NEW DELHI: On Sunday, when Union minister for Water Resources Meira Kumar made her way to 10 Janpath, residence of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, it was clear that Ms Kumar has emerged as the top contender for Speaker’s post. Leaving Ms Girija Vyas and Mr V Kishore Chandra Deo far behind in the race.

In elevating the newly appointed water resources minister to Speaker, the glass ceiling will have been decidedly shattered. Though a Dalit Speaker is no novelty — the late GM Balayogi of TDP had presided over the House of Representatives — it will be the first time that a woman and Dalit will grace the Speaker’s chair. The move will further consolidate Congress’ claim as the party of inclusive growth. Ms Kumar’s elevation could well be the harbinger of an era of greater gender and caste parity.

Born in 1945, Ms Kumar is second of the two children of the Dalit leader from Bihar, Jagjivan Ram. The soft-spoken five time MP could well be said to have grown up in the corridors of power. Her father became the youngest minister in the Jawaharlal Nehru’s provisional government in 1946. From then on till 1978, Mr Ram served virtually uninterrupted in one capacity or another in successive governments. Parliament too was not a strange or far off concept for Ms Kumar, after all her father who was an influential Dalit leader, had been a member of Parliament right up until his death in 1986.

Ms Kumar’s career trajectory was far removed from the hurly burly of Indian politics. Her only brief foray in her early twenties was as the chairperson of the National Drought Relief Committee of the Congress during the 1967 drought. As the head of the committee she launched a Family Adoption Scheme — drought-affected families were adopted by affluent families.

As was the wont of most well educated youngsters of her time, Ms Kumar took the civil services route, making it to the Indian Foreign Service. As an officer of the 1973 batch, Ms Kumar served in Madrid and London.
It would appear that the pull of politics, which had been a constant in Meira Kumar’s life proved to be hard to resist. Her induction into formal politics came in 1985, barely a year before her father passed away. She became yet another successful professional, who had the added advantage of family involvement, to join politics after Rajiv Gandhi assumed the office of prime minister.

Her first venture electoral venture was in Bijnore in Uttar pradesh, from where she was elected to the eighth Lok Sabha. However, it proved to be beginner’s luck, Ms Kumar lost the next two elections. In 1996, she contested from the Karol Bagh parliamentary constituency in Delhi, which she won. Ms Kumar retained the seat in the twelfth Lok Sabha. Once again, in 1999 she was voted out. For her next electoral venture in 2004, Ms Kumar chose to return to Sasaram, a seat her father had held for nearly three decades. She won the elections and was made minister for social justice and empowerment.

NEW DELHI: On Sunday, when Union minister for Water Resources Meira Kumar made her way to 10 Janpath, residence of Congress president Sonia
Gandhi, it was clear that Ms Kumar has emerged as the top contender for Speaker’s post. Leaving Ms Girija Vyas and Mr V Kishore Chandra Deo far behind in the race.

In elevating the newly appointed water resources minister to Speaker, the glass ceiling will have been decidedly shattered. Though a Dalit Speaker is no novelty — the late GM Balayogi of TDP had presided over the House of Representatives — it will be the first time that a woman and Dalit will grace the Speaker’s chair. The move will further consolidate Congress’ claim as the party of inclusive growth. Ms Kumar’s elevation could well be the harbinger of an era of greater gender and caste parity.

Born in 1945, Ms Kumar is second of the two children of the Dalit leader from Bihar, Jagjivan Ram. The soft-spoken five time MP could well be said to have grown up in the corridors of power. Her father became the youngest minister in the Jawaharlal Nehru’s provisional government in 1946. From then on till 1978, Mr Ram served virtually uninterrupted in one capacity or another in successive governments. Parliament too was not a strange or far off concept for Ms Kumar, after all her father who was an influential Dalit leader, had been a member of Parliament right up until his death in 1986.

