When Home Minister P.Chidambaram announced on March 23 that elections were more important than cricket, the 64-year-old Congress leader could have been speaking for television audiences. At least that is what viewership figures for the first IPL weekend (over April 18 and 19) suggest.
Data released by viewership rating companies indicates more people watched the developments in the political arena than cricket on the first two days of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Even as IPL viewership in season two has dropped, elections continue to be a hit. IPL this weekend got 3.5 television rating points. The evening political news did better with 3.6, data from Audience Measurement and Analytics (aMAP) of the six metros showed. In 2008, 70 lakh people watched T20 matches on the first two days — compared to 56 lakh this year.
According to P.N. Vasanti of the Centre for Media Studies, sports dominated politics in TV and print media through 2008. “But after the announcement of elections, politics has managed more space.”
Monday, April 20, 2009
Lankans get ready for final offensive
A surge of more than 35,000 displaced Tamil civilians broke out of the LTTE-dominated `no fire zone’ (NFZ) on Monday to government camps braving bullets and a spate of suicide attacks by the rebels.
The suicide attacks on the fleeing civilians claimed at least 17 lives and injured more than 200.
Seizing the movement, the government again gave a deadline to LTTE chief V Prabhakaran and the remaining cadres to surrender within 12 noon on Tuesday. Similar deadlines earlier got no response from the Tamil Tigers.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa said the “complete defeat” of the LTTE was now imminent. “The (aerial) footage clearly shows that the people are defying the rebels and escaping. They are running to safety,” Rajapaksa told news agencies.
“We have indications where Prabhakaran and the rest of the leaders. We are closing in,” defence ministry spokesperson, Keheliya Rambukwella, told HT.
More than 30,000, according to government estimates, remain in the NFZ located in Mullaitivu. The rapid developments and government statements of the day came in the background of a chilling warning from the LTTE. “The LTTE and the fight for our freedom will continue. The methods may vary but Sri Lanka will never be able to live in peace as it imagines a military victory will bring,” the rebel group said in a statement. It added: “The LTTE would like to emphasise that it is always ready to explore peaceful means to resolve the conflict.” Earlier, Lankan army troops had to be redeployed to control the flood of men, women and children who suddenly broke out of the NFZ. The floodgates opened after SLA troop took control of a causeway over a lagoon leading to the NFZ from the west. But even as thousands of refugees ran to cross the shallow lagoon, they came under attack – according to the military — from the cornered LTTE cadres left behind.
Three women suicide bombers exploded themselves in the middle of screaming civilians who had jumped into the lagoon to dodge gun fire. The death count of 17 was likely to rise.
The suicide attacks on the fleeing civilians claimed at least 17 lives and injured more than 200.
Seizing the movement, the government again gave a deadline to LTTE chief V Prabhakaran and the remaining cadres to surrender within 12 noon on Tuesday. Similar deadlines earlier got no response from the Tamil Tigers.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa said the “complete defeat” of the LTTE was now imminent. “The (aerial) footage clearly shows that the people are defying the rebels and escaping. They are running to safety,” Rajapaksa told news agencies.
“We have indications where Prabhakaran and the rest of the leaders. We are closing in,” defence ministry spokesperson, Keheliya Rambukwella, told HT.
More than 30,000, according to government estimates, remain in the NFZ located in Mullaitivu. The rapid developments and government statements of the day came in the background of a chilling warning from the LTTE. “The LTTE and the fight for our freedom will continue. The methods may vary but Sri Lanka will never be able to live in peace as it imagines a military victory will bring,” the rebel group said in a statement. It added: “The LTTE would like to emphasise that it is always ready to explore peaceful means to resolve the conflict.” Earlier, Lankan army troops had to be redeployed to control the flood of men, women and children who suddenly broke out of the NFZ. The floodgates opened after SLA troop took control of a causeway over a lagoon leading to the NFZ from the west. But even as thousands of refugees ran to cross the shallow lagoon, they came under attack – according to the military — from the cornered LTTE cadres left behind.
Three women suicide bombers exploded themselves in the middle of screaming civilians who had jumped into the lagoon to dodge gun fire. The death count of 17 was likely to rise.
If voted to power, BJP will honour nuke deal with US: Advani
In a major shift of stand, BJP’s prime minister candidate L K Advani has said for the first time that his party will not abrogate the civilian nuclear deal with the US if it is voted to power.
