Home coming for GJR? Not really

Mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy will be brought down to Bangalore on March 2. A transit warrant was issued in his name by the Nampally special CBI court as the CBI stated that he needed to be interrogated in connection with the Associated Mining company scam.
Reddy will be. Produced before the special CBI court on march 2 at Bangalore following which he will be lodged in the Parapana Agrahara jail also known as the Bangalore central prison.
Reddy faces charges in this case along with 21 others. There is still no clarity whether he would be taken to Bellary during the course of the probe. He is likely to remain in the Bangalore jail until the investigation is complete. CBI sources said that even if he were to get bail in Andhra Pradesh he would continue to remain in the Bangalore jail as this is a different case. The jail authorities in Hyderabad have started preparations to send Reddy down to Bangalore. They are exploring the possibility of flying him down to Bangalore.
(pic- ndtv.com)

I was assured of CM’s post: BSY

B S Yeddyurappa former Chief Minister of Karnataka informed reporters in Bangalore that the party leadership had assured him that he would be reinstated as the Chief Minister of Karnataka. Yeddyurappa who celebrated his birthday today also said that there was no decision to quit the party and he would remain in the BJP.
He also added that he is not hungry for power. I was assured that I would be made the CM once again. Had such an assurance not been given I would have not turned back and even looked at that chair.
Yeddyurappa is expected to meet leaders in Delhi next month and discuss the issue further. Yeddyurappa’s statement comes three days after Nithin Gadkari made it clear there would be no change in guard in Karnataka and those wishing to split the party could go ahead and do so.

Yeddy-After the storm now the calm

Photo by-manukmsv.wordpress.com

Will he or will he not was the big question everyone had for former Chief Minister of Karnataka, B S Yeddyurappa. Although Yeddyurappa had earlier warned that he would take a very firm decision on February 27^th if he was not made the Chief Minister, it appears that the steam has fizzled out on that threat.

Yeddyurappa who celebrates his birthday today is likely to lie low and would hold a couple of meetings in New Delhi along with party chief, Nithin Gadkari later next month.

Yeddyurappa it appears has chosen to stay quiet since nothing really has gone in his favour ever since Gadkari visited Bangalore last Friday. Yeddyurappa with the support of 60 MLAs had gone on an offensive and sought that he be reinstated as the CM failing which he would break the BJP in Karnataka. However today there appears to be nothing in favour. Not only has his support come down to 40, but there was another headache in the form of a corruption case which was registered on Saturday. Moreover the very tough talk by Gadkari who said that those interested in breaking the party may do so right away also fizzled Yeddyurappa’s threat.

The Yeddyurappa camp now believes that it would do them no good if they go on the offensive and it would be better to wait and watch instead of stepping up the heat.

However it is highly unlikely that he may continue with his battle for the post of Chief Minister. He is now focusing on earning the position of state party chief which is held by his arch rival K S Eshwarappa.

Yeddyurappa will visit New Delhi in the month of March where he has decided to have peace talks with both Gadkari and other national leaders to chalk out the future course of action.

However the news at the moment from the Yeddyurappa camp is that he has decided to abandon the confrontation path as of now.

No takers for Sharia4Hind here

The Indian security agencies and the Delhi police in particular will be on guard for any sort of meeting/convention or march which is scheduled to be conducted by a little known organisation known as the Sharia4Hind. This is an organisation based in the United Kingdom which has been preaching that the Shariyath law be imposed in India as they feel that the Indian Muslims are oppressed thanks to the Indian constitution.

The Delhi High Court had recently ordered a probe against this organisation headed by Sheikh Anjem Choudary who calls himself as the judge of the UK Shariyath Court. The basic demand by this organisation is to kick start the return of Islam in the Indian subcontinent. As part of this programme, this organisation has decided to take out a march on March 3 at New Delhi pressing for the imposition of Shariyath law. The Delhi police says it is on guard and would not permit such a move. Although it has been claimed that their inflammatory website has been blocked, it continues to remain accessible to the general public. However the Delhi police say that they would inform all hotels also not to host any such event by this organisation.

