Is Amar Singh the 'Papa' of the controversy? Is he really angling to join the Congress?
Is Amar Singh the 'Papa' of the controversy? Is he really angling to join the Congress? Whose interests is he defending this time around? Questions are always flying thick and fast, as they tend to do in all matters that involve Amar Singh, the enfant terrible of Indian politics. Just when everyone thought he had faded into obscurity after his bitter falling apart with Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, the unstoppable man has swung back into the limelight, this time riding on the anti-corruption movement of Anna Hazare. Once again he is hogging headlines and making others squirm with his unique blend of bluster and invective.
Clearly, this is the Amar Singh we've known ufffd pugilistic and pugnacious, not too careful about where he lands his blows. This time he has taken on the father-son lawyer duo of Shanti and Prashant Bhusan, who've been at the forefront of the anti-corruption battle. The mud is flying and whether it sticks or not, Dilli knows that the rather entertaining sideshow about a certain CD can very well become the main attraction, with Amar Singh around!
Keeping a balanceBy now Environment minister Jairam Ramesh's methods should be familiar to corporates, who fear their projects will be inordinately delayed by the proactive minister. But environmental activists, also often fret that Ramesh will succumb to corporate pressure. Both groups seem to have sufficient reason to hold such beliefs. Now by withholding just the crucial forest clearance to the seemingly jinxed Posco steel project in Orissa, Ramesh has shown once again that he'll continue to tread the fine line between activism and pragmatic development.
This time it is the activists who may be feeling relieved while Posco's wait to get the project underway has got a little longer. And that may now depend on how soon the Navin Patnaik government responds to Ramesh's decision.
