Delhi confidential: Wide Net

The BJP does not seem to leave any stone unturned to make its manifesto attractive. A galaxy of minority minds from diverse fields gave their inputs for the manifesto at the programme “Bharat ke Mann ki Baat Modi ke Saath” on Thursday. Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali, defence expert Qamar Agha, All India Imam Association president Sajid Rashidi, Jamia Hamdard University V-C Prof Syed Ehtesham Hasnain, Christian community leader Father Joseph Mani, Justice (retd) Zakiullah Khan, Parsi Anjuman Delhi president Abha Khullar and others gave their inputs. The meeting was also attended by Union ministers Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Thawar Chand Gehlot.

Action And Reaction
As a video of BJP’s Sant Kabir Nagar MP Sharad Tripathi assaulting a party MLA over an argument about a foundation stone went viral, many senior party leaders called him to give him a dressing down over his violent action, which, they said, had embarrassed the party across the country. The incident triggered many stories in the BJP headquarters, with some interpreting it as part of an ongoing tussle between Thakurs and Brahmins, a narrative started after Yogi Adityanath became Chief Minister and allegedly promoted Thakurs. Baghel is a Thakur while Tripathi is a Brahmin. Some said that UP leaders have cancelled their meetings in areas where they may face hostility from the local leadership. However, when one senior party leader called him to ask what happened, Tripathi just pleaded that the leader should see that he is protected.

Under Fire
At first it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks related to dyslexic children that was flayed by disability rights groups as insensitive. Now the government has come under fire again, with disability rights groups accusing it of being eager to create records instead of being concerned about the actual welfare of persons with disabilities. The ire was directed at the disability affairs department of the Social Justice Ministry under Thawar Chand Gehlot, which recently issued a release talking of their achievement wherein “1700 visually impaired children have been treated with Cochlear Implant Surgery” (instead of the correct term ‘hearing impaired’).