The bigger question however is what kind of support would such a move get from the Indian Muslims. The answer is none as some Muslims in important positions feel that such a man who had once referred to Osama Bin Laden as his Amer should be arrested and probed. We do not need the Sharia law in India.

The Indian Intelligence says that this man, Choudary has been on the watch list by almost every agency in the world. He is a controversial personality and has strong beliefs in the Sharia law, but what has been found that he is a publicity monger with a great deal of nuisance value. However such a man needs to be checked as there are a couple of radicals who could get swayed by such a man which in turn would lead to a greater nuisance. Hence it is very important that such a man be stopped right in the beginning. Even if this man does come here we are sure that he will not get the support of more than 100 people.

Although the Delhi police say that this man would be prevented, Choudary continues to be unfazed and says that he does not need the permission as he does not believe in the Indian Law. He has threatened to conduct the event through video conferencing in case his visa now with the Indian High Commission in UK is not processed.

Now coming to the question of support that this man enjoys in India. He says that he has substantial support, but the Indian Muslims say that he has no takers here as he is talking nonsense. A cleric based in Bangalore says that the support is minimal and a majority of the Muslims will oppose any such protest. The Sharia law is very local and it cannot govern a country. We are in a secular country governed by proper laws and we do not need someone from the UK to come here and speak on our behalf.

Dr S Q R Ilyas, member of the All India Muslim Law Personal Board is of the view that it is funny to see that a man who is not even from India is seeking a law for the Indian Muslims. Why doesn’t he stick to the United Kingdom and see if he can get the UK government to implement the Sharia law? India is a secular country with a very secular Constitution and we do not need someone to come here and preach the law that we should be following. Moreover Muslims are not a majority over here and hence a law of this nature cannot govern the country.

Speaking of this law, it could only be implemented in an all Muslim country. However it can only be done if the government of that country decides to do so with the consent of the general public. It is not for any individual to come down and decide for an entire nation. Over here in India, this man can forget about this subject as we feel it is nothing but a publicity stunt. In India we have the Muslims and also the Islamic seminaries who work within the framework of the Indian Constitution and while this being the case, what Choudary is speaking makes no sense of difference to us. The other worry however is the impact he may have on some radicals. I personally feel that the population of the radicals is very minimal and even if they subscribe to this man it would make no difference on the overall thinking of the Muslims in India.
Dr Shahid Badr Falahi, former chief of the Students Islamic Movement of India asks if this man has managed to implement such a law in the UK where he is based. Let him try it over there and in case he finds some success then he could come over here. I personally feel that this man be allowed to come to India and once here he ought to be arrested and interrogated. We need to find who is behind this man and what is his exact source of funding. We already have a law in India which we all follow and we do not want some one from outside coming here and trying to make a change as the Indian Muslims would strongly reject it. This person Choudary is making no sense and he is speaking through his hat. Let him come down and he will see for himself what the real situation is.

The UP story- criminals and crorepatis

Uttar Pradesh had in all 795 candidates with a criminal record. That would mean out of the 2195 candidates who contested the election 35 per cent or more had criminal cases pending against them.

A report combining the candidates who contested in all the phases in Utttar Pradesh has been put out by the Uttar Pradesh Election Watch and the Association for Democratic Reforms. The Samajwadi Party tops the list while the BJP and the Congress held the second and third spot in this tainted department.