Ms Kumar’s career trajectory was far removed from the hurly burly of Indian politics. Her only brief foray in her early twenties was as the chairperson of the National Drought Relief Committee of the Congress during the 1967 drought. As the head of the committee she launched a Family Adoption Scheme — drought-affected families were adopted by affluent families.

As was the wont of most well educated youngsters of her time, Ms Kumar took the civil services route, making it to the Indian Foreign Service. As an officer of the 1973 batch, Ms Kumar served in Madrid and London.
It would appear that the pull of politics, which had been a constant in Meira Kumar’s life proved to be hard to resist. Her induction into formal politics came in 1985, barely a year before her father passed away. She became yet another successful professional, who had the added advantage of family involvement, to join politics after Rajiv Gandhi assumed the office of prime minister.

Her first venture electoral venture was in Bijnore in Uttar pradesh, from where she was elected to the eighth Lok Sabha. However, it proved to be beginner’s luck, Ms Kumar lost the next two elections. In 1996, she contested from the Karol Bagh parliamentary constituency in Delhi, which she won. Ms Kumar retained the seat in the twelfth Lok Sabha. Once again, in 1999 she was voted out. For her next electoral venture in 2004, Ms Kumar chose to return to Sasaram, a seat her father had held for nearly three decades. She won the elections and was made minister for social justice and empowerment.

Kannau, May 1 : Trumpeting the "achievements" of his government, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today accused the SP, BSP and Congress of being responsible for the "dismal" state of affairs in Uttar Pradesh by ignoring development issues and indulging in vote bank politics. "People want roads, water, education, employment, medicines and houses but these parties which only indulge in vote bank politics should be taught a lesson by the people," the BJP leader said addressing an election rally here.

Asking the people to uproot those who worked towards "protecting SIMI", Modi said that those found involved in bomb blasts were "taught a lesson" in Gujarat. "These parties want Bangladeshi infiltrators in Assam to be given Indian nationality," he said and in his trademark style asked the gathering whether they will agree to it. The people responded with a vociferous "No". The Gujarat chief minister said that unlike BJP which talks about development and security, the other parties were not interested in the welfare of common people.

Citing the various development works undertaken in Gujarat, he said that "a law has been brought for cow protection which had also been favoured by the Mahatma Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave but the parties like the BSP and SP had remained silent on it for vote bank politics".

Claiming a 20 per cent growth in the dairy industry in his state, Modi said that it was a matter of pride that milk being used in Singapore was also from Gujarat.

Kolkata, Apr 25 : Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday that he would "refuse" to become Prime Minister "now" as he does not have the experience required for the top post.

"Now ... I would refuse," he said at a press conference when asked whether he would accept Prime Ministership in the near future.

"I do not think I have the experience to be the Prime Minister of the country right now," said 39-year-old Gandhi who was flanked by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

He also said that he was working for developing a strong pro-poor Youth Congress, an initiative that has borne fruit in Punjab and Gujarat.

During the nearly hour-long press meet, Gandhi responded to a volley of question ranging from the situation in Sri Lanka to the Left Front government performance in West Bengal.

Question: You have been projected as the future Prime Minister of the country by your party. How prepared you think you are at this point of time if the opportunity to become the Prime Minister of the country arises in the not so distant future?

Gandhi listed two reasons for not accepting the Prime Ministership.

"One is that I am working in the organisation of the Congress party which I think is fundamental for this country. I think it is very important for a strong, progressive, pro-poor youth organisation is developed in this country and that is a very, very big priority of mine.”

"Number two is I don't think I have the experience to be the Prime Minister of the country right now," said Gandhi, who has batted strongly for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh continuing in the post if the UPA returns to power.

Gandhi struck an aggressive note on being quizzed about the Bofors controversy and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and whether he was prepared to apologise for them.

"There is absolutely nothing that I have to apologise about Bofors. It is a complete lie," he said adding that the controversy was a "calumny" spread by the opposition for 20 years.

