Lasting Rose

Pranab Mukherjee has never dared, but will soon be the next president of India. Today, there is every reason whyPranab Mukherjee, India's Finance Minister will be its next president. Perhaps it can turn out to be the best thing for India, beset with a series of reversals which have crashed the hopes of western investors and the morale of Indian entrepreneurs.

Pranab Mukherjee, the suave Indian politician and finance minister is a seasoned trouble shooter and negotiator, more like a Full back of a soccer team. Yet when the Team India manager and UPA chair person Sonia Gandhi formed her alliance's second ministry, Pranab Mukherjee, much like David Beckham of Manchester United, chose to play as its striker, setting for himself huge goals of fiscal balance and growth rates.
As a striker finance minister, Pranab Mukherjee is a disaster. Despite being recognised as a no risk taker, letting him have a go at the finances of the country, when keeping the momentum of growth is crucial to political success, is the biggest mistake of Sonia's United Progressive Alliance.
Mukherjee has missed two vital fiscal years and budgets without hitting any goals of reforms and growthwhile a roaring international audience of investors waited for action. The stock markets have tumbled since he took over the ministry. The recent announcements of India oriented tax policies, 2G spectrum licence reversals and corporate penalties have confused everyone. Has India gone back to the eighties?
The result is a disastrous crumbling of investor confidence in India's growth rate. The Indian game is over for them, they have left with their cans of coke and pop corn for action elsewhere. withdrawing huge amounts of investment. The world would rather have someone who played ball like everyone else, especially when they see Indian corporate houses like Mithal, Ambani and Tata grabbing a fair share of international business.
Perhaps this cautious, no risk approach, a typical Indian strain, is what made Pranab Mukherjee a 'political loser' despite his long 43 years in the Indian politics. In his long career he has never become a Chief Minister of his own state of West Bengal or the Prime Minister of India.
Yet, by a strange coincidence of political forces which props him for the post of the President of India he will be elevated to that positioning July. His elevation, in political terms, will be like conferring a doctorate on someone who failed his degree and post graduation. Pranab Mukherjee and most of India will however welcome this as a stroke of immense luck like the famous long shot goal David Beckham scored against Wimbledon which instantly made him a household name.
Pranab Mukherjee non partisan amicable nature makes him naturally acceptable for the various political factions whose votes he must secure as they have nothing to worry about him. This has already assured his position to a large extent with Sonia Gandhi and the congress managers being able to strengthen that support to evolve a consensus.
However, the most compelling reason why Pranab's will be the chosen name for a consensus candidate is his erstwhile party colleague, compatriot and alliance partner Mamta Banerjee. Like Mukherjee, Banerjee hails from the State of west Bengal and is its current chief minister.
However Mamta is seen more and more as a "black mail" politician. Mamta is at logger heads with the Finance minister and the UPA leadership, and has blocked almost every effort for much needed reforms in policies and governance using the support of her MPs crucial for the parliamentary majority.
But when it comes to Pranab Mukherjee for the President of India she is undoubtedly in a catch 22 situation. West Bengal never had a President or Prime Minister in history and to be seen as someone who spoilt a chance will be almost unforgivable for any Bengalee, especially its Chief Minister.
Chances are Mamta will have to cave in, especially with her personal equation with Pranab Mukherjee who has ceded the position of Chief Minister to her, without contest, in the past.
Though the elevation of Pranab Mukherjee is being viewed in his party circles as 'weakening' of the government by the loss of a crucial trouble shooter, at the end of the day, it can induce much needed financial policy handling talent to gain international confidence in the India story.
Playing and winning the 'Mamta' game will be the ultimate test and proof of the ability of Sonia Gandhi as a political manager of a nation with 1.3 billion people. From a lady to lady Mamta can't afford to let her down.
It is a mere coincidence Pranab Mukherjee will be the real winner in this ladies club contest.

Article first published as Why Pranab Mukherjee Be the Next President of India on Technorati.