In an exclusive interview with The Hindustan Times in the course of his election tour, the 81-year-old leader said, “We realise it’s not easy to do so. After all it’s an international agreement, and one signed between two countries and their governments. We will have to look into all aspects.”
He conceded that his party had vowed to turn the clock on the deal during the heat of the controversy in July last year when the Manmohan government was in trouble in Parliament after the Left withdrew support. Senior BJP leaders including Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie had called for cancellation of the deal.
“But once when we are in the government,” Advani said, “we will obviously get to know more about the deal and decide accordingly on the basis of all available facts. We are definitely against India being subjected to a discriminatory non-proliferation regime.”
His government, if voted in, will undertake a complete review of all aspects of the deal to protect India’s strategic interests. “We will never compromise on our country’s interests. But I cannot say today that we will just cancel the deal.”
Defending the BJP’s changing view, Advani said, “one must remember that it was the BJP (as the Jan Sangh) that was first to demand that India must have a nuclear deterrent way back in 1964 after China exploded a device.”
He said, “In 1998, the BJP manifesto had promised to re-evaluate the country’s nuclear policy and exercise the option to induct nuclear weapons. We took office on March 19 of that year and we conducted Pokhran II on May 11 — in 39 days.”
Advani’s latest position on the issue underscores the BJP’s worry — right from the start of the controversy — that it could lose the support of the middle-class that favours close ties with the US.
The BJP’s decision to live with the deal had been in the making after the US Congress put its seal of approval following the IAEA’s waiver for India so that the Nuclear Supplier Group could do commercial nuclear business with the country.
In fact, in 2007, Advani tried to fine-tune the party’s stand by stating that the problem was the Hyde Act (passed by the US Congress, which barred India from contesting any nuclear tests further) and not the 123 pact that laid down terms of civilian nuclear cooperation. But he had to retract in the face of disagreement within the party.
On the BJP’s position on the nuclear deal, Advani said the party would honour India’s commitments to prevent proliferation. But it will pursue an independent nuclear policy.
The BJP still favoured an amendment to the Constitution to make it mandatory for the government to seek Parliament’s approval/ratification by two-thirds majority before signing any bilateral or multilateral agreement that impacts India’s strategic programmes, territorial integrity and economic interest. Advani also held that the BJP always favoured “excellent ties” with the US and “the six years we were in office are a testimony to the closeness that developed between the two countries.”
In an exclusive interview with The Hindustan Times in the course of his election tour, the 81-year-old leader said, “We realise it’s not easy to do so. After all it’s an international agreement, and one signed between two countries and their governments. We will have to look into all aspects.”
He conceded that his party had vowed to turn the clock on the deal during the heat of the controversy in July last year when the Manmohan government was in trouble in Parliament after the Left withdrew support. Senior BJP leaders including Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie had called for cancellation of the deal.
“But once when we are in the government,” Advani said, “we will obviously get to know more about the deal and decide accordingly on the basis of all available facts. We are definitely against India being subjected to a discriminatory non-proliferation regime.”
His government, if voted in, will undertake a complete review of all aspects of the deal to protect India’s strategic interests. “We will never compromise on our country’s interests. But I cannot say today that we will just cancel the deal.”
Defending the BJP’s changing view, Advani said, “one must remember that it was the BJP (as the Jan Sangh) that was first to demand that India must have a nuclear deterrent way back in 1964 after China exploded a device.”
He said, “In 1998, the BJP manifesto had promised to re-evaluate the country’s nuclear policy and exercise the option to induct nuclear weapons. We took office on March 19 of that year and we conducted Pokhran II on May 11 — in 39 days.”
Advani’s latest position on the issue underscores the BJP’s worry — right from the start of the controversy — that it could lose the support of the middle-class that favours close ties with the US.
The BJP’s decision to live with the deal had been in the making after the US Congress put its seal of approval following the IAEA’s waiver for India so that the Nuclear Supplier Group could do commercial nuclear business with the country.
In fact, in 2007, Advani tried to fine-tune the party’s stand by stating that the problem was the Hyde Act (passed by the US Congress, which barred India from contesting any nuclear tests further) and not the 123 pact that laid down terms of civilian nuclear cooperation. But he had to retract in the face of disagreement within the party.
