised no authority of his own. "And now the highest office of the nation, the office of the Custodian of the Constitution, is sought to be similarly devalued," he pointed out.

"All of you remember that, we in the BJP and the NDA went to Rashtrapati Bhawan on several occasions seeking action against "tainted Ministers" in the UPA Government. But what if Rashtrapati Bhawan itself gets a tainted occupant? This is a question which the entire nation must seriously ponder over," he said.

Vajpayee demanded a public apology from the Central Ministers who condemned President APJ Abdul Kalam for his desire to contest election again.

"The condemnation of Kalam by the Ministers is a condemnable act. The Government should publicly denounce the conduct of these Ministers," he said in his address to the national executive of the BJP.

"These Ministers should also apologise to Kalam," party spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy quoted Vajpayee as saying at the end of the two-day national executive meet of the party here.

The senior BJP leader also took on the CPI which opposed nomination of Shivraj Patil on the ground that he as Speaker of the Lok Sabha had allegedly shown 'soft attitude' toward the BJP in the House.
Vajpayee demanded "an explanation" from the ruling party for "not making any effort to arrive at a consensus candidate."

"The NDA had supported Kalam after evolving a consensus for him. But this time, the Congress only made a telephone call to seek support for a candidate which it had already decided. That cannot be called a consensus candidate," Vajpayee said, adding the Government will have to give an explanation

**shamu** · 06-27-2007, 06:23 AM

I think for VP, NDA can nominate Karunanidhi. This will give problem for UPA since it is trying to nominate a left candidate. Since most of the TN votes are with DMK, it will complicate vote calculation.

Agree that it is a horrible site to see MK as VP.

06-27-2007, 02:11 PM

QUOTE(Mudy @ Jun 26 2007, 11:33 PM)Pratibha invokes the gods, speaks to a ghost <div class='quotetop'>QUOTEThen now, in a truly cosmic conundrum, on the day her name was announced as UPAâs presidential candidate she was at Mount Abu, at an ashram when she was still governor of Rajasthan. She said she communicated with the spirit of the godman of the ashram, who died 38 years ago.

âBaba entered Hriday Mohini Devi's (the godmanâs deciple) body and had a conversation with me,â a visibly moved Pratibha said.

So, the UPA presidential candidate at a celebration in the Ashram in Mount Abu claimed to communicate with Baba Lekhraj, who founded Brahma Kumari sect.

In fact, the godmanâs followers believe Pratibha has become a candidate precisely because of the late godman.



Now secular media is in shock, they were batting for Secular candidate, Gosh !!, she is religious person and openly against Muslim invaders, Now what they can do?
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</div>

Ha..ha..ha..I'm beginning to love this UPA tamasha more and more, with each day! I'm pretty sure the UPA, along with the 'secular' Indian media, is squirming in agony (after all, its not easy sticking one's foot in one's mouth) as each passing day reveals something colorful about the future president of India. I'm beginning to like this character a little. All I want her now to do is admit in public that her method of dealing with colleagues who have dissenting views or opinions is to practice exorcism, to drive out the 'booth' from them.

06-27-2007, 02:14 PM

QUOTEThe Big Story

Why is Sonia against Kalam?

By M.D. Nalapat

SONIA Gandhiâs visceral opposition to the re-nomination of the current incumbent of Rashtrapati Bhavan, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is inexplicable. Why is Sonia so negative about Abdul Kalam?

Is it because he supports Indian interests? Knowing the mind of Sonia Gandhi, on whom he depends for his job, Manmohan Singh has reportedly agreed to the US demand that India cap the Agni-III programme to a 5000-kilometre range. This would mean the end of this countryâs hopes of becoming a competitor to Europe in the satellite launch market. Given Soniaâs preferences, such an outcome may not be at all unpalatable to her, for anytime she has the luxury of getting back her EU passport, the way Alberto Fujumori switched from Peruvian to Japanese in a flash. Should she do so, the fact that she was responsible for the emasculation of India would go very much in her favour. Whether it is the clandestine sale of thorium under the guise of âexports of sandâ or the efforts at signing the nuclear deal, or the retreat from Siachen and Sir Creek, this government has reduced India to the stature of a diplomatic dwarf, in the process magnifying the role of Europe in South Asia. Even though he has almost never openly spoken his mind on such matters, it is known that President Kalam is deeply concerned about the direction of Indian policy, and the long-term impact of the Maino Doctrine (India as Dwarf) on the countryâs security. He would be troubled by the attempted destruction of the rocket and space programme under the cover of capping the range of the countryâs missiles to a level that would render the billion-plus people of the land defenseless in the event of a first strike by a nuclear power other than Pakistan. Is this defence of Indian interests the reason why the UPA has been prevented from backing a second term in office for President Kalam?

Is it because he is honest? Poor Sonia is almost poor, judging by the returns she has filed with the Election Commission. However, barring Arecaparambil Kurian Antony and Manmohan Singh, none of the leaders of her partyâherself includedâare known for anything other than an ostentatious lifestyle. A visit to any of the rallies that are organised for Sonia Maino Gandhi to register the âspontaneousâ ecstasy of local citizens to her coming will show that each has cost a great deal of money. Unless a method has been discovered of plucking rupees from the air, the only way such cash could have been generated would be by methods not entirely honest. Almost every politician in office has, therefore, a vested interest in ensuring that suitcases keep rolling in.

