A day before the counting for the mega general election, tension in the Capital was as palpable in the diplomatic enclave of Chanakyapuri as in the headquarters of political parties and the newsrooms. Stakes on the outcome of one of the most intensely fought Lok Sabha polls were as high for the diplomatic community as anyone else in the country. Post-2002 Gujarat riots, the international community in general and the West in particular (taking a high moral ground) had kept a safe distance from the BJP’s prime ministerial designate Narendra Modi.
With the opinion and exit polls forecasting a clear victory to the party and alliance led by him, they were faced with an existential dilemma on what they should do if the opinion polls prove correct. A diplomat with his Indian aide walked into the national bureau of The Hindu in the afternoon of May 15. Normally, diplomats by training, never come straight to the question that is uppermost on their mind.
But as it is said, peculiar situations demand unconventional diplomacy. Barely few minutes into the conversation, the diplomat wanted to know should his Ambassador place a call on Mr. Modi the following day and if yes, what the ideal time is. After a bit of deliberation, the diplomat was convinced that a call to Mr. Modi was a gamble worth taking. What worked was the logic that in the worst case scenario Mr. Modi would be the Leader of the Opposition, who has emerged more powerful than the Prime Minister since the dawn of coalition era in Indian politics post-1977.
Mecca, Jerusalem, Mathura
The Ministry of Tourism, a portfolio dear to Prime Minister in-waiting Narendra Modi, is gearing up to simplify and strengthen its system of e-service delivery.
The Ministry has launched a web-based public delivery system for grant of recognition to travel trade service providers.
“The objective of the system is to ease the process of filing applications by the travel trade service providers seeking recognition from the Ministry of Tourism and also to bring in transparency in granting the approvals,” says a government note.
The Ministry presently grants approval to travel agents, adventure tour operators and travel agents. Work is cut out for the babus in the Ministry as Mr. Modi has promised to develop several towns and places of pilgrimage into world tourist destinations. For instance, his promise to voters in Mathura is to make it as famous as Mecca-Medina and Jerusalem!
‘A liberal democrat’
On the day when outgoing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh submitted his resignation to President Pranab Mukherjee, his senior ministerial colleague and Defence Minister A.K. Antony invited defence correspondents to his South Block office for a quick cup of tea. True to his simple and frugal manners, Mr. Antony indulged in small chit-chat with the scribes who have interacted with him in the Ministry over the past few years.
When nudged about the humiliating defeat of the Congress in the general election, he said the party would stage a comeback as victory or defeat were all part of a thriving democracy. “I am a liberal democrat,” he quipped.
Another newsman asked him about the impressive victory of former Army chief General V.K. Singh from Ghaziabad on the BJP ticket, Mr. Antony smilingly said he shared good relations with him despite his tenure being a controversial one where the government faced an embarrassing time owing to his rub-off with the government on the issue of his age.
Mr. Antony, a Rajya Sabha member, could be the Leader of the Opposition in the House of Elders as the new BJP-led NDA government takes office in a few days.