If 1.3 billion people of India, one fifth of the world population, have one common weakness it is their infatuation for the game of Cricket and Sachin Tendulkar is its icon and 'Little Master'. You hit Sachin, you hit the underbelly of India; you get Sachin and you win the battle in India.
By getting Sachin Tendulkar on her side, Sonia Gandhi, the president of the National congress party is proving that she has mastered the hitting style and technique of Sachin Tendulkar and can deftly deliver her own sixes in the game of Indian Politics.



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By offering Sachin Tendulkar a seat in 'Rajya Sabha', the upper house of the Indian parliament, Sonia and her Congress party managers have virtually 'stolen thunder' from their arch rival, the Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) who would have loved to have him as their own MP.
The BJP is virtually crying out "Damn them! They will not let our play run, but they steal our thunder." In fact what the BJP legislator Madhav Bhandari said had a taste of sour grapes:

"As a fan of Tendulkar, I will welcome this move, but as an observer of politics, it will be like keeping him away from his biggest passion - cricket. I also see this as a trick to keep Tendulkar from a Bharat Ratna (an award of honour)."

The political game of war of words have escalated in to a war on twitter with a trending hashtag#unfollowsachin which was allegedly created by members of BJP, gaining a lot of tweets criticising Sachin Tendulkar and supporting him, which however seems to have backfired.

By accepting the offer from Sonia Gandhi, Sachin has proved to his distracters and supporters alike that his achievement as a master blaster of cricket is as much the manifestation of a brilliant mind as it is in seizing a rare honour and opportunity bestowed up on him by destiny.
Even though the decision to nominate Sachin to the Rajya Sabha seems to have been taken much before, around the time he scored his 100th century in international cricket in a match in Bangladesh, where Sonia Gandhi really scores is in the timing and speed with which she has taken the country by surprise by securing the support of its national icon.
The timing and announcement has in fact come as a huge and successful distraction and diversion from the new revelations on the Bofors Gun deal scandal, by the Swedish police chief Sten Lindstrom which the BJP and the opposition tried to capitalise on both in parliament and outside, with new demands for investigation against Rajiv Gandhi and the Congress party.
If Sachin Tendulkar, who along with his wife was invited by Sonia and gave his acceptance, was the biggest catch and new asset to the ailing party in need of new blood and leadership, Sonia Gandhi's choice and nomination of another Indian Icon movie idol, Rekha is no less a master stroke.
Such is the beauty and personality of Rekha, a star of yester years, that this new MP will no doubt ensure the attendance and good behaviour of all her party members and even the opposition in the house whenever it will be in session in the future.
Sonia Gandhi, the widow of Rajiv Gandhi is surely mastering the art of getting the pulse of India her mother in law of Indira Gandhi was a master of.

Isn't it really amazing how the 20th century media could make ordinary mortals in to Gods and dispatch them to oblivion in the 21st century?
Millions of people around the world perhaps came to believe through the modern media and the internet that Satya Sai Baba of India was God himself.
Though he died only a year ago, the Baba has virtually disappeared from the world media, and from the minds and memory of most people who came to know about him, with hardly any mention even on the anniversary of his death.
Is it the media who should be really blamed for this forgetful ignoring of a Guru who had over 6 million followers when he died?
After all Jesus Christ and Gautham Buddha who are also credited with miracles and teachings, were not forgotten but loved, revered, remembered and worshipped for thousands of years before the advent of modern communications.
It is not surprising that no one, including the leading News papers, magazines and TV around the world want to remember or bring back the memory of Satya Sai Baba despite the $9 Billion assets he amassed during his life of 84 years, some of which he had spent on various charitable projects.
Despite the huge followings and philanthropic work, there was something not very honest and straightforward about this Godman who declared himself to be God and whose life was "dogged by controversy including allegations, never proven, of sexual abuse and charlatanism" as per a BBC report.
Whether he was God or not, at the minimum, he knew exactly what lead to the massacre of several young people in his Ashram one night and the serious allegations of sexual abuse brought out in the BBC report of 2004.
Satya Sai Baba chose to leave the earth by not leaving clear answers and an aura of suspicion and doubt in place of divinity. No God has ever survived in human memory with such questionablecredentials.
Perhaps this is the biggest reason why no one, including millions who believed in him, wants to talk about or remember Satya Sai Baba despite the numerous good causes he has supported with his immense wealth.
If his life and intentions were questionable even when he was alive, the intentions and behaviour of his relations and close people who have inherited the Trust with the immense wealth has done nothing to instil devotion and confidence in the Godman after his death.
Instead, they have only raised serious questions about their own integrity and intentions which has lead to public demand for take over and administration of the trust by the government.
Millions of his followers desperately want him to return to earth as Prema Sai before they lose their faith completely even as the fame and prosperity he brought to his village Putta Parthi seems to dwindle fast.

