Opinion | The Supreme Court is facing an unprecedented turmoil in the wake of four senior most judges taking exception to the Chief Justice of India Dipak Mishra’s style of functioning. Some damage has already been done to the highest judiciary and these brother judges are trying to contain it. 

Eminent jurists believe the developments over the past one year have undermined the confidence of the people in the judiciary. 

The senior most judges after the CJI — Justices J Chalemeswar, Rajan Gogoi, Madan Lokur and Kurian Joseph — went public on Friday taking exception to the manner in which cases were assigned selectively disregarding conventions on allocation of judicial work. 

At the same time the well settled principle is that the CJI is the master of the roster. However, the four judges allege that Justice Misra is not following conventions which can lead to serious consequences casting doubts about the integrity of the institution. 

Being an internal matter of the judiciary, it is best settled at a meeting of all the Supreme Court judges. 

While exceptions appear to have been made, the judges seem  perturbed about the petition seeking an inquiry into the death of special CBI judge B H Loya in 2014 being posted before a particular Bench. 

As a delicate situation has arisen in this country’s democracy, it is also a moment of reckoning for other institutions in the democratic system encompassing the Executive and the Legislature. 

It may be recalled that former President of the Supreme Court Bar association Dushyant Dave had expressed concern about the manner in which benches were being constituted and certain cases being assigned to particular benches, often ignoring the obvious choice of judges and benches to hear those cases. This has inevitably raised questions about the integrity of the judiciary. 

The institutions have to respond to the crisis without seeking to brush the matter under the carpet. This assumes importance as the detailed letter of the judges draws attention to the undue interference in the finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MOP) pertaining to the appointment of judges. 

The Narendra Modi government appears to have been caught on the back-foot and decided not to join issues as it would amount to taking sides because the CJI’s term ends in October. It observed “any statement from their side was uncalled for.” 

This assumes significance as none of the four judges had spoken a word against the government. It pertains to the administrative and other issues of the judiciary. 

The opposition Congress said the issues raised by the judges are “extremely disturbing and have far reaching consequences” for safeguarding democracy and preserving the independence of the judiciary. This is the worst judicial crisis that the country has seen since independence. It might be best for the CJI to take the initiative and try to resolve the matter with all the brother judges. 

It also provides an opportunity to the BJP led NDA government and the Supreme Court to put in place a transparent process for appointing judges. The four judges warned if their efforts failed then democracy will not survive in this country. “The hallmark of a good democracy is having an independent judiciary with impartial judges,” emphasised Justice Chalemeswar.   

There is no doubt that the press conference by the judges has seriously dented the institutional as well as the moral authority of the Supreme Court. It is important to resolve such critical  matters with statesmanship for restoring public confidence in the courts.

(Views are personal.)

From the award-winning investigative stories blowing the cover on sexual abuse in the Catholic Church by The Boston Globe’s Spotlight team to the only writer to have ever gone under cover in North Korea, from the dangers involved in reporting live at the frontline during wars to discussions with leading Indian media personalities, the 11^th edition of ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival 2018 will have it all for those who wish to get a firsthand knowledge of journalistic and reportage writing.

Spotlight: The Hunt for Truthbrings forth the renowned Portuguese-American journalist Michael Rezendes who is a Pulitzer Prize award-winner for his investigative work as a member of The Boston Globe’s legendary Spotlight Team in conversation with Sreenivasan Jain where he speaks of the power of traditional and local reporting, the values, veracity and commitment required for investigative journalism as well as the changing definitions of news in the current media landscape.

In Undercover in North Korea: Facts and Fictions, Suki Kim, the South Korean author of the award-winning novel The Interpreter and the bestselling Without You There Is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea’s Elite, speaks of her six-month undercover investigation embedded within North Korea in conversation with Michael Breen author of TheNew Koreans: The Story of a Nation, and talks of her rare encounter with the world’s most dangerous and unknowable country and of the privileged young men she calls ‘soldiers and slaves’.