Asked whether the Congress was keeping its doors open for a post-poll understanding with the Left parties, Gandhi was non-committal.

"I am nobody to say whether the doors are open or closed. That is for the party president and Prime Minister to decide. But as a general principle, I can say that doors of Congress are open for anyone willing to join us," he said.

Gandhi, who attacked the Left Front government in West Bengal over the implementation of the Centre's flagship National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme, said his views on this will not change even if "the Left joins us" after the elections.

He said he was shocked to see that the benefits of the pro-poor scheme were not reaching the people in districts like Purulia.

Gandhi said his perception was that Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were the worst states in the implementation of such programmes but "I was shocked by what I saw in West Bengal."

On the demolition of the Babri Masjid, Gandhi squarely blamed the BJP for the act in 1992. "Babri Masjid was broken by the politics of BJP. It was broken by the politics of division, it was broken by dividing Indians against Indians," he said.

Mukherjee admitted the Congress government, which was in power then, had made a mistake by trusting the solemn assurance given by the BJP and the then UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh that the mosque would not be harmed.

"We regretted placing our confidence in an untrustworthy person," he said about Kalyan Singh's assurance to the National Integration Council that the Babri Masjid would be protected at all costs.

On about Congress and Mamta Banerjee's Trinamool Congress joining hands in West Bengal, Gandhi said "she (Mamta) is a lady of the people" and "a genuine grassroots leader."

Gandhi went on to add that he had "fond memories" of Mamta and described the alliance with her party as "positive." On the situation in Sri Lanka, he said the UPA government was concerned about the rights of innocent Tamil civilians becoming victims of the ethnic conflict.

"It is our duty to reduce their suffering," Gandhi said adding that the government will do everything possible in that direction.

Sangli (Maharashtra), Apr 20 : Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi alleged that former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee did not trust his deputy L.K Advani during the 1999 Kandhar hijack episode.

"How did the Home Minister did not come to know or what kind of a Home Minister was he? And if he doesn't know about it, then it only means that the Prime Minister Vajpayee did not trust the Home Minister. It can also mean that they were weak and had to bow down in front of the terrorists," Rahul said, in an obvious reference to Advani's statements that the incumbent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was a "weak" candidate for the top post.

Speaking at an election rally here on Sunday, he said there was a rift in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government during the 1999 Kandahar hijack episode.

Five armed men hijacked the Airbus A-300 carrying 189 passengers and crew between Kathmandu and New Delhi on Christmas Eve in 1999.

The plane touched down in western India, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates before landing in Kandahar in Afghanistan.

The hijackers killed one passenger early in the week-long stand-off, but the remaining passengers and crew walked free after India released three Kashmir separatist militants from jail.

India said the hijackers, who were never caught, were all Pakistani and accused Pakistan's Government of complicity in the hijacking, charges it denied.

Juxtaposing the Kandahar incident to last year's Mumbai attack, he said the steps taken by Dr. Singh forced Islamabad acknowledge that the attack Mumbai was launched and partly planned from Pakistan,

"The Mumbai attacks made Prime Minister Manmohan Singh exert pressure on Pakistan. For the first time, Pakistan accepted that the terrorists had come from their soil," Gandhi said.