Out of these 2195 candidates analyzed by UPEW/ADR, 759 candidates or 35 % declared pending criminal cases against them. SP had 199 out of 401 (50 %), BJP had 144 out of 397 (36 %), INC had 120 out of 354 (34 %), BSP had 131 out of 403 (33 %), JD(U) had 46 out of 220 (21 %), Peace Party had 55 out of 209 (26 %), Apna Dal had 22 out of 76 (29 %), Qaumi Ekta Dal had 13 out of 38 (34 %), RLD had 16 out of 46 (35 %), Bundelkhand Congress had 5 out of 33 (15 %) candidates with pending criminal cases. Out of the above 759 candidates who have declared criminal cases, Brijesh Singh alias Arun Kumar Singh (Pragatishil Manav Samaj Party, Saiyadraja constituency) with 39 criminal cases including 47 charges related to murder. He is followed by Atiq Ahmed (Apna Dal, Allahabad West constituency) has declared maximum number of criminal cases. He has declared 44 criminal cases including 12 charges related to murder, 5 charges related to kidnapping and abducting in order to murder and 3 charges of extortion and Mitra Sen (SP, Bikapur constituency) with 36 criminal cases including 14 cases related to murder. Among the major parties, the candidates who have declared the maximum number of serious cases against themselves are: 1) Mitra Sen (SP, Bikapur constituency) with 36 criminal cases including 14 cases related to murder. 2) Indra Pratap (BSP, Goshainganj) with 31 criminal cases including 10 charges related to murder, 1 charge of kidnapping or abducting in order to murder and another charge related to robbery. 3) Upendra (BJP, Phephana) has 11 cases against himself including 5 charges related to murder 4) Ajay (INC, Pindra) has 8 cases against himself including 3 charges related to attempt to murder 5) Manveer Singh (JD(U), Jewar) has declared 31 cases against himself including 15 charges related to murder. Out of these 759 candidates with pending criminal cases, 340 (16 %) have pending serious criminal cases like murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, robbery, extortion etc. SP had 92 , BSP had 57 , BJP had 57 , INC had 50 , Peace Party had 30 , JD(U) had 20 , Apna Dal had 11 , RLD had 8 , QAUMI EKTA DAL had 5 and Bundelkhand Congress had 3 . Among all the analyzed candidates, 5 candidates have charges of rape against them. They are Shri Bhagwan Sharma (SP) of Bulandshahar, Shahnawaz Rana (RLD) of Bijnor, Mohd. Aleem Khan (BSP) of Bulandshahar, Anoop Sanda (SP) of Sultanpur and Manoj Kumar Paras (SP) from Bijnor constituency.

A total of 1046 candidates out of 2195 analyzed i.e. 48% were crorepatis. In 2007, there were 22% crorepati candidates. The candidates with maximum assets are Najir Ahmed of INC from Agra South constituency with assets worth 141 Crores followed by Nand Gopal of BSP from Allahabad South constituency with assets worth 95.26 Crores and Nawab Kazim Ali Khan of INC from Suar constituency with assets worth 56.89 Crores. A total of 70 candidates out of 2195 analyzed (3.2%) declared liabilities of 1 Crore or above. Among major parties,the average asset per candidate for BSP was approximate 3.39 Crores , For SP was 2.45 Crores , For BJP was 1.92 Crores , For INC was 2.98 Crores , For JD(U) was 56.64 Lacs , For Peace Party was 1.03 Crores , For Apna Dal was 96.27 Lacs , For RLD was 4.05 Crores , For QAUMI EKTA DAL was 85.77 Lacs and For Bundelkhand Congress was 46.22 Lacs Out of 6850 contesting candidates in Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2012, only 594 (8.7%) candidates are women.

Asset Increase:

Number of re-contesting MLAs analyzed for UP 2012 Assembly Elections– 285

The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2007 is Rs 1,21,26,559 (1.21 crore). The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2012 is, Rs 3,56,67,212 (3.56 crore). Average asset growth for these re-contesting MLAs is Rs 2,35,40,653 (2.35 crore). Average percentage growth in assets for these MLA is 194%. Nand Gopal of BSP from Allahabad South constituency has shown the highest increase in asset worth Rs.79.94 Crores (from 15.32 Crores to 95.26 Crores), followed by Nawab Kazim Ali Khan of INC from Suar constituency with an asset increase of Rs.47.70 Crores (from 9.18 Crores in 2007 to 56.89 Crores in 2012), followed by Dharam Pal Yadav of Rashtriya Parivartan Dal from Sahaswan constituency with an asset increase of Rs. 28.30 Crores (from 14.42 Crores in 2007 to 47.72 Crores in 2012) The highest percentage increase (13074%) has been for Kaushlendra Nath of JD(U) from Tulsipur constituency . His assets rose from 51.94 thousand in 2007 to 68.42 Lakhs in 2012. He is followed by Jitendra Kumar of BSP from Chakia (SC) with a percentage increase of 7922% (2.37 lakhs in 2007 to 1.90 crores in 2012) and Mahendra Singh Rajpoot of SP from Etawah with an increase of 6021% (5.25 lakhs in 2007 to 3.21 Crores in 2012).

