The DMK has put out a news release stating that the DMK was offered two Cabinet berths and that it had turned it down.
Let us look at the current developments at the National level.
The 2 G, ISRO, CWG scams sort of fading away from people’s memory and in the 2 G the Congress has not been directly implicated.
ISRO scam had become an ISRO is an in-house achievement.
Coalgate , yes , the Congress has a lot explain.
The Congress would not like to complicate its chances with additional baggage.
In The Maharashtra Irrigation scam of 70,000 Crore it is the NCP that is taking the flak.
Arm twisted by Sharad Pawar, the Congress fended off investigations till TIMESNOW Channel flashed the Documents directly implicating Ajith Pawar,nephew of Sharad Pawar and Maharasthra Deputy Chief Minister.
Congress gave a nod to CBI to probe the irrigation scam
Miffed, Ajith Pawar resigned on 25 th along with the NCP ministers tendered his resignaion(raed my blog on this)
Congress does not want to spoil its chances in the States as it is quite nervy at the National hustings.
It wants to avoid avoidable baggage.
When it can with NCP which has number,s it can do it with the DMK.
Naranyanaswamy , the errand boy(actually a Union Minister) was despatched to meet Karunanidhi and convey the message that he should lie low or share NCP’s discomfiture.
It does not take time to speed up Raja, Kalaignar TV ,Kanimozhi cases.
Added to this, is the discomfort the DMK hands out on Sri Lanka issues.
For Karunanidhi the case is different.
The only problem is not of propriety but the question of whom to give cabinet berths to,Azhagiri faction,Stalin Group or Kanomizhi Cronies or at the last resort to some DMK functionary.
He just can not do anything for fear of inter-cine quarrels
Keeping away from the Ministry would save him from frictions in the Family.
It can also provide him with an option for alliances for the ensuing elections.
Thieves and crooks all.
To read that the DMK turned down Cabinet berths, I burst out laughing!
Karunanidhi’s Family Tree.
“”Though our senior MPs wanted use the opportunity to get a good portfolio or two, Kalaignar (Karunanidhi) appears to be of a different view. He has been thinking about the stability of the government and it is one of the reasons for not accepting the offer,” a senior DMK leader said. “Many of our district secretaries are against continuing with the alliance with the Congress. They have been expressing their views to Kalaignar and asking him to distance the party from the Congress,” said a former state minister.
Senior DMK leaders point out that anger against the UPA government has been growing following a series of anti-people measures like fuel price hike and cap on subsidized LPG cylinders. “Such issues are also likely to cast a shadow on our prospects. The party wishes to keep its options open on alliances for the next Lok Sabha elections,” the leader said”
In Maharashtra a scam of Rs 72,000 Crore has been exposed by Vijay Pandhare, chief engineer (water resources department) and member of the state-level technical advisory committee.
He sent 15-page note to the State Government and blamed the politician-officer-contractor nexus for the mess.
The Note was sent in May 2012 and it became Public in September.
The State provided Rs 7000 crore in the Budget.
The liability exceeds Rs.1,000,00 Crore!
The estimates were revised arbitrarily, in one case from Rs 200 Crore to 650 Crore,
Over 3000 such Projects were completed( on paper)
32 Major Projects were cleared by Ajith Pawar in three months
Productivity of the scheme is not even 0 .1%
Excerpts of the Note:
‘In an explosive revelation, a whistle-blower in the state government has said a staggering Rs 35,000 crore was siphoned off and wasted on dud irrigation projects in the past decade. The Maharashtra government has spent Rs 70,000 crore on such projects across the state during this period….
Pandhare further revealed that IDCOM, a corporation formed by the irrigation department, undertook 227 medium projects for lift irrigation schemes. “They could not be completed. No one benefited from these schemes and public money was wasted. Who is responsible for this?”
The letter said 3,000 such lift irrigation schemes were completed, but not even 1% of them are functional. “Despite knowing the history, estimates and tenders worth Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 4,000 crore are formulated,” it said.
Pandhare stated that the annual budget of the state irrigation department is around Rs 7,000 crore. “Yet, how is it that the state has incurred a liability of nearly Rs one lakh crore to execute the balance ongoing projects? A prudent government would never take such a decision. We need to introspect on it,” he said.
The chief engineer gave the example of the Nardave project in Konkan, the cost of which was revised from Rs 200 crore to Rs 650 crore after the dam height was increased without proper sanction. “The rate estimate of this project is fit case for detailed investigation. The contractor was provided an exorbitant rate,” said his note.
