Participating in the discussion on the insolvency code in the Lok Sabha, the MoS for finance, Jayant Sinha, sent members into peals of laughter by referring to the Lok Sabha as the august House since the other House (Rajya Sabha) had now become the ‘Agusta’ House! Not surprisingly, the funny bit was expunged.

Father, mother, brother

BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu is known for his wit, and he did not disappoint the large crowd at a party rally in Chennai on Friday night. Tamil Nadu has seen both Amma (Jayalalithaa) and Appa (Karunanidhi) rule the State over the years, he said, adding that it is now time to give Bhaiya (Narendra Modi) a chance. Naidu didn’t stop there. Connecting the weather to politics, he said the day was too hot too handle, like both the AIADMK and the DMK, but by 6 pm, it had turned pleasant, expecting Modi to arrive.

Referring to the DMK-Congress alliance, he said that they had a love-hate relationship: first, cooperation then separation. Morning marriage, evening divorce, he declared, to thunderous applause.

Twist of fate

Politics make strange bed-fellows, it is said. But imagine politics forcing rivals to vote for one another. Well, Kolkata’s communist leaders experienced something of that sort in the recently concluded polls. Courtesy an electoral alliance, Left leaders such as Mohammed Salim, Biman Bose and even former chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, had to cast their vote in favour of Congress candidates in their respective constituencies. It must have rankled particularly for Salim in his constituency of Bhabanipur.

The Congress-CPI(M) choice for the seat was Deepa Dasmunshi, one-time bête noire of Salim and the person he defeated in the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 to become MP.

No water, no wedding

Rabindra Kumar Jena, a Biju Janata Dal MP from Odisha’s Balasore district, had a curious story to share during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha. Acute water scarcity was ruining the marriage prospects of many in the district, he pointed out. “Scores of seniors from various villages visit me every day seeking help as people from other districts are not ready to marry their daughters in Balasore,” said the MP, even as other members in the House murmured in agreement. A knotty problem, indeed.

A case of confusion

The case involving former employee Shreya Ukil and Wipro is turning out to be mysterious indeed. Both the parties claimed victory following a ruling by the UK Employment Tribunal on the sexual harassment and wrongful termination charge filed by Ukil. After Wipro came out with a statement claiming it had won the case, Ukil’s lawyers issued a second press statement, supposedly clarifying their stand but which left reporters none the wiser. Who actually won the case will be clarified next month, when the court announces the amount of compensation Ukil will receive. 

Flames of frustration

On April 28 morning, a village office at Vellarada in Thiruvananthapuram district was petrol-bombed. One employee sustained serious burns and a lot of moth-eaten files were gutted.

Amidst speculation that it was a terrorist attack, it turned out that the ‘terrorist’ was a middle-aged man who had been seeking a land transfer certificate from the village office for three years.

Frustrated by the indifference of the staff, Samkutty, 57, decided to teach them a lesson. After careful planning, he bought 15 litres of petrol, put on a jacket and a face-concealing helmet, and rode his motorcycle to the village office. He splashed the petrol on the office floor and lit a match to it.

When Samkutty was arrested, he confessed and told the police he was not at all sorry for what he had done. A comment that appeared on social media said: “If Samkutty stands for election, he will win thumbs down.”

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