Touch My Feet President

By Manuwant Choudhary

This man Pranab Mukherjee should have been India's Prime Minister.

But the Congress Party does not trust him fully so, while deserving, he gets to become India's first citizen - The President, if elected.

And even for this he is internally thanking Bengal's chief minister Mamata Banerjee who raised the war cry to re-instal Dr. APJ Kalam, India's missile man, as President.

Kalam is a nice guy and the children love him but that does not mean he should be President for Life !

Ultimately, whether its Bihar or the United States ..its always caste that wins in a democracy.

How can Mamata oppose a Bengali?

I have never met Pranab Da because Pranab Babu spends most of his time in New Delhi and he has perhaps had a rather long innings touching the feet of the Congress High Command.

But he has not always fallen in line and for this he has also paid a price.

So its not surprising as a Member of Parliament he loves going back to his constituency West Bengal.

The other day after his candidature was announced he returned to Birbhum and as people came up to meet him Pranab Da forcefully pushed the heads of young boys to touch his feet.

But while India's political fraternity is a divided house they all love Pranab Mukherjee.

And while some said that he is hardly an economist to become India's Prime Minister. It would be fair to say `Andha mein Kaana Raja' (in a land of the blind, the one-eye becomes King')

India's economist Prime Minister is not doing any better.

But Pranab Da is happy and his rosogulla smile just doesn't seem to go away.

India respects him for the way he handled the aftermath of the 26-11 attacks on Bombay.

And the Pakistani press showered praises on him for his no-nonsense, straightforward approach in dealing with Pakistan.

Pranab Babu is the right man to build relations with Pakistan.

As for protecting India's constitution, it will still be a socialist constitution that he will protect, where liberal parties are not allowed by law to contest elections.

Yet, it will be perhaps the last time a dhoti-clad person will live in the Presidential Palace.

A Burning Mantralaya & Socialism

By Manuwant Choudhary

Images of a burning Mantralaya in Mumbai reminded me of my days as a cub reporter with The Afternoon Despatch & Courier.

But I was never  a Mantralaya Correspondent.

I remember telling my  editor Behram Contractor that I do not want to be  a Mantralaya Correspondent and he replied emphatically that even he did not want me to be that....

A Mantralaya Correspondent meant sitting in chambers of various ministers and spending the day over tea and coffee and by evening the ministers PA would give a hand-out and the journo would return to the desk and hammer a story out of nothing...the job done...and go home.

Next day the minister would be happy and so more samosas and more chais.

But as I write this and watch TV news I think more of us have actually become Mantralaya Correspondents.

National TV covers the fire saying how important documents some related to famous scams have been destroyed.

Rest assured the Mantralaya fire hasn't destroyed anything worthwhile..maybe just handouts and worm eaten files!

I have been there a few time and actually there is nothing in the Mantralaya.

And the lunchtime fire was way off the mark...killing three innocent persons.

No politician was even hurt.

As for corruption its spread across Mumbai.

I remember once Shiela Barse a firebrand journalist of Indian Express gave me a file and told me to have a look how ordinary hardworking and honest people contribute to Black money. (Not the few whom Baba Ramdev attacks) but literally everybody.

Anyone who buys an apartment in Mumbai has to pay in black !

And its one industrialist Ratan Tata who connects Mumbai to Kolkata where the other BIG story is making NEWS.

The Kolkata High Court has over-ruled an earlier High Court order and held Mamata Banerjee's decision to hand farms back to farmers at Singur as unconstitutional.

And Ratan Tata is mighty pleased...

But lets look at the issue more closely.

Its like saying the government can take over AIR India from the Tata's but cannot return it to them.

Socialism has always been about robbing Paul to pay Peter but the current judgement shows we have completely destroyed our constitution.

Forget the Supreme Court. India now needs a new constitution one that will guarantee property rights to all Indians.