Big day for the Congress?

Will November 14 be the Big Day for the Congress or November 19? Both dates are equally important. In case you have not been paying attention, November 14 is Nehru's birthday and November 19 Indira Gandhi's. On which of these dates will the party Crown Prince, Rahul Gandhi, be anointed as working president? Party leaders are all a-twitter as they vie for positions in the new dispensation. But what no one is asking, possibly out of politeness, is why the incumbent Congress president so urgently needs to hand over the family business to her son.

Sticky matters

Will petrol prices actually be reduced on November 16 — the first in around 16 months since the product was decontrolled? Rumour has it that the oil companies can easily afford to reduce the price by approximately Re 1. But, market buzz says they may settle for a reduction of Rs 0.60-Rs 0.80 a litre. So, who decides how much is the real issue.

Ironically, on paper, the companies have the mandate to review oil prices, but the understated fact is that the buck stops at the political level. All eyes, therefore, are on the Government: Will it give in to pressure from the Opposition and allies, or will it stick to the PM's ‘no rollback' stance?

Behenji's Mission

With the state assembly election just few months away, Ms Mayawati is on mission to impress all upper castes.

So, she is attending a conference of brahmins. Next, she is scheduled to address the Kayastha Mahasabha. Are the Thakur Samaj and Bhumihar Mahasamelan next on the agenda? Mayawati's initiative has become a problem for the BJP and the Congress.

On the one hand, they don't know how to respond to Behenji's mission while on the other, the dalits have already deserted them. The Samajwadi Party seems to be watching and planning its move.

Yeddyurappa's spirituality

The local cops in Bangalore are a worried lot. With wafer-thin staff at their command, they are doing everything to keep their sanity intact while trying to appease former Chief Minister, B. S. Yeddyurappa, who is zipping across from one temple to another.

With his bhakti overflowing after his release from jail on bail, Yeddyurappa's temple-visiting spree and VIP treatment has raised many an eyebrow.

The Opposition parties tried to raise a din on the traffic disruption, but the BJP Government paid no heed. After all, who wants to take on the real power behind the CM's gaddi. At least, not the cops.

Bad homework

During the current crisis that cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines is facing, leading to frequent cancellations, it is easier to get a flight on the airline changed in Singapore than through service agents in India. Strange as this may sound, it is true.

A former colleague, now settled in Singapore, was here on a holiday. After trying the Indian number for days to get flights on Kingfisher changed, the colleague decided to call the travel agent in Singapore.

The call connected in a jiffy and within a few minutes the agent had made all the necessary changes. What's more, he also said, “Thanks for choosing to fly Kingfisher Airlines.” Now, if only the airline had been so efficient in India, it probably wouldn't have landed in a mess!

‘Forging' capital?

When the Association of Indian Forging Industry — which is hosting The International Forging Congress-2011 from November 14 at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre — sent in its invitation through a public relations firm, a senior journalist wanted to know “what the forging meet was all about”. He wondered regarding the choice of venue; after all, Hyderabad, by default, has become a ‘forging capital' after the Satyam Computer scandal broke out in 2009, followed by a string of some others.

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