“Likewise, crores of rupees were paid as false claims towards machinery idle charges and sanctioned every year by the executive director. He had no such power. Yet he sanctioned it along with the minister in a hurry, without the permission of the government,” it said. The same modus operandi was used in Kondhane, Balganga and Hetwane projects in Konkan. “Officers who attempt to vet or investigate are transferred,” said Pandhare in his note.
In the Konkan region, minor irrigation projects are approved and immediately a proposal to increase the height of the dam is mooted and sanctioned at the level of corporation. “Rates are increased under political pressure, tenders are floated and managed. This has been going on in Konkan for the last 20 years,” he claimed.
Pandhare suggested that 30-40 proposed projects in Konkan be stopped because the water utilization in this region is not even 10%. “All tenders of projects which have incurred less than 20% of the estimated expenditure must be thoroughly investigated, and if required, cancelled in public interest,” it added.
The chief engineer also gave the example of the Manjarpada-1 project. The cost is Rs 500 crore to create water storage of 500 mcft. The officer said only Rs 15-16 lakh was required per mcft. “Irrigation department’s investigation wing, which actually prepares the estimates, is literally non-existent. Hence, regional officers of the corporation themselves make the estimates without check. In reality, contractors themselves make the estimates,’
It transpires from News Channels that Ajith Pawar was building his coterie against his Uncle Sharad Pawar.
Sharad Pawar,whose MPs also count in the Lok Sabha for the stability of the UPA at the Centre has been able to ward of inquires into this scam till now.
Shaken by the Documents surfacing in the Media the Congress is reported to be arranging for an enquiry as the Congress is now besieged by the Coalgate scam(35,000 Crore)
Upset by his Uncle not being able to block enquiry Ajith Pawar is reported to have resigned and made his supporters to resign.
Shard Pawar can not afford to leave the Centre now, though he is putting on a Show that he would quit
The whole episode is a drama being enacted for Public consumption and to take the heat off the scam for now.
It is expected that the Ministers will take back their resignations to morrow and Ajith pawar may lie low for the time being, only to be reinstated at the Centre Like TR Baalu of the DMK.Right now the CM Prithviraj chavan declined to accept Ajith Pawar’s resignation
All this deflects adroitly the attention that needs to be paid to the scam.
See the Power-play.”
In a debate moderated by TIMES NOW’s Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami, panelists — Vinod Mehta, Editorial Chairman, ‘Outlook’; Keshav Rao, Cong Gen Secy in-charge, AP; Kirit Somaiya, National Secretary, BJP; and Swapan Dasgupta, Senior Journalist — debate the issue whether the real fight between the NCP and Congress is about ending investigations into multi-thousand crore rupee scams in Maharashtra.
NCP has decided to pull out of the UPA govt and support it from outside in protest against the way the party was treated by Congress, creating fresh trouble for the ruling coalition. NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Minister for Agriculture, and the only other representative in the Union Cabinet, Praful Patel, Minister for Heavy Industry, have informed PM Manmohan Singh that they are tendering their resignation. In a separate communication to UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Pawar has said NCP, which has 9 members in the LS and 7 in the RS, will stay part of the UPA. Despite these missives from NCP sent yesterday, the Cong leadership was continuing to make efforts to retain the party in the coalition govt. The Cong Core Group including Gandhi, Singh and senior Ministers, met this evening after which party sources claimed the crisis was being defused. TIMES NOW gets you the inside story on why NCP and Cong are fighting a high-pitched battle. Sources close to TIMES NOW say that twin scams in Maharashtra is the real reason behind Sharad Pawar-Congress fight. The alleged Rs 26000 cr irrigation scam and Maha Sadan scam are believed to be the reason behind the latest standoff. As the Congress-led state government in Maharashtra begins to probe the scam, sources within Congress say that they were expecting the events unfolding in the capital.
Politicians have been taking the people of India for granted.They are busy filling their coffers while nothing seems to be happening by way of action.
For nearly a year,the Government has been stumbling from one scam to another, with no governance at all.Corporate India has rightly warned this administrative and decision vacuum is hampering growth.
Prime Minister pontificates stating that price rise causes worry and the gentleman from RBI, Ranga Rajan who touted glowing pictures about economy growth a year ago is conspicuously missing from making any comments now.
To fuel price rise , fuel prices are raised over ten times within 18 months and the PM could only say that it is being fixed by the Oil companies and the government can no nothing on this front.