By Donald D'Silva, Mumbai The Maha Kumbh Mela is on! The time has come for Politicos to take their countrymen for a jovial ride again. The Delhi Bada Saabs will descend upon earth in their constituencies as well whole over India. This is the appropriate time for tantriks, mantriks, saadhu  sants to make hay while the shine shines! The euphoria has set the nation into a frenzy of Jaago Re. Many a corporates have been toying with the idea of launching campaigns to educate the illiterate and the reluctant, coaxing them to cast their franchise. There is a new addition of young voters. The target audience of Virgin Mobile, Moto Yuva and Levis Jeans! Most of the parties do not have a clear cut agenda. The same old speeches and same old assurances. I remember in 2004 when UPA came to power during a press conference a journalist asked our infamous Lalu Prasad as to what is the name of the alliance. He could muster only U.and asked his cronies In his inimitable style.. Arre who ka hai yeh ghatbandhan ka naam?  Someone uttered UPA'! and he repeated among peals of laughter. Today the same Lalu is planning clandestinely a third front with Ram Vilas Paswan and Mulayam and is nursing secret desires become PM! God! Please help! Have mercy on us! Mulayam , meanwhile has done a casting coup! What with getting Sanjay Dutt on board. Amar Singh is beaming with joy. The only hitch here is the Supreme Court.  As Sanjay needs a stay on his conviction in order to contest an election. However, Mayaben and the Congress may not like it to happen. And rightly so,  It may set a bad precedence! All the UP, Bihar anti -social elements will have a field day contesting elections from within the jail premises or out on a bail! There has to be some control. And, it was provided by the honorable Supreme Court which refused the stay. Well, Mulayam & Company have roped in Nafisa Ali as the candidate from Lucknow. Sanjay has been made the National General Secretary of SP. He is going to campaign vociferously. Awright, Munnabhai, pump up the jam! Recently, on Aap Ki Adalat, Rajat Sharma grilled Sanjay on every front. His verdict came as Sunju Baba has done his home work well...has mastered the politically correct answers and was firing one salvo after the other on the assembled junta! He even went to such an extent to declare that He will withdraw his candidature if the great statesman ex Prime Minister Mr. Vajpayee plans to contest the elections!  Very  clever statement. Each and every one knows that Vajpayee is not keeping well since a long time. He has no plans whatsoever to contest elections! Sanjay brilliantly played to the gallery. But,  landed with a thud when he heard the Apex Court's verdict. Don't lose heart Munnabhai, better days will be here again for you! His witty repartees to the old war horse Rajat Sharma was a laudable treat! Amar Singh & Manayata his wifey has taught him the ropes of politics it seems. Sunju Baba has learnt his lessons well! Not only in politics it seems also in the Hindi film industry. He has washed his hands off all of Sunjuy Gupta's films. He is his friend turned foe! The real story is a well guarded secret. But, then a guy who gave him a hit movie like Aatish' and was a partner in White Feather films. All of a sudden one hears about the two being sworn enemies! There were rumors about Sunil Shetty being at the receiving end of Sunju's hostility too. But Sunju and Sunil both have denied it. This story can be rested. One will not be surprised about their brotherly relationship not too long ago. Read this, Sunil's mum used to fry Mackerels for him and used to cook Mangalorean specialty Crab Curry (Dengi Gassi) for Sunju at his Prithvi Apartments in Altamount Road. Also Sunil had ensured that His wife Mana was the joint signatory for Sunjay's  cheques! As  Sunju Baba had a bad habit of splurging money on anything he sets his eyes on! He had this habit of donating his hard earned pennies to any spot boy or co star that came out with sob stories!  