:: Arun Nehru

Void in Andhra must be filled with care

By Arun Nehru

Sep 13 : After the untimely death of Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, the succession battle is on in full swing. Should we be surprised by events as they unfold in the state?

The media may have a field day listing the assets of YSR's son Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. Surprisingly, all this was known for the past few years and no one in particular had highlighted these facts during YSR's tenure!

I sometimes wonder why we become moral hypocrites when we know that dynastic strains exist in all regional parties. Has anyone examined the assets and business interests of the leaders of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Telugu Desam Party, the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)?

In a system where there is no transparency in political donations, should "moral" yardsticks be applied to individual leaders on a selective basis? There are exceptions to the rule but these are shrinking by the day.

Sadly, every party, be it the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or the regional parties, will suffer as political power bases are no longer fuelled by public support but by financial power. Business interests and political strategy will have to be modified suitably. This is the ground reality in many states and the Congress high command has to adjust to the situation.

The situation in Andhra Pradesh is very complex. It needs sensible political decisions that must not ignore the possibility of regional formations that can again dominate the political space in the state.

We mourn the untimely demise of YSR. No one is perfect but, undoubtedly, he was a charismatic leader who won two successive spectacular electoral verdicts and did his party proud.

The helicopter crash and subsequent death of five people have once again brought focus to VIP air travel and safety. I sincerely hope that it results in changes for the better.

It is not unusual for politicians to bend the rules (we have all done it at some time or the other). Sadly, this has resulted in fatalities over the past few years due to increased usage of private planes and helicopters.

POLITICAL BATTLES will resume as the Congress and the NCP are yet to arrive at a seat-sharing agreement for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections. The NCP, after a weak Lok Sabha performance, is on the defensive. Also, the 200-plus seats secured by the Congress in the Lok Sabha has reduced its dependence on the NCP. All this is bound to be reflected in the seat distribution for the state Assembly elections.

Political accidents can always take place as each party will take extreme positions to secure benefits, but Sharad Pawar is well aware of his limitations and the Congress quota will undoubtedly increase over the previous year.

In Maharashtra, the Congress-NCP alliance will duck the anti-incumbency vote and win by a reasonable margin over the BJP-Shiv Sena combine. There is no contest in Arunachal Pradesh and in Haryana again the Congress will prevail over the INLD and the proposed BJP-Bhajan Lal combination.

Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is poised to win another victory and I don't see the three Opposition combinations making a dent in the Congress tally.

The 18 by-elections in Bihar will also attract a great deal of attention as both the RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav and the Congress will try to blunt the Janata Dal (United)-BJP combine which had won 32 out of 40 seats in the Lok Sabha elections.

The Congress may win all the three state Assembly elections (Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana and Maharashtra), but price rise and inflation will be major issues and may spring a surprise or two for the party.

THE RECENT episode of external affairs minister S.M. Krishna and minister of state Shashi Tharoor moving out of five-star hotels received a lot of media attention. This was a political blunder and I am surprised that the government and the party needed a media report to initiate action.

The Congress Party must ensure that it does not deflect from the austerity drive. With Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's attempts to deal with the economic recession, drought and a paucity of funds for poverty schemes, there is clearly a need for the party to be more vigilant on politically-sensitive issues.

Times have changed and habits will take some time to adjust to a more austere situation. The media will no doubt focus on visits abroad, functions at five-star hotels, the usage of helicopters and special aircrafts by ministers and MPs and the hospitality availed from business houses.

This was a very bad mistake and regret should be expressed as this will feature in political campaigns. Moreover, cartoons in the media should never be taken lightly. In this episode, the ministers concerned should bring this controversy to an end. Also, if they claim that they are paying from their own pockets, then they should not avail any special offers given by the hotels and pay the market prices. This will serve as a message for all politicians and bureaucrats.

Things change with time. We have all lived in "Type-VIII" houses for well over a decade but I cannot recall a single renovation or change made in the houses over the years. In the past decade, 90 per cent of the houses and bungalows that come under government accommodation have undergone "changes" and "illegal" additions. It is a sad reflection on the residents.

Whilst the public is hounded by fines, demolitions and prosecution in similar situations, there is no accountability for those who make the law. A decade ago, ministers rarely used five-star hotels during their visits. Most of us stayed at Raj Bhavans, state government guest houses and, except for a few senior ministers in the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs and the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, few used special aircrafts for domestic travel.

Dr Singh has set an excellent example on integrity and austerity and so have other senior ministers in the government. The Congress has also shown respect for its political commitments, but these "political accidents" must be avoided. Clearly a system must be put in place to check these indiscretions and to take timely corrective action.

Arun Nehru is a former Union minister