BJP,equally embroiled in corruption and crisis of identity and in search of issues to come to power,has done nothing except to go on Ratha yatra.
Regional satraps like Karunanidhi are busy fending themselves from corruption cases,Pawar with ICC,Modi fighting Congress to provide support to his government in Gujarat,Karnataka trying to shake off Yeddiyurappa and Bellary brothers legacy,Kerala trying to keep the Government afloat,Maharashra CM openly admitting he does not know much of the State as he has been an MP,UP Mayawati mired in maladministration and corruption,West Bengal having a rabble-rouser as CM,Tamil Nadu Jayalaithaa worried over Karunanidhi looking over her shoulders and busy in undoing what Karunanidhi has done,AP in a quagmire of Telengana,…I can not go on in this vein…..anger and pent-up emotions of people are reaching its limits.
The pampering of the rich and having Stock market as the sole bench mark of the welfare of the people and utter neglect of Agriculture and other industries in the altar of IT, will lead to destabilization of the country.
Time Rulers took notice.
Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar was today slapped by a youth at a public function claiming he was angry with corruption and price rise.
71-year-old Pawar, who went to a literary function at a public auditorium on Parliament Street, was slapped by Harvinder Singh, a transporter in his thirties who had assaulted former telecom minister Sukhram outside Rohini Court on Saturday after he was sentenced in a corruption case.
Pawar lost his balance but remained unperturbed after the assault and moved towards the exit of the auditorium and got into his waiting car.
Private security guards immediately overpowered the youth who was shouting “he is corrupt” and an official landed some blows on Singh.
“I came planned to the event to slap the minister,” Singh told reporters who had gone to cover the literary function.
“All of them are corrupt,” he shouted when he was removed from security and policemen. Wielding a small kirpan, the youth said things could have been worse but for the observance of martyrdom day of Guru Tegh Bahadur today.
In a chat with Karan Thapar‘s ‘Devil’s Advocate ,Agnivesh was elusive on the culpability of the Bhushans in the land Grab scam of the Bhushans.
He said Bhushans were prepared to surrender the land back and that their expertise was needed to draft the Lokpal Bill and people may chase them after the dead line of June 2011.
Whether smear campaign or not, Bhushans are unable to answer correctly excepting to state that this is a smear campaign and that they will surrender the land.
Nor can they meet the accusation that this allotment was a quid pro quo by Mayawati ,for them not following up the Rs.10,000 Crores scam in Taj Corridor.
Fact is that the land alloted to them was well below market prices.
( Bhushans assets are well over 100 Crores)
* This is not to belittle the service of Bhshans for Democracy in India , but that in this case they seem to be at fault. For further read on Bhushans read my Blog on Anna Hazare.
They did not pursue Taj Corridor issue.
My point is that those who draft bills against Corruption-should they not be people of unimpeachable integrity?
Curiously Anna Hazare has stated that he can not guarantee Bhushans’ past conduct and that he does not know them well.
It is funny that India seems to have only Two lawyers who can draft a Bill.
(Funnier is that the Committee should be called ‘Civil Society‘ as though others in India are Uncivil and Corrupt.)
As I have indicated in my earlier Blog Anna is unimpeachable,so is Santosh Hegde.
Kejriwal, we are yet to know him.
Pronob Mukherjee-We….ll..
Anna’s intentions are very noble and he should get rid of unwanted baggage and get on with the job.
The smear mongers are successful in that they have made the Public Media and the committee talk about Bhushans more than drafting of the Bill.
Swami Agnivesh: This is for a limited period, with a limited mandate to draft a legislation – the work stops on June 30, and then everybody is free to hunt them, to find whatever was wrong with them, punish them if they are guilty, so there is no problem with that.Karan Thapar:You are saying something very interesting – don’t continue with this scrutiny till June 30, when the drafting is over on the June 30, revive the scrutiny, find them guilty and punish them. In other words you are saying – give them a reprieve till the June 30, then continue?
Swami Agnivesh: Well, I am not saying that give them a reprieve as such. I would say start the case if you have any fact, figures or case against them, we have no problem with that, but don’t relate that to drafting committee, that is what I am saying.
We are here to draft a legislation which will ultimately fight corruption tooth and nail in this country, we’ll fight against corruption at every level, even after this bill has been legislated and made into a law – if there is corruption charges against any of the members of civil society, who are on the committee, we will fight against those corruption charges also
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