Minister of State for Earth Sciences, Science and Technology and Telugu Desam MP Y.S. Chowdary has come up with a novel plan on what to do with the ailing private airline, Spicejet, as its problems remind one of the collapse of Kingfisher. Why doesn’t Air India buy it, he has suggested to those that matter in the government.
Please all, please none
Piloting a Bill in the Rajya Sabha, which deals with the issue of housing for all, senior Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu had a tough time pleasing all.
As soon as he admitted that he was impressed with the slum clearance carried out in Tamil Nadu under M. Karunanidhi, AIADMK member A. Navaneethakrishnan said the names of “other Chief Ministers” should be taken too. So Mr. Naidu quickly included the former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's name, but then P. Kannan of the Congress asked what about K. Kamaraj. Another interjection came from P. Rajeeve of the CPI(M), who said there were no slums in Kerala. An exasperated, but quick-witted, Mr. Naidu replied: “Sir, Kerala is God’s own place. How can there be slums there?”
Will be back
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Hamid Ansari bid farewell to the four members from Jammu & Kashmir — Ghulam Nabi Azad, Saif-ud-Din Soz, Mohammad Shafi and G.N. Ratanpuri — who are retiring next month. As soon as he finished speaking, Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu was quick to quip. “Sir, I hope Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad is coming back,” he said, drawing laughs from Mr. Azad and the rest of the House.