On the BJP’s position on the nuclear deal, Advani said the party would honour India’s commitments to prevent proliferation. But it will pursue an independent nuclear policy.
The BJP still favoured an amendment to the Constitution to make it mandatory for the government to seek Parliament’s approval/ratification by two-thirds majority before signing any bilateral or multilateral agreement that impacts India’s strategic programmes, territorial integrity and economic interest. Advani also held that the BJP always favoured “excellent ties” with the US and “the six years we were in office are a testimony to the closeness that developed between the two countries.”
Sunday, April 19, 2009
PM, Advani, Tata, Ambanis among India's most powerful
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Opposition leader L K Advani, business tycoons Mukesh and Anil Ambani, corporate czar Ratan Tata and star cricketer Sachin Tendulkar have been named among the 50 most powerful people in India by American magazine BusinessWeek.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee, music maestro A R Rahman, BSP chief Mayawati, Olympics gold medalist Abhinav Bindra and Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
Chairman C B Bhave also feature in the league of 50.
The magazine pointed out that the list of 'India's 50 Most Powerful People 2009' reflects the impact of the Satyam scandal and the global economic crisis.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Prakash Karat, Mahindra and Mahindra's Managing Director Anand Mahindra, steel czar Lakshmi Mittal, telecom tycoon Sunil Mittal, Indian Premier League Chairman Lalit Modi and Indian Space Research Organisation's Chairman G Madhavan Nair and bankers -- K V Kamath and Deepak Parekh also feature in the list.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee, music maestro A R Rahman, BSP chief Mayawati, Olympics gold medalist Abhinav Bindra and Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
Chairman C B Bhave also feature in the league of 50.
The magazine pointed out that the list of 'India's 50 Most Powerful People 2009' reflects the impact of the Satyam scandal and the global economic crisis.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Prakash Karat, Mahindra and Mahindra's Managing Director Anand Mahindra, steel czar Lakshmi Mittal, telecom tycoon Sunil Mittal, Indian Premier League Chairman Lalit Modi and Indian Space Research Organisation's Chairman G Madhavan Nair and bankers -- K V Kamath and Deepak Parekh also feature in the list.
Kandahar episode exposed NDA’s weakness: Rahul
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi termed as ‘dismal’ the previous NDA Government's record in handling terrorism and charged that its ‘weakness was exposed’ during the Kandahar episode when "the terrorists responsible for the recent Mumbai attacks were let off".
"The people who are talking about terrorism themselves bowed before terrorists and released two of their associates, who were later responsible for the terror attacks in Mumbai," Rahul said, addressing an election rally in the temple town.
In contrast, UPA Government acted decisively in tackling the Mumbai attacks and exerted intense diplomatic pressure on Pakistan putting onus on that country for the terror mechanism operating from its soil, he claimed.
The Congress leader, who was here to canvass votes for Union Power Minister and party's candidate from Solapur Lok Sabha constituency Sushil Kumar Shinde, wondered as to why the Opposition was raking the issue of black money in Swiss banks now and had maintained silence over the issue in the last five years
"The people who are talking about terrorism themselves bowed before terrorists and released two of their associates, who were later responsible for the terror attacks in Mumbai," Rahul said, addressing an election rally in the temple town.
In contrast, UPA Government acted decisively in tackling the Mumbai attacks and exerted intense diplomatic pressure on Pakistan putting onus on that country for the terror mechanism operating from its soil, he claimed.
The Congress leader, who was here to canvass votes for Union Power Minister and party's candidate from Solapur Lok Sabha constituency Sushil Kumar Shinde, wondered as to why the Opposition was raking the issue of black money in Swiss banks now and had maintained silence over the issue in the last five years
Tax that: 157 rich candidates don't have PAN cards
Politicians who claim to have jumped into the fray to 'serve the people' have become wealthier manifold, some even up to 300 percent, in the past five years, but many still do not possess a PAN card, said the National Election Watch (NEW) on Sunday.
"While the property of several candidates has doubled in the past five years, in many cases it has increased more than three hundred times as compared to the last general elections in 2004," said Rakesh Ranjan, who is convenor of the state unit of NEW, a non-profit group that monitors poll-related facts.
Ranjan said of the 198 candidates contesting for 13 seats slated to go to polls on April 23, 157 candidates are 'lakhpati' while 24 are 'crorepatis' but many do not have a PAN card of the Income Tax Department.