Details of 7^th phase candidates:

Uttar Pradesh Election Watch (UPEW) has analyzed affidavits of 325 candidates out of 962 candidates who are contesting the 7th Phase of Uttar Pradesh 2012 Assembly Elections.

Out of these 325 candidates analyzed for the 7th phase of Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections, 98 candidates or 30 % declared criminal cases against them. In 2007 assembly elections for the whole of Uttar Pradesh, 27% candidates had declared criminal cases against themselves.

Amongst major parties, every party has given tickets to candidates who have declared criminal cases. SP has 27 out of 60 (45 %), BJP has 20 out of 60 (33 %), BSP has 13 out of 60 (22 %) INC has 14 out of 51 (27 %), RLD has 4 out of 10 (40 %), Peace Party has 13 out of 45 (29 %), JD(U) has 4 out of 26 (15 %), Ittehad-E-Millat Council has 1 out of 1 (100 %) and Rastriya Parivartan Dal has 1 out of 1 (100 %) candidates with pending criminal cases.

Out of these 98 candidates with declared criminal cases, 37 have declared serious criminal cases like murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, rape, robbery, extortion etc. SP has 12 , BJP has 6, BSP has 4, INC has 3, RLD has 2, JD(U) has 3, Peace Party has 5 and Rastriya Parivartan Dal has 1 such candidates.

Among these 98 candidates of 7th Phase who have declared criminal cases against themselves, Mehboob Ali of SP, contesting from Amroha constituency) has declared maximum number of criminal cases. He has declared 15 criminal cases including 3 charges related to murder. He is followed by Abid Raja Khan (SP, Badaun constituency) who has declared 10 criminal cases including 3 charges related to murder and Dharam Yadav (Rashtriya Parivartan Dal, Sahaswan constituency) has declared 8 criminal cases including 4 charges related to murder.

Among other major parties, the following candidates have declared the highest number of serious criminal cases against them: 1) Virendra Singh (of BSP contesting from Bithari Chainpur) has declared 2 cases against himself including 2 charges related to murder. 2) Arvind Giri (of INC contesting from Gola Golaknath constituency) has declared 8 cases against himself including 1 charge related to murder. 3) Shahnawaz Rana (of RLD from Bijnor constituency) has declared 6 criminal charges including 1 charge related to murder and 1 charge related to rape. And 4) Ramveer Singh (BJP, Kundarki constituency) has declared 5 criminal charges including 2 charges related to murder and Anoop Singh (JD{U}, Nighasan constituency) has declared1 criminal charge including 1 charge related to murder.

A total of 169 candidates out of 325 analyzed i.e. 52% are crorepatis. In 2007, there were 22% crorepati candidates.

The candidates with maximum assets in 7th Phase is Nawab Kazim Ali Khan of INC from Suar constituency with assets worth Rs. 56.89 Crores followed by Dharam Yadav of Rashtriya Parivartan Dal from Sahaswan with Rs. 42.72 Crores and Supriya Aron of INC from Bareilly Cantt. constituency with assets worth Rs. 27.69 crores.

1 candidate, Shamshad Hussain (Bundelkhand Congress) of Bilari constituency, has declared assets of less than 1 lakh (Rs. 85,000).

A total of 29 (9%) candidates out of 325 analyzed declared liabilities of Rs. 40 Lacs or above.

Among major parties, the average asset per candidate for BSP is 2.86 Crore, for INC is 3.18 Crore, for RLD is 5.19 crores, for SP is 1.95 Crore, for BJP is 1.62 Crore, for JD(U) is 51.79 Lacs, for Peace Party is 59.33 Lacs, for Bundelkhand Congress is 12.24 Lacs and for Apna Dal is 1.16 Crores.

59% candidates (192 of 325 analyzed) were graduates and above.

