Pointless fencing

Despite Kapil Sibal's valiant attempt to kill the issue, rather unsuccessfully, the standoff between the Congress-led government and the Opposition on the issue of probing the 2G spectrum allocation scam now seems set to head into extra time.

When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he was ready for questioning by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament, he hoped to take some of the wind out of the Opposition's sails, but it hasn't quite worked.

Clearly, the idea was to end the slugfest before the public grew tired of the seemingly pointless thrusting and parrying. Manmohan still hopes his offer will make the Opposition look churlish for insisting on a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe. But all bets are still in the air.

With the old chestnut of Bofors back in business, Delhi is decidedly nervous. The Opposition seems to have the upper hand now and Manmohan is no longer the only one in the dock. Where the corruption tornado will lead next is anybody's bet. And Delhi's watching with bated breath.

Big chill
Maybe there is a fear factor in the air, but Dilli is shivering and struggling to cope with the winter chill too. With the mercury hovering close to zero, the cold has already claimed more than a 100 lives in the region.

The winter of discontent is not only about close-to-freezing temperatures, but the accompanying fog has often made travelling a nightmare. A public outcry has led to the closing of schools until conditions improve.

Though the current cold snap has dragged on unusually long, the upside is that for once, the netas have had fewer cynical jokes about global warming. No one's complaining!

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