There are also seven such nominees who do not have a single rupee, if the affidavits submitted by them at the time of filing nominations are to be believed.
And this, Ranjan said, despite the fact that of these 198 candidates only three are illiterate. Of the remaining, eight are educated up to Class 5, and 42 candidates have completed their graduation and 45 are post-graduates and others have attained higher education. As many as 70 candidates also have liabilities ranging from Rs.70,000 to Rs.2.5 crore, he said.
Among the 'crorepati' nominees, Ranjan said, nine are from the Congress, four from the Samajwadi Party, three each from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) and the Republican Party of India (RPI) have one each while three other 'crorepati' candidates are contesting as Independents.
The Samajwadi Party candidate from Rewa constituency Pushpraj Singh is, however, the wealthiest of all: his total wealth amounts to over Rs 28.66 crore. Next comes Union Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath of the Congress from Chhindwara, whose total assets have increased from Rs 96.63 lakh in 2004 to Rs 14.17 crore this time.
"While the property of several candidates has doubled in the past five years, in many cases it has increased more than three hundred times as compared to the last general elections in 2004," said Rakesh Ranjan, who is convenor of the state unit of NEW, a non-profit group that monitors poll-related facts.
Ranjan said of the 198 candidates contesting for 13 seats slated to go to polls on April 23, 157 candidates are 'lakhpati' while 24 are 'crorepatis' but many do not have a PAN card of the Income Tax Department.
There are also seven such nominees who do not have a single rupee, if the affidavits submitted by them at the time of filing nominations are to be believed.
And this, Ranjan said, despite the fact that of these 198 candidates only three are illiterate. Of the remaining, eight are educated up to Class 5, and 42 candidates have completed their graduation and 45 are post-graduates and others have attained higher education. As many as 70 candidates also have liabilities ranging from Rs.70,000 to Rs.2.5 crore, he said.
Among the 'crorepati' nominees, Ranjan said, nine are from the Congress, four from the Samajwadi Party, three each from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) and the Republican Party of India (RPI) have one each while three other 'crorepati' candidates are contesting as Independents.
The Samajwadi Party candidate from Rewa constituency Pushpraj Singh is, however, the wealthiest of all: his total wealth amounts to over Rs 28.66 crore. Next comes Union Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath of the Congress from Chhindwara, whose total assets have increased from Rs 96.63 lakh in 2004 to Rs 14.17 crore this time.
Advani's stake to power: Grand temple in Ayodhya
A grand Ram temple in Ayodhya will become a reality if the Bharatiya Janata Party is voted to power, BJP prime ministerial candidate LK Advani told an election rally in Lucknow on Sunday.
"It is a dream of crores of people across India and a magnificent temple will definitely come up in Ayodhya," Advani told a gathering of over a thousand people.
Advani was in this Uttar Pradesh capital to campaign for party candidate Lalji Tandon, the sitting legislator.
He also repeated his pledge to bring back the Indian money deposited in tax havens abroad if voted to power.
"A party of south India has protested the demolition of the Rama Setu and has supported the cause of building the Ram mandir in Ayodhya. The party has mentioned this in its election manifesto too," Advani said, hinting at J Jayalalitha's AIADMK.
He also cautioned party workers against over-confidence and said that was what led to the BJP's defeat in the 2004 elections.
"I would like to request party workers not to rely on rallies and public meetings. We have 10 crore new voters this time and you should be conducting door-to-door contacts to convince them," Advani said in his hour-long speech in Vikas Nagar locality
"It is a dream of crores of people across India and a magnificent temple will definitely come up in Ayodhya," Advani told a gathering of over a thousand people.
Advani was in this Uttar Pradesh capital to campaign for party candidate Lalji Tandon, the sitting legislator.
He also repeated his pledge to bring back the Indian money deposited in tax havens abroad if voted to power.
"A party of south India has protested the demolition of the Rama Setu and has supported the cause of building the Ram mandir in Ayodhya. The party has mentioned this in its election manifesto too," Advani said, hinting at J Jayalalitha's AIADMK.
He also cautioned party workers against over-confidence and said that was what led to the BJP's defeat in the 2004 elections.
"I would like to request party workers not to rely on rallies and public meetings. We have 10 crore new voters this time and you should be conducting door-to-door contacts to convince them," Advani said in his hour-long speech in Vikas Nagar locality
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