Out of 962 candidates contesting for 7th phase of Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2012, only 100 (11%) candidates are women.

Highlights (Analysis of asset increase of re-contesting MLAs in the 7th Phase of UP elections)

Number of re-contesting MLAs analyzed for 7th phase of UP 2012 Assembly Elections– 47 The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2007 is Rs 1,13,03,326 (1.13 crores). The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2012 is, Rs 4,74,96,422 (4.74 crore). Average asset growth for these re-contesting MLAs is Rs 3,61,93,096 (3.61 crore). Average percentage growth in assets for these MLA is 320%. Nawab Kazim Ali Khan of INC from Suar constituency has shown the highest increase in asset worth Rs.47.70 Crores (from 9.18 Crores in 2007 to 56.89 Crores in 2012), followed by Dharam Pal Yadav of RPD from Sahaswan constituency with an asset increase of Rs. 28.30 Crores (from 14.42 Crores in 2007 to 47.72 Crores in 2012) and Shahnawaz Rana of RLD from Bijnor constituency with an asset increase of Rs. 15.97 Crores (from 2.02 Crores in 2007 to 17.99 Crores in 2012) The highest percentage increase (3046%) has been for Sinod kumar Shakya of BSP from Dataganj constituency. His assets rose from 9.60 lakhs in 2007 to 3.01 Crores in 2012. He is followed by R A Usmaani of SP from Nighasan constituency with a percentage increase of 1500% (9.20 lakhs in 2007 to 1.47 Crores in 2012) and Mehboob Ali of SP from Amroha constituency with an increase of 1391% (31.20 lakhs in 2007 to 4.65 crores in 2012).

ITR and Pan-7^th phase:

Uttar Pradesh Election Watch analyzed affidavits of 325 out of the 962 candidates contesting the 7th Phase of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Out of the above 325 candidates, Om Kumar (BSP) has the highest annual income at Rs. 1.18 Crore followed by Kavita Singh (BJP) at Rs. 1.02 Crore, Iqbal (BSP) at Rs. 93.15 Lacs and Neeraj Kushwaha (BSP) at Rs. 84.18 Lacs as per their last filed Income Tax Returns. A total of 117 candidates (36%) out of the 325 candidates analyzed by the Uttar Pradesh Election Watch have declared that they have never filed income tax returns. Out of the 117 candidates analyzed who have never filed income tax returns, BJP has the maximum number of candidates 25 (42% of the 60 candidates analyzed) followed by Peace Party with 20 (44% of the 45 candidates analyzed), SP with 19 (32% of the 60 candidates analyzed), JD(U) with 18 (69% of the 26 candidates analyzed), INC with 15 (29% of the 51 candidates analyzed), BSP with 9 (15% of the 60 candidates analyzed) who have never filed ITR. Top 3 candidates with maximum assets but who have never filed IT returns are Vinay Tiwari of SP contesting from Gola Gokrannath has the highest total assets of Rs. 5.46 crores, followed by Kunwar Sarvesh Kumar of BJP from Thakurdwara with assets of Rs. 4.34 crores and Ashish Yadav of SP from Shekhupur with Rs. 4.11 crores respectively. 52 (16%) candidates have not declared their PAN details of which Peace Party has the maximum number of candidates (14 out of 45) who have not declared their PAN details. JD(U) has 9 out of 26, SP has 7 out of 60, BJP has 7 out of 60, INC has 7 out of 51, Bundelkhand Congress has 4 out of 5 and RLD has 1 out 10, BSP has 2 out 60 candidates analyzed who have not declared their PAN card details. Top three candidates with maximum assets but not declared their PAN card details are Kunwar Sarvesh Kumar of BJP contesting from Thakurdwara constituency has the highest assets with worth Rs. 4.34 Crores followed by Naseer Ahmed Khan of SP from Muradnagar with assets of Rs. 3.48 crores and Rafatulla of BJP from Sambhal with Rs. 2.55 crores respectively.