Those were the days when the trial of Mumbai Blast was on. Once the verdict given, Sunjay smartened up. He knew by now who his close chums are and who were his detractors. Systematical y he has started sidelining the Judases. Another famous alliance to be broken recently is with our so called Czarina of soaps Ekta Kapoor. She and Sanjay had signed a huge deal worth crores to co produce movies; of course all will star apna Sunju! They produced 'Shoot Out at Lokhandwala' and then Mission Istanbul which turned out to be a turkey!! And the latest one which bombed without trace, humm you guessed it right  EMI'! These two movies which bombed signaled a stop in the friendship of Dutt and Balaji. He reportedly has not returned back the signing amount it seems. Ekta has got her team revamped and showed her maternal uncle who was the CEO, the door. Still, there are very less chances of truce between the two. The biggest advantage to Balaji in general and Tushar Kapoor in particular was a macho role essayed by Tushar as Dilip Bua in SOAL . He never got an opportunity so far. He always acted as the dumb e h oh character in Gol Maal series or as an idiot in most of his movies. He does not have a career so to say. But his Father jumping Jack and his sister Ekta has millions!! His beloved Momma has Diamonds! But Tushi has no roles. Even a Ghayab had him invisible most of the time. The very vocal Mahesh Bhatt is silent. The elections are the perfect time for a guy like him to talk about issues which are existing and also non issues like cultural exchange between India and Pakistan! The stand up comedians, Rauf Lala, Shana Shakeel from Laughter Challenge and Comedy Circus respectively were bundled out  to Pakistan by MNS cadre right under his nose!! In ordinary circumstances Bhatt would have shouted from roof tops. But, in today's scenario he has mellowed a lot. He prefers to keep silence or maybe afraid about the turning situations which are unpredictable. After severe criticism from the press and the junta he has not written any kissing scenes for Emran, his nephew in his new movies. The kissathon has stopped it seems owing to public pressure! Jannat and recently released Razz 2 have been hits without the kisses!! Emran is happy the label of serial kisser has been diluted and may soon evaporate into thin air. Nagma is making rounds of Congress' who's who and the high command. But, the party does not seem to find her a constituency. Where to accommodate her? She can be a crowd puller but at who's expense? Govinda has exclaimed from rooftops that he is not interested in contesting elections! But, Congress has better things to do. He by now knowing the situations again declared that he will canvass for Congress. Ashok Chavan immediately agreed. High command of Congress is miffed with Govinda. The Virar ka Chokra never attended parliament more than 5 days. How can it be? Why on earth we need an MP who cannot pay heed to his constituency? Nagma may fit his shoes let's wait and see. The Sadanah babe is from UP. Her sister Jyotika Sadanah is a well known actor down south. Varun's arrest has cast a shadow on his political career. He may emerge a winner but have to eat dal chawal and sleep on the stone beds and share his cell with other uncouth inmates. Politics is all fun when you are elected and Z category security is awarded by the center. When you have people around you and your every word uttered is taken as a Gospel Truth! Whah Whahs  and Wolf whistles and cacophony all around. The candidate feels in heaven. Varun went overboard with his utterances and now his retractions. The law of the land is supreme. Mayaben is hell bent on ruining the lad's sleep and career. She has done the unthinkable. But, again there are more chances of him becoming a hero. The charges filed are definitely difficult to prove. BJP's ace campaigner and PM designate Mr. Advani has got a new issue to take it to the people. It serves the BJP's purpose well. Chiranjeevi is a breath of fresh air. But, still the voter will be confused. TDP's Chandra Babu or Congress' YSR or Chiru! Again, a fractured verdict. Telangana issue is the fodder this time. Will the Andhra voter bite the bait? Let's wait and see! Still, reports are ripe that it will be a hung Parliament. Hung upside down this time as there are friends turned foe turned friend then foe again all over. Take the case of CPI (M), Samajwadi party guys, Jayalalitha, DMK, NCP. Post elections there will be many merry go rounds, musical chairs. Head counting! Prathibha Patilji will have a tough time. All said and done it's the voter's privilege.  The voter is the king every 5 years or whenever there are back to back elections. So, dear fellow Indians, do take time out to vote for our nation's sake and our own welfare. This is the right time for you to make your own choice. So Jaago re Jaago re Jaago!