President Kalam is the odd person out in a gathering of politicians, because the man has been scrupulously honest for all his life. Even the visit of his family to New Delhi to attend his swearing-in was paid for out of his meagre savings. Now that he has been President of India, from now onwards his stay will be met out of the exchequer, otherwise all that he would have been able to afford would have been a room in Mumbai or two in Chennai. Indeed, he has stayed in a single room for almost all of his life, declining lavish quarters and the usual perquisites of high office. The President is therefore an unpleasant example to the UPA, which revels in a five-star lifestyle while talking about the aam aadmi. Is the fact that he is honest the reason why the UPA has decided to dump Abdul Kalam?

Is it because he is from Tamil Nadu? Muthuvel Karunanidhi was responsible in 1997 for preventing the first-ever Tamil Prime Minister of India. G.K. Moopanar would have made it to the gaddi but for opposition from the DMK boss. That the first family of Indian politics (Sonia, Predebon, Anushka, Nadia, Rahul and Priyanka) has been joined in an alliance by the second family (Muthuvel, Stalin, Azhagiri and Kannimozhi) is no secret. If there is a greater admirer of the daughter of Stefano Maino than Lalu Prasad Yadav, it is Muthuvel Karunanidhi, whose face reveals the extremes of joy that he experiences in the clearly delightful company of the UPA chief.

Did Muthuvel request Sonia not to give a second chance to Abdul Kalam? If so, he will have the âdistinctionâ of not only being instrumental in preventing a Tamilian from becoming Prime Minister, but President as well. Hopefully, the UPA partners will prevail upon Karunanidhi to abandon his aversion to Tamils holding high national office, so that any veto may get withdrawn.

While President Kalam has been significantly less assertive about the countryâs basic interests than Citizen Kalam, he has nevertheless been an outstanding Head of State, and there is no reason why he should be denied a second term, unless it be for the reasons mentioned above.

http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.p...&pid=190&page=4

06-27-2007, 04:13 PM

QUOTEWhy is Sonia against Kalam? 

Couple more reasons I can think of :
- After May '04 Lok Sabha elections, President Kalam didn't roll over when SG led the delegation to form govt at center. Remember SG's 'inner voice' chirping in her ears (where the hell that's gone these days)

- Remember the ordinance that UPA was to be passed off on the 'for-profit-office-holders' issue? A weak President in bed with UPA bosses would have seen that SG did not have to quit her LS seat and recontest from Rae Bareilly.

- President Kalam did go by the book on some close elections, such as the hung assembly in Bihar (the initial elections before Nitish govt finally made it in), the Jarkhand assemly elections where NDA partners had to travel in icognito to center to prove their majority

06-27-2007, 07:52 PM

QUOTE Manmohan Singh has reportedlyÂ agreed to the US demand that India cap the Agni-III programme to a 5000-kilometre range 

This is serious. They should be kicked out of India ASAP.
Moron Singh is biggest moron India ever had.

06-28-2007, 12:38 AM

I have a feeling this statement below is going to backfire on shekhawat. Which indian politician wants an untainted president? Let me think.........

Also as sankara said, this is getting hilarious... Congress defending hindu albeit creepy beliefs of a secular candidate... it does not get better. Wait, it can if Prathiba so desires!

QUOTE Peeved Cong talks of morality

Pioneer News Service | New Delhi

Seeks withdrawal of Shekhawat !

Piqued by the BJP's campaign against UPA presidential candidate Pratibha Patil - in the eye of a storm in the wake of a spate of allegations - the UPA on Wednesday sought to acquire high moral ground because she had quit the governorship of Rajasthan before entering the race.

It demanded that Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat should also quit his post.

"I have the highest regard for him (Shekhawat) as Vice-President. There is no rule for a Governor or Vice-President to resign. But in the run-up to the election, people say let us set up some moral standards," said Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, speaking as the UPA candidate's election representative.

Dasmunsi also took strong exception to Leader of the Opposition LK Advani's call for a conscience vote in presidential election and asked the Election Commission take note of his remarks.

According to him, this amounted to pressurising Central and State legislators who form the electoral college for presidential election.

Terming Advani's remarks as "dangerous", he alleged at a Press conference at Congress headquarters that the safety and security of the elected representatives would come into question in view of such statements.

Dasmunsi's argument was immediately controverted by NDA spokesperson Sushma Swaraj who said there was no need for Shekhawat to resign.

She pointed out that the then Vice-President VV Giri had not resigned from the post when Indira Gandhi fielded him against the official Congress nominee N Sanjeeva Reddy in 1969.

Addressing the national executive of the BJP on Tuesday, Advani had appealed to the constituents of the UPA to reconsider their decision to field Pratibha by pondering over the question as to what would happen if "Rashtrapati Bhawan itself gets a tainted occupant?"

The Leader of Opposition had also asked the BJP and its allies to organise a mass awareness campaign soon to mount public pressure on MPs and MLAs of the UPA constituents to cast a 'conscience vote' in favour of Shekhawat, contesting as an independent with NDA backing.

Dasmunshi dubbed all the allegations against Pratibha as "stories". He said Pratibha would herself respond to these allegations after the nomination process was over and rubbished the talk of Patil to be a "rubber stamp".

Dismissing the charges against her, Dasmunsi dared her detractors to come forward to substantiate their charges. "Let Advani start the campaign from anywhere," he said.

The Congress leader singled out Advani for attack, suggesting that the BJP leader's statement against Pratibha were not shared even by party chief Rajnath Singh and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

"What are the charges? Which court has passed any stricture? In this country, whenever a woman comes forward to take up a challenge, plenty of uncalled for allegations are levelled," he said.

The Union Minister brushed aside reports claiming that Pratibha had spoken of a divine premonition.

Making light of the controversy during Pratibha's visit to Brahma Kumaris at Mount Abu, he remarked, "Don't we say the food is good if we are invited somewhere, even though in reality it may be different."

Replying to queries, he said that faith in god and religion does not mean belief in superstition.

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