Below the line

Early elections?

The slump in job creation coupled with a growth slowdown has sent alarm bells ringing in the Government. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, guiding body of sorts to the Bharatiya Janta Party, is equally worried. According to officials in the know, the RSS is evaluating the possibility of holding the general election a year earlier, in 2018, instead of 2019. This is driven by the theory that if job creation picks up in 2018, the ruling National Democratic Alliance is bound to secure a second term. The BJP will harp on this ‘Modi 2.0’ wave to fortify its position in the State assemblies that are poll-bound in 2018. The proposal to advance elections has come up as party insiders fear that losses in the assembly elections will weaken prospects in 2019.

Set a date yet?

The finance ministry has already begun work on Budget 2018-19. However, there is speculation aplenty regarding the date of the Union Budget. The corridors of power are echoing with interesting pieces of information and the media is snapchatting away. Last year, the Budget was presented on February 1; there’s talk that this year the date may be advanced to the middle of January. There’s no confirmation, though. A formal decision is expected to be taken — sometime.

Stimulating numbers

As the buzz gathers around a stimulus package by the Government to boost the economy, the finance ministry seems to be suitably amused at the different numbers being talked about.

While the talk is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make the announcement in an address to the nation, officers associated with the initiative will neither confirm nor deny anything. It’s the oft-repeated ‘wait and watch’ game with them.

Fuelled by the US hurricane

Politics and oil can be called partners in sin as they create a hole in consumers’ pockets. Under attack for the spike in petrol and diesel prices and the Government’s unwillingness to reduce taxes on fuel, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan attributed the price rise to the hurricane in the US. This argument was put forward by other senior Cabinet colleagues as well. They also said this was a temporary event and rates will come down in the next few days. “Fuel prices have gone up recently due to the hurricane in the US. As the prices reduce in the international market, they will come down here also,” Pradhan said.

Asked why the taxes could not be slashed, the response was that funds are necessary for infrastructure development and welfare schemes. Clearly, global prices rule, not the Government.

Hurrying up slowly

Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh is not known to be a man in hurry. That’s why everybody was shocked when, at a meeting related to the rabi campaign at Vigyan Bhavan, the minister suddenly began walking towards the podium much before his turn. The minister took his cue from the word ‘minister’ that the MC announced, not realising the next person invited to speak was his deputy minister, Krishna Raj, and not himself! As an official was overheard saying, “The minister seems to have forgotten how many deputies he has!”

Tongue-twisted

Senior Congress MP KC Venugopal and BJD’s Lok Sabha member Tathagata Satpathy along with colleagues from the opposition benches had at one time protested the Centre’s alleged move to ‘impose’ Hindi on non-Hindi-speaking States. They had complained in Parliament that Modi’s ministers communicating only in Hindi, made it difficult for them.

But they feel there’s a change For instance, Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who usually uses Hindi , recently replied to Venugopal in English. A happy Venugopal hopes that other ministers will follow suit.

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