Round The States

New Delhi, 9 December 2010

Varanasi Blast

Centre’s Fallacy Exposed

By Insaf

Deadly terror struck with a vengeance in Uttar Pradesh’s holy city Varanasi on Tuesday last. A crude device went off during the famous Ganag aarti at the Dasaswamedh Ghat killing one and injuring 35, including foreign tourists. The blast came after a ten-month lull following the Pune German bakery explosion. The perpetrators, the Indian Mujahedeen in an email asserted this was to avenge the Babri demolition as also expressed its angst against the Allahabad High Court decision in favour of the Ram Janam Bhoomi Trust. Since 2005 this is the third attack and Varanasi seems to be a favourite target. For three diverse reasons. One, it is India’s primary religious centre and a symbol of Ganga-Jamuni culture. Two, it is close to the recruiting areas of home-grown terror outfits. Three, a favorite tourist destination it automatically attracts world attention.

Importantly, notwithstanding the Centre’s tall claims of being adept at tackling terror post 26/11, the Varanasi blast exposes the fallacy of New Delhi. Particularly as nearly a thousand people have been killed in 28 terrorists’ attacks in the past one decade. The Centre seems confused as it continues to vacillate. Resulting in emboldening terrorists. According to intelligence sources, the militants seem to take heart from the over three-year-long trial of Pakistani terrorist Kasab in Mumbai. Other than making loud claims that India will fight terrorism with an iron hand, the ground reality totals a big zero. Invariably all terror attacks are thanks to lackadaisical security and poor intelligence outputs. Most seem to forget that the safety and security of the citizens is the prime responsibility of the Government both at the Centre and the States.

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Finance Ministers’ Meet

The much-touted State Finance Ministers meeting to end the stalemate over the proposed goods and services tax at New Delhi earlier this week came to naught. Thanks to this indirect-tax reform, it is now a political issue between the Congress and the BJP. Only eight State Finance Ministers out of 28 attended the meet. Leading to the deferment of discussions on the Constitutional amendments required for GST’s implementation. Most pointed was the absence of Finance Ministers of BJP-ruled States. Recall, the Centre had planned to roll out GST from this fiscal year to harmonise the country’s indirect tax regime by replacing several taxes levied by it and States. However, the Constitution needs to be amended to allow Parliament and State Assemblies to tax same items. At present, the Centre can impose tax on goods at the factory gate while States can only tax goods at retail level. With a lack of consensus against the GST gaining momentum it remains to be seen if it will become a reality next fiscal year.

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UP’s ‘Record’ Corruption

In this season of corruption galore, UP recorded another first. When its former Chief Secretary and Chairman Noida, Neera Yadav, was sentenced and jailed on Tuesday last. The CBI special court nabbed her under the anti-corruption Act, as it found her guilty in a land allocation case for favouring Flex Industries chairman Ashok Chautrvedi, who too was convicted. In three other allotments of plots in Noida, Yadav was said to have indulged in large-scale bungling, violation of rules and procedures in 1994-96. She was  also charged with allotting out-of-turn plots to bureaucrats, politicians, industrialists and  near and dear ones. In fact, she earned the dubious reputation of being declared “The most corrupt bureaucrat” by UP’s IAS Association. Yadav clearly is no pushover. She is the first woman in India to head a State administration and who earned the dubious distinction of being removed by the Supreme Court in 2004. Will she be the last?

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BJP Karnataka Woes

The travails of the BJP government in Karnataka are unending. After the Lok Ayukta, it is now yet again the turn of Governor HR Bhardwaj to unleash an attack on Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa over ordering a judicial probe into the allegations of favouritism in allotment of government land. Whereby the Governor has suggested “that the judicial probe was nothing but an eyewash and a cover-up effort,” given that the police alone had the powers to investigate the land scam. He cited a Supreme Court ruling for good measure. According to him the dual probe into the scam and denotification of land was just to create confusion. Making matters worse, the Lok Ayukta Santosh Hegde too has asserted that a judicial probe was redundant as he was inquiring into the same. Needless to say troubles are clearly not over for Yeddyurappa, who barely managed to save his kursi thanks to BJP’s political compulsions to retain its Lingayat vote bank in the State. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.

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Kashmir’s Political Anguish

If the continuing strife in Kashmir was not bad enough, trust our politicians to add fuel to fire. In a shocking faux pas two leaders at the Centre and the State have added to the all-round dismay and confusion. Stated CPI National Secretary D Raja on a visit to Srinagar: “Pelting stones represented accumulated anger and frustration of fourth generation Kashmiris”. Turning turtle the Centre and security forces’ assertions that stone-pelting was orchestrated by separatist leader Syed Geelani along with Lashkar-e-Toiba. This is not all. Along with his 11-member group, comprising 7 MPs and 3 civilians, he promised to act as a ‘pro- Kashmir pressure group’ in New Delhi. Equally scandalous in Jammu the Congress Minister for Health and Horticulture Sham Lal Sharma suggested that Kashmir be granted Azadi for better development of Jammu. Interestingly, the PCC chief Saifuddin Soz. remained silent even as the BJP yelled blue murder. Notwithstanding a sharp rap from New Delhi Sharma continues to remain in the saddle. What now?

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Tamil Nadu Land Scam

In this season of land scams Tamil Nadu is the latest entrant. In documents obtained by RTI activist, the DMK Government has allotted land worth crores by allegedly misusing its discretionary powers. Under special powers it can award up to 15 per cent of properties developed by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board under the Chief Minister’s discretionary quota. Notwithstanding stringent eligibility norms which include widows, single women, social workers, disabled, armed forces, freedom fighters et al, the lands were ‘gifted’ to its chosen few --- politicians, their family members, officials and senior judicial staff. Even corrupt officials were shown with ‘unblemished’ records while politicians feigned how their kin were among the beneficiaries. There is no gainsaying that post Raja’s 2G Spectrum scam, this is not surprising. It is merely a drop in the vast ocean of corruption that emits from Tamil Nadu.---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)