Lite byte: Of fatal attractions and a 'sapping' Sunday

Asad is the Raja!
Temperature shot up in Hyderabad a few days back with the Raja Singh episode. Now that the dust has settled, the talk of the town is who has emerged unscathed.  The suspended BJP MLA may not be dejected. After all, going to jail does some good to a politician, as former Andhra MP Undavalli Arunkumar once said. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao did what he’s supposed to do but in the process, he might have become an anti-national.... errr.. “anti-Hindu” in the eyes of a few sections who are already miffed with the Munawar Faruqui show. State BJP leaders, on the other hand, are furious.

“What was the need for Raja Singh to make the distasteful remarks at a time when we are highlighting the alleged role of MLC Kavitha in the Delhi liquor scam?” they question. On top of it, KCR grabbed the opportunity to brand them communal again and again. As if this is not enough, Hindutva organizations too are angry with the BJP for dumping Raja Singh. The only man with a reason to smile is MIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi. He took the chance to do what he does best. Reinforce his image of being the leader of Muslims who stands for peace.

Fatal attraction
Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are … so goes the rhyme as we all know.  Nowadays, BJP top guns are singing it, beginning with Home Minister Amit Shah and party president JP Nadda. The duo has made it a point to meet the stars in Hyderabad. If Amit Shah had a dinner pe charcha with pan India superhero Junior NTR, Nadda had a tete-a-tete with cricket star Mithali Raj and Telangana superstar Nithin. This outreach to celebs isn’t new.  The party believes their glamour could add to its appeal. But a few worried State BJP insiders tell us ‘celebrity overload’ and dependence on them is a diversion from the main task of reaching out to the masses. After all, the tinsel town is with KCR government, they fume. Our information is, BJP Delhi bosses want a few more stars in the ranks. So, you may see more celebs rubbing shoulders with the party leaders in the future.  The doubting party leaders wonder if this could be beneficial for either side. As one leader quipped this entire exercise could end up like another rhyme: Ring-a-ring o’ roses, a pocket full of posies… husha busha!/we all fall down!”

RRS for BRS?
Farmers from around 25 States met Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at the Pragathi Bhavan and lauded the State’s agriculture policies. The message the TRS wants to spread is that the KCR government is farmer- friendly. As the BJP is expanding its base, the TRS is mainly banking on the votes of farmers and Aasara pensioners. The state is extending Rythu Bandu to around 55 lakh farmers and pensions to around 46 lakh people. If all these beneficiaries vote for TRS, it will get around one crore votes. Beyond the State, KCR reportedly wants to open farmers’ offices across the country. A new idea of RRS for the much-discussed BRS?

A ‘sapping’ Sunday
Teachers in Sangareddy district are unhappy with the District Education Officer. He apparently issued a diktat Saturday night ordering all teachers to go to their respective schools the next morning and plant saplings. Well, it is a bit inconvenient but understandable. But the catch is, no sapling was sent to many schools! As part of Vajrotsavalu, saplings were planted in all schools. But the DEO, teachers claim, ordered that at least 75 saplings be planted again in and around the schools.  A teachers’ union leader alleged village panchayats were not given instructions to dig pits. The teachers lament that under the Haritha Haram programme, saplings have already been planted in schools many times and some have even grown into trees! However, since the DEO said so, many teachers went to schools to register their attendance. Without saplings what can they do? “Sir was, perhaps, in a hurry to meet the target,” a teacher remarked sarcastically.

— Inputs from Vivek Bhoomi, P Krishna and VV Balakrishna