It was  a question of when and not if the name of Sonia Gandhi, the president of the Indian National Congress party and one of the most powerful and influential women in the world as per the Forbes and Time Magazine lists, will be dragged in the messy affair of Enrica Lexie.

The inevitable has now happened and everyone is delivering their hidden punches saved since the Italian saga unfurled on the Indian shores, at the unfortunate widow of Rajiv Gandhi.

If Enrica Lexie was flying another flag, chances are it would have been released  and home and dry long time back. The problem is it is Italian like Sonia Gandhi was before she became an Indian citizen.

From the beginning, it was pretty clear that if Enrica Lexie, lured and forced to remain anchored at the Idyllic Port of Kochi in Kerala, a southern state of India, it was not the weight of its huge iron anchor but the immense political weight of the Indian political leader Sonia Gandhi was to be blamed. It was clear that any attempt favouring the Italians would be seen as orchestrated by the Italian born Sonia.
The reason is nothing but the Italian origin of Mrs Gandhi, and the paranoiac mindset of the Indian political system, still suffering from a sort of inferiority complex despite successfully test firing an inter continental ballistic missile.
The truth is, if the tragedy of the Titanic were to happen near the Kerala coast, the narrow minded politicians of Kerala, especially its ridiculous communists, would have made some political capital out of it before even thinking about sending a boat for the rescue. Since the Titanic was a British ship, there wouldn't have been any rescue attempt at all.
Things have hardly changed in a hundred years. They still must get some political mileage if they can, out of even the tragic death of the two poor fishermen who died in the incidence.
A lawyer representing the central government, under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi has argued, perhaps rightly, in the supreme court that the action of the State of Kerala in the whole affair was not legal as per international law.
This was sufficient for the politicians of Kerala to cry foul and raise accusations of an Italian conspiracy by the Italian born Sonia to favour Italy, something they were waiting to jump at all along.
It was clear that for the state government of Kerala headed by Sonia's congress party and facing a crucial by election, any attempt for a reasonable settlement would have lead to same accusations, which explain the stiff handling 'as per law of the land'.
You can't blame kerala's politicians not to know or understand the intricacies of International law. After all, international law doesn't apply to Kerala, deemed "God's Own Country" because no one is ever taught.
In any case, for many of Kerala's political leaders the closest to education was the time they spent under the roofs of its schools only to escape the occasional torrential rain. You really can't blame them for what they don't understand.
If anything, it is the captain of Enrica Lexie to be blamed for taking his ship in to this disaster zone. It is clear that he has no interest in History or current affairs and politics.
If he had any notion of the narrow political mentality and complex religious influence in the lives of the people of the beautiful state of Kerala, he would have been happy to welcome the Somali pirates he was trying to avoid, abord his ship instead of taking his ship anywhere near it.
At least the Italians now know what is meant by the English saying "between the devil and the deep sea".
Article first published as Sonia Gandhi - The Hapless Italian Anchor of The Enrica Lexie Affair on Technorati.