Lata Mangeshkar & Shahrukh Khan, Kirit Somaiya and the New Chief Secretary…
–Vikrant Hemant Joshi
Lata Mangeshkar and Shahrukh Khan
While every Indian was mourning the loss of Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar’s demise, the unnecessary Shahrukh Khan’s ‘spitting’ controversy was surely uncalled for. Yes, he did not spit, he was blowing air so that the ‘duaa’s’ reached the pious soul of the nightingale before its final departure.
As per me, it was purely air blown from his mouth and no person, mind you, however powerful, in presence of full media glare will not attempt anything of this sort. Not at least Shahrukh Khan! He might be wrong in 10 million things when the Aryan Khan case happened, but as per what I saw, it was NOT spitting. When I put this on social media, people have put forth series of arguments to counter my support for SRK some going on to extend that will we allowed to chant ‘RaM Naan Satya Hai’ at a Muslim crematorium? Questions were raised about my sudden shift of ideologies and why was I protecting ‘the right’ (person and situation in this case). It’s OK. I think no one else reported how lovely and with respect SRK met every politician across party lines at the funeral. I think it was a bit unfair on the man who has literally stuck to the phrase ‘silence is golden’ in every situation that came his way over the past few months. But to sum up, apart from this SRK controversy, every soul who watched the funeral on TV and was present in person was in tears for Lata ji. What a huge loss for us Indians 😔
Kirit Somaiya gets beaten up
Moving on, MP Kirit Somaiya was on his Pune visit where he was heckled, thrown down the stairs by the Shivsena supporters injuring him badly. What in hell is going on in Maharashtra? To add salt to the wound, Samna’s news article the next day ridiculed Kirit Somaiya as ‘Kilit Tomayya’. Why is Shivsena behaving like this? Fight the controversies over well studied approaches rather than this hooliganism, this beating up people, blackening of faces, that jamaana has gone. These days image is everything. And to make matters worse, Shivsena is in power. But you know what BJP deserves. I had told someone at the top, that if you don’t fight fire with fire this will continue to happen. Just by having ‘shethji’s and bhadji’s’ will not let BJP overcome this fear that exists in every Karyakarta of Maharashtra. Now this is happening every time. Every-time you write against this Government or you expose them, they send goons or cops. There is an altogether different approach by the cops when the right wingers approach for justice. BJP will have to activate in full force & empower the likes of Ameet Satam, RAM KADAM (God Knows where is he), Pravin Darekar, empower Mohit Kambhoj in Mumbai, Ashish Shelar, Atul Bhatkalkar, Gopichand Padalkar and as advised by me last year in one of my blogs and on immediate basis replace Chandrakantdada Patil and Mangal Prabhat Lodha with anyone of the choice I gave above for the state and city. Fadnavis is fighting it, but now even he is feeling the need of someone sharing the responsibility with him.
Also, I think Somaiya is provided with some class security, right ? X Y, Y plus or Z I don’t know but at least 2 of the security people out of 22 that Somaiya has might have carried weapons right with themselves? When such an untoward thing was happening, what were the bodyguards or the security provided were doing? A fire in the air to scare off the attackers would have been acceptable right? Mr. Somaiya please ask your security, are those weapons for showpiece?
Chief Secretary
Maharashtra does not have a full time Chief Secretary. ‘Acting’ CS Debashish Chakrabarty is holding office till the end of this month and the post will lie vacant thereafter. Now will the acting CS get an extension or will we have full time CS remains unanswered by many. But we certainly need a full time CS and full time DGP in Maharashtra and that’s for sure. So if and when the MVA decides to appoint a full-time and new CS, as per my last blog 3 months ago where Sujata Saunik who was the top favourite for the MVA government to take up the post, few ‘equations’ have changed. Now apart from Manukumar Shrivastava who is the next obvious choice for the post, if and only if MVA decides to go against seniority criteria, then either Manoj or Sujata Saunik will get the post. Rumours suggest that Manoj Saunik is extremely satisfied with his current dual assignment as ACS PWD & Finance, so he might make his way for wife Sujata for the top post, but my brains don’t agree. Which bureaucrat does not want to become CS in his life? Another dark horse in the race Dr. Nitin Kareer’s name is actively discussed in circles, I am told as he has been a favourite of all for many years now. But Maharashtra does not have history at least in the last 20 years to supersede batches while appointing CS. In the same batch, seniority might be considered and one might score there, but I feel it is difficult to supersede batches. Hence Manukumar might get a nod, against wishes of NCP, mind you, or we can also have a Dalit, 1st Women CS in form of Sujata Saunik, if and only if husband Manoj backs off and NCP really are hell bent on not having Manukumar. As even if Manoj Saunik becomes and he retires then wife Sujata again will get a span of a year to be the CS. But as per ritual, it will be the next person in line grabbing the top post. So my money is on either Manukumar Shrivastava (80%) or any one of the Saunik’s (20%)!
Vikrant Hemant Joshi.