Ahmedabad: The BJP and Congress, in an effort to target the youth and first time voters in the state, are leaving no stones unturned to outsmart each other in the usage of Information Technology tools.

Though, the BJP clearly seems to have the edge right now, Congress claims that it is fast catching up.

The world has changed a lot since 2004 Lok Sabha polls or even 2007 Assembly Polls, and a lot of myths regarding ‘high-tech campaigns not translating into votes’ will be shattered this time around. This seems to be the mood in BJP’s IT Cell in Gujarat, which is drawing its inspiration from Barack Obama’s heavily Internet-loaded Presidential campaign last year.

The State IT Cell of BJP has a core team of 10 in Ahmedabad, with 75 cyber teams spread across the state, to aid the core team. In addition, the party has notched up a database of two lakh email ids for bulk-emailing; and about 25,000 mobile phone numbers for bulk messaging, caller tunes, ring tones and various other mobile services solutions.

The state unit also manages five websites namely, bjpguj.com, narendramodi.in, fansofnarendramodi.com, jeetegagujarat.com and namoleague.com; with the help party workers and BJP sympathizers. About 1,200 videos containing speeches of BJP leaders have also been uploaded on video sharing sites like youtube.com. IT Cell In-charge Shashi Ranjan Yadav added,” Our presence is also significant in various social networking sites. For example, there are about 213 orkut communities on Narendra Modi.”

BJP is also planning a public rally in Ahmedabad, “which will be attended by orkutians, not necessarily party workers,” added Yadav.

When Congress announced that it would be setting up hundreds of Internet Kiosks across the country, including 50 in Gujarat, to promote an online campaign for enrolling youth into the party as well as inform them about the UPA’s achievement, it surprised many. But the ‘Rahul’ factor has definitely lifted the spirits in Gujarat, at least in the IT initiatives.

In addition, Congress has also tied up with rediff.com to publish poll related articles as well as carry out live opinion polls. Gujarat Youth Congress leader Manish Doshi informed,” We have tied-up with various Internet service providers to pitch Congress links as sponsored links in 1,500 websites that witness the maximum traffic over a period of time.”

The party is also targeting a large fraction of tele-density in the state for mobile service solutions like ‘Jai ho’ caller tunes, ring tones, screensavers etc. Other initiatives like bulk emailing and bulk-messaging are also in the pipeline.

Regarding social networking in the cyber world, Congress also has about 50 orkut communities each on Rahul and Sonia Gandhi. ” These are maintained by our younger lot, mainly from the National Students Union of India,” added Doshi.

SANTANU GHOSH

Key Constituency -Silchar

Illustration by Uday Deb Silchar, a key Lok Sabha constituency in south Assam that goes to the polls on April 16, has grabbed attention for sundry reasons. First, the big question doing the rounds is whether this economically-backward constituency will live up to its fame of being a communally-polarised arena. Or have its voters matured enough to exercise their right to franchise purely on civic and economic issues. Second, there are expectations that prime national issues may hog the limelight once campaign intensifies. Surrounded by sylvan hills, this parliamentary constituency has a voter count of 978,460 with the male electorate outnumbering their female counterparts by 49,889 in this seat that covers seven Assembly segments. Agriculture is the mainstay of the constituency. The farmers, numbering about a little over two lakhs, raise only sali crop which is harvested every year from November onwards after a farming season that lasts for five months. For the remaining months, most of them look for odd jobs to make ends meet. The literacy rate in this constituency is still on the lower side — at 68.42 per cent. Lack of proper road connectivity appears to be the main reason for the backwardness of this constituency. Another reason for the distressing plight of the people in the district is lack of industrialisation, both in cottage and heavy industries, fuelling unemployment among the youths. Biswajit Gupta, 42, a teacher, said: “The lack of the employment opportunities in Cachar is unbelievable. As a result, hundreds of educated youths, particularly those who have been groomed in science and technology, choose to migrate to other cities in the country in search of jobs.” This Lok Sabha seat has traditionally been a strong Congress bastion. Since the first general election in 1952, the Congress has been winning it, except on three occasions. In the 1974 bypoll it lost to the CPM. In the 1991 and 1998 parliamentary elections, the BJP won the seat. The Congress triumph, according to the poll watchers, can be attributed to the polarisation of Muslim votes (they comprise 37 per cent of the electorate) and the tea community, accounting for about 11 per cent of the total electorate. The Muslims and the tea estate workers comprise the main vote bank of the Congress. The Muslims fear that the victory of the BJP will spell problems for them while the tea tribes generally vote for the Congress as the party has a strong labour trade union, the legacy of which dates back to the 1930s. In Cachar, generally the Intuc-affiliated Cachar Cha Sramik Union rules the roost. But political observers say the disillusionment among tea workers with the Congress is growing and may reflect in the garden votes. The entry of AUDF leader Badruddin Ajmal, too, is also likely to change the poll equations. There is a possibility of Ajmal weaning away the Muslim votes in Cachar, a majority of whom sent Union heavy industries minister Sontosh Mohan Dev as a Congress MP to the Lok Sabha five times in the past. The last time Dev won the seat was in 2004 when he defeated BJP stalwart and former Union minister Kabindra Purkayastha by over 20,000 votes. He, however, lost to Purkayastha in 1998. Dev is bound to feel uncomfortable in Silchar against Ajmal, throwing a vital challenge to him by trying to wean away large chunks of the Muslim vote. Sources in the local election office said 1,049 polling booths would be set up this time — one more than in 2004. A total of 5,334 poll officials will be mobilised to ensure peaceful polling.  Around 689 booths have been identified as “sensitive” with 293 among these classified as “very sensitive”.