One more FIR in Yeddy’s kitty

Barely a day after a show down with the BJP’s central leadership, B S Yeddyurappa former Chief Minister of Karnataka finds himself in more trouble. An FIR has been registered against him by the Lokayukta police in connection with a Housing scam.
The timing of this case too is very interesting as the complaint was lodged by an advocate by. The name Vinod Kumar six months back. It was alleged that there were irregularities in an allotment under the Housing board.
Yeddyurappa’s daughter, Aruna Devi had got sanctioned four sites under the journalist quota and gave it away to her staff. She influenced her father who was then the Chief Minister to sanction these sites in the name of her staff. She also forged documents to show that her staff were journalists, the complaianant alleged. After the sites were sanctioned she influenced her staff to transfer the sites into her name and then sold it off for a much higher rate.
The Lokayukta police have filed a case under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code amounting to cheating.

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Has Yeddy backed down?

It appears as though B S Yeddyurappa has fallen in line at least for now. After being handed out some very tough talk by Nithin Gadkari, Yeddyurappa has now reserved his decision for February 27th.
His supporters informed that they would celebrate his birthday on 27th following which a decision would be made.
After holding a series of meetings with his supporters after the Gadkari dressing down earlier today, Yeddyurappa has decided to keep quiet at least for another couple of days. However sources inform that it is very unlikely that he may try and bring down the government.

BJP crisis: Ideology above self says Gadkari

A meeting that was meant to layout the road map for the Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party ended abruptly today with some tough talk by Nithin Gadkari aimed directly at B S Yeddyurappa. Those who wish to quit the party may do so today itself, why wait until tomorrow were Gadkari’s clear words during his address at the BJP meet in Bangalore today.

There has been a tug of war between the BJP leadership and B S Yeddyurappa over a change of Chief Minister and the former CM has been trying everything under the sun to arm twist the party leadership. However Gadkari who had made it clear in the morning said once again during the meeting that there is no question of dislodging the existing Chief Minister, Sadananda Gowda.

Follow the principles of the party as there is nothing bigger than that. There shall be no change in leadership and that is ruled out. If people want to quit the party or even split it while compromising on the party’s principles then do so today itself. Why wait until tomorrow and threaten?

The party cannot compromise on its ideology at any cost. For us ideology and principles are most important. The party in a bid to upkeep the principles and its ideology would not mind compromising its own government. The principles of the party cannot be compromised to fulfill the ambitions of one man.

Any problem that people are facing will be sorted out only after the Udupi-Chickmagalur by-elections. This seat fell vacant after Sadanananda Gowda resigned to his Member of Parliament membership after he took over as Karnataka CM. Gadkari also said that all internal problems in the BJP will be resolved after the by-election.

Immediately after the tough talk by Gadkari the meeting ended in a huff and all MLAs left the venue. A sulking Yeddyurappa returned to his residence and will now meet with his loyalists to chalk out his next move. He had said yesterday that a stern decision would be taken on February 27^th if the central leadership fails to address his concerns. It is to be seen what would transpire out of the meeting later this evening.

No change of guard in K’taka

The BJP leadership has made it clear that B S Yeddyurappa cannot be made the Chief Minister once again at this point in time. There has been plenty of drama in Bangalore with Yeddyurappa raising the pitch to be reinstated as the Chief Minister of Karnataka.

The entire morning saw a lot of resort politics with Yeddyurappa leading his forces of around 60 MLAs to Gadkari who is in Bangalore to discuss issues on how to strengthen the party. However those issues took a back seat and it was all about Yeddyurappa.

At the moment Gadkari is trying to strike a balance in the warring BJP. Yeddyurappa’s followers have been seeking a better position for their leader. They told Gadkari this morning that he be made the CM as there is none better than him to lead the government in the state. Moreover they have also listed out a long list of complaints against Chief Minister, D V Sadananda Gowda and said that he has been ineffective as a Chief Minister. They also complained to Gadkari that Gowda appears to be more tilted towards the Janata Dal(S) which did not field a candidate against him during the legislative council elections.

However Gadkari was adamant that there is no question of any change in guard in Karnataka at this point in time. Yeddyurappa has been since yesterday putting up a show of strength ahead of Gadkari’s visit. He even hosted a lunch at his home to gather the support of the MLAs but then that did not go too well.

