Round The States

New Delhi, 13 May 2017

UP’s Caste Cauldron

YOGI’s BIG CHALLENGE 

By Insaf

All eyes are fixed on young Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi on his handling of the State’s latest tinderbox Saharanpur. Till yesterday a BSP stronghold of Dalits-Muslims, over the years it has seen many Dalit-Thakur clashes. But the latest three big flare-ups in three weeks, with 12 FIRs being filed, 24 arrests, the police refusing to heed the District Magistrate’s orders to open fire, till date no compensation to Dalits whose houses were burnt by the Thakurs, has presented Yogi his first big challenge. That he means business was apparent when he fired the two SPs of the district and asked the DM to hold a meeting with people across communities and party lines to mitigate the trust deficit among various groups. However, the Lucknow headquarter is struggling to get a grip and calm tempers. Adityanath has thus rushed a senior minister to Saharanpur to help bring the situation under control. The urgency is all the more imperative as the Chief Minister would not like to give Mayawati any quarter in her old bastion where the BJP wrested four of the seven Assembly seats, the others shared by SP and Congress. So far, the Gods seem to have taken kindly to Yogi’s endevours, be it banning illegal slaughter houses, paving roads, and promising 25/7 electricity in villages but the key to bigger success lies in enforcing rule of law in the State.

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Manipur BJP Triumph  

Ruling BJP in Manipur has made its first big mark. Chief Minister N Biren’s administration has reached out to protestors in Churanchandpur town and has got them to agree to bury the bodies of eight of their activists after over a year-and-a-half since lying in the hospital morgue. The protestors had died during an agitation against the previous Congress-led government of Ibobi Singh over implementation of ILP (Inner Line Permit), which restricts entry of outsiders. The rapprochement follows an MOU between the Joint Action Committee Against the Anti-Tribal Bill, spearheading the protest and the government. The latter has agreed to compensate families of victims, who died in August 2015; build a memorial in the town; take tribal opinion in future actions, and of course probe the deaths. In return, the Committee will bury the corpses by May 25. However, the government can’t be relieved or complacent. It must now deal with the larger issue whether the ILP system, proposed by its predecessor is “anti-tribal’ and pro-Meitei. Preparing a fresh Bill to please both will no doubt be an uphill task.

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Naxal-Hit States

Sad are the state of affairs between the Centre and the Naxal-hit States. This specially against the background of tackling the Maoist menace collectively, wherein Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) has stooped to the level tritely by passing the buck to the Union Home Ministry. Not for him the fact that internal terrorism knows no politics. Notwithstanding the Centre’s tough talk on adopting aggressive measures, the Bihar Chief Minister nonchalantly threw the ball back by asserting the NDA government could not play only a reviewing role. Mere discussion will not help, the Centre needs to take concrete steps and financial burden needs to be shared by both, he asserted. Scandalously, four of the 10 Chief Ministers of affected States, failed to attend the meeting to review the anti-Maoist doctrine. West Bengal, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh sent officials instead. A small consolation for the Centre was Odisha Chief Minister Patnaik’s demand for more Central Armed Police Force battalions and inclusion of three districts to take on effective counter measures against extremism. In this milieu who will bell the fattening terror cat? 

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Jharkhand Healing  Bid  

Jharkhand follows Maharashtra in protecting its doctors. The Cabinet on Tuesday last cleared a Bill which too proposes three-year jail and/or fine of Rs 50,000 for attacking doctors, paramedics or damage to a hospital. At the same time, it heeds to patients and ensures the doctors follow the code of ethics and other rules or regulations. Else their licence could be cancelled for any violation. Importantly, the Bill would cover both government and private hospitals as well as nursing and maternity homes. Recall that rising incidents of attacks on doctors hit the headlines, after resident doctors in Mumbai went on strike following a doctor being brutally beaten up. The Fadnavis government defused tempers by assuring it would sensitise the police in invoking the State’s medical law. Ranchi has been quick to take a cue and warned that damage to property or manhandling of doctors would be a non-bailable offence and will be investigated by a DSP-level officer. All eyes would now be on the Assembly as to when it passes the Jharkhand Medicare Service Persons and Medicare Institutions (Prevention of Violence and damage to Property) Bill 2017. After all a stitch in time saves nine!

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Odisha Poaching

After UP, Modi’s next target is Odisha, where it is pulling out all the stops to wrest the State from the BJD. That it’s a tough hill for Naveen Patnaik is a no brainer as he fights the three-term incumbency of being in power along with rumblings within his flock. After senior Mahapatra’s failed attempt to break the party last year, the BJP has won over two BJD leaders including a suspended ex-MP, adding to its numbers in the State. Pangi follows in the footsteps of former Congress leader Giridhar Gomang, who joined the saffron brigade two years ago. The BJP hopes this tribal ex-MP will give the party a boost in tribal-dominated areas, where it lacks presence. Its desperation is apparent when it has conveniently chosen to ignore that the ex-MP is facing three murder charges. On its part, the BJD has not taken kindly to its rival’s poaching on its flock and has declared all-out war. A beginning to an eventful election this time round?

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Gujarat Poster Mystery

With elections round the corner in Modiland Gujarat the two principal parties, the BJP and Congress are leaving no stone unturned to net the State. The first off the mark is the dirty tricks department of the BJP, according to the Congress as it accuses it of  putting up hoardings projecting senior leader Shankersinh Vaghela as the Chief Ministerial candidate even as he denied being in the race for the post. Further, Congress leaders feel the poster war is to sidetrack rumours in Vaghela’s stronghold Vadodara of his ‘ghar wapsi’ to the saffron Sangh. The poster which teases with a catch line “Be it the BJP or the Congress it will be Bapu’s (Vaghela) government in 2017”, signed by well-wishers and proud Gujaratis, has set tongues wagging in both camps. Predictably, both are busy accusing each other. While the Congress demands a police probe underscoring that “the High Command will decide on the Chief Minister”, the BJP washed its hands clean of the episode and stated it was “attempts by its rivals to disturb the political atmosphere in the State.”  Who will throw the next poll volley? ---INFA

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