MUMBAI: Muslim clerics, representing Sunni sects like Deobandis, Barelvis and Ahle Hadees, have given the NCP-Congress combine in the state an ultimatum. The ulemas have said if the alliance does not field at least five candidates from the community, they would start a campaign against UPA candidates.

The ulemas passed a resolution to this effect at a meeting, attended by over 50 imams from the city and heads of faith-based Muslim organisations, on Saturday.

"We have got just one candidate representing the community, that too an 80-plus A R Antulay from Raigad, whose chances of winning might be slim due to his controversial remarks on Hemant Karkare's death,'' said Maulana Athar Ali, head of the All India Ulema Association. He added that Muslims were better off during the Shiv Sena-Congress rule in Maharashtra.

"The Congress doesn't want to empower Muslims. It talks about empowering the minorities. It's first test is how it empowers Muslim within the party,'' said Maulana Syed Khalid Ashraf, president, All India Ulema Council.

The strategy adopted by Dalit leaders, specially Mayawati in UP, seems to be a model for the maulvis. "For years, Dalit leaders kept losing elections. But now, they are dictating the terms. We too will have to reinvent our strategy,'' said activist Meraj Siddiqui.

 

Polling for the two Lok Sabha constituencies in Meghalya would be held April 16.

New Delhi, Mar 25 Terming the Congress manifesto released yesterday a"bundle of hollow"promises, the city BJP today alleged that it would not be fulfilled.

Its president O P Kohli alleged that the last five years of Congress rule was bad and the 65 per cent farmer population was suffering even today.

" Even after giving a package of Rs 70,000 crore the farmers are committing suicide. The government has admitted that about five lakh workers have been laid off," Kohli said in a statement here.

The BJP leader also took a dig at the Centre for making"false"promises of supplying wheat and rice at Rs 3 per kg in its manifesto.

During its five years regime, the Congress led UPA failed to control black marketing of essential food items. Also the employment guarantee scheme has been sacrificed at the altar of corruption, he alleged.

“We were always keen on an alliance with the Congress. We had agreed to leave 17 Lok Sabha seats of Uttar Pradesh for them, but still they did not seem to be satisfied,” Amar Singh told reporters after state executive meeting here.

Singh blamed All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh for the break-up.

“Only one man is responsible for putting hurdles in the path of the alliance between the Congress and the SP. I do not need to mention his name, as everyone knows him. He does not belong to Uttar Pradesh but keeps coming here quite often,” Singh added.

The SP leader, however, said his party would not field any candidate against the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chief Sonia Gandhi and his son Rahul Gandhi.

On March 6, the SP declared that his party could not offer more than 17 seats in Uttar Pradesh to the latter. Congress has demanded at least 24 seats in Uttar Pradesh.

Singh, however, declined any rift between the two parties and said the SP would support the UPA for making a secular government.