Yeddyurappa will resort a couple more such antecedents when Gadkari is around. However at the moment is extremely upset that his demands have not been met. He is now busy chalking out the next move and had even said that he would take a very firm decision by February 27 which happens to be his birthday.

The next two days will be long drawn and this is an issue that Gadkari cannot ignore as the pitch appears to be raised. For the BJP central leadership it is a catch 22 situation. On one hand they cannot reinstate him as the Chief Minister thanks to the number of cases that are pending against him. It would send a very wrong signal if they do so. Yeddyurappa sure has the numbers but the party leadership will not let that affect them as they would send the signal that no one is bigger than the party.

The other option on hand is handing him the post of party leader in the state. However that too could have complications as the post is currently being held by K S Eshwarappa who is considered to be one of Yeddyurappa’s biggest enemies in the party.

Yeddyurappa on the other is playing his cards carefully. It is unlikely that he will walk out of the party at this time considering the numerous cases against him. He may make several threats but the actual decision to quit may come only when the elections are nearing next year. He is most likely to make the life of the BJP administration difficult. He would sit out of every party affairs along with his MLAs and stage a boycott.

However as of now Gadkari is trying to broker peace and would seek that Yeddyurappa and his men show some patience as this would not be the right to make any changes in the state BJP. Moreover Gadkari who was to be in Bangalore for two days has decided to finish off his meetings in just a day thanks to this embarasment. He is aware that staying here longer would only mean more menace by Yeddyurappa and his clan.

Delhi blast and the clueless probe

It has been almost two weeks since there was a blast in New Delhi in which an Isreali diplomat was injured. There have been various theories surrounding this attack and today it appears that the probe has hit a dead end.

Since the past couple of weeks both the agencies from Israel as well as the United States of America have given information on the attack. The CIA is said to have shared information with the Indian Intelligence on the case. It speaks about an Iranian link, but India has not been able to really confirm any such involvement as of now.

The details are still very sketchy said an official of the Delhi police and we do not want to jump the gun and come to any conclusion. The case is a bit political in nature and hence any wrong information or action could lead to a break down in international ties, the official also said.

This brings to us to the crucial question as to what exactly do the investigating agencies have on them regarding this case. The last known action was that they were studying a couple of calls that were made from Bangladesh’s Cox Bazaar to New Delhi a couple of days before the blast and also one on the same day. The police have found no connection what so ever between the calls and also the incident as of now. The investigators even looked into Harkat-ul-Jihadi link. However there was not sufficient evidence on hand to nail anyone with regard to this phone call.

The red bike was the next clue for the police and they did manage to seize one such bike believing that it was the same one on which the bomber was riding. The police are believed to have rounded many more such bikes and also questioned the owners only to realise that they had nothing to do with the incident. The police then dismissed the red bike theory stating that it was not leading them anywhere. They also have been investigating a cyclist theory behind this attack based on the confessions of the victims. This is at a preliminary stage, but the leads have not been encouraging as of now.

Further a couple of Iranian nationals were picked up from the Kalina area of Delhi and thoroughly questioned, but that too has not resulted in anything. Further they also tried to get their hand on more clues pertaining to both the blasts at Georgia and also Thailand. However as of now what the police say that it could have been a mere coincidence or even a stage managed job. The Indian agencies have been accused of being treading too carefully on this case as they do not want to harm their relations with Iran. Although both the US and Israel have pointed a finger at Iran, India would not jump to any conclusion and would prefer the investigation to be an independent affair. Further the Indian investigators also argue that going by the investigations in both Gerogia and also Thailand there is not much to connect it with the attack on New Delhi.

The forensics reports on the case have been slow to come by. There has been definitive evidence to show the use of a magnet which meant that the bomb had been stuck on to the vehicle. The investigators say that one cannot just come to the conclusion that if such a bomb was being used in the Middle East then it could be the same module behind the Delhi attack as well. It is not difficult to replicate this bomb. We are however leaving all options open and would like to bring out the truth rather than jumping to any conclusion.