The Frontline Club is a compelling session where Adrian Levy, Carlo Pizzati, Jeffrey Gettleman, Peter Bergen and Suki Kim in conversation with SuhasiniHaidar talk about how Hollywood has long glamourised the war journalist as a hard drinking chancer, taking extreme risks to get the big Pulitzer-winning front page spread. Witness some of the world’s most celebrated foreign correspondents lift the lid on one of the dangerous jobs in journalism, parsing myth from reality.

In Among the Insurgents with Cathy Scott-Clark, Michael Vatikiotis and Peter Bergen are in conversation with Charlie English as they discuss how in this age of terrorism and insurgency, it has never been more important to report accurately on the actions of those who take up arms against established governments. At the same time, never have journalists been in greater danger doing so, and how exactly does one report on resistance fighters who do this without acting as amplifiers for terrorists? The panel, who have studied and spent time with insurgent groups, will give their perspective on the practical and moral conundrums of covering insurgencies.

Manhunt: Pakistan and the Search for Bin Ladenwith Adrian Levy, Cathy Scott-Clark, Peter Bergen and T.C.A. Raghavan in conversation with Suhasini Haidar unpacks the extraordinary inside story of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda in the years after 9/11. Following the attacks on the Twin Towers, bin Laden, the most wanted man in the world, eluded intelligence services and Special Forces units for almost a decade. Using remarkable, first-person testimony from his family and closest military aides, this session chronicles an astonishing tale of evasion, collusion and isolation by bringing together three of the world’s greatest experts on Bin Laden: Peter Bergen, author of Manhunt, who met and interviewed the man and later was the only journalist to gain access to bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound before the Pakistani government demolished it. In conversation with him are Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark, authors of The Exile, a landmark work of investigation and reportage and essential reading for anyone concerned with history, security and future relations with the Islamic world.

Closer to home, Rajasthan: BadalteMahaul Mein Media with FalguniBansal, L.P. Pant, Rajendra Bora, Vinod Bhardwaj and Yash Goyal discuss how the media in Rajasthan have always balanced a local and regional approach with a larger understanding of national and international issues. Rajasthan is India’s largest state in terms of size with an area that comprises approximately 10 percent of India’s landmass and borders with Pakistani Punjab and Sindh. The rich culture and vibrant tourism, the mix of cosmopolitan and traditional culture and the inhospitable terrain and remote rural populations are all a part of its living reality. A key session with Rajasthani media on the social, economic and political issues they report upon, across print and digital, television and radio channels.

Around the world, the media is seeking a balance between neutrality, objectivity, commitment and the search for truth. How does a post-truth era seek perspective and equivalence then? Is inherent bias inevitable? Can the media ever be truly impartial or is it only possible to ‘obtain the best attainable version of the truth’? On Balance: Journalistic Objectivity features Aditi Maheshwari Goyal, Rajeev Punnoli, Sudhir Chaudhary and Vineet Kumar in conversation with Shoma Chaudhury, a crucial session with journalists and editors across ideologies on the search for balance.

NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented move, four senior judges of the Supreme Court on Friday went public, saying the administration of the apex court is 

“sometimes not in order” and “less than desirable things” have occurred.

The second senior most judge of the top court Justice J Chelameswar held a press conference at his Tughlaq Road residence where three other senior judges were also present and addressed the media on various issues relating to the apex court judiciary.The other judges were Justices Ranjan Gogoi, M B Lokur and Kurian Joseph.

Justice Chelameswar said: “It is an extraordinary event in the history of Indian judiciary. The administration of the Supreme Court is not in order. Anything that is less than desirable has happened. Time and again the senior members of the courts have tried to persuade the CJI that pertains things are not in order, they need remedial measures but nothing happened. We wrote a letter to the CJI but we received no response. We were left with no choice but to address the nation about it. All four of us are convinced that unless the institutions are not preserved, democracy cannot survive.”

Justice Chelameswar further said, “We have spotted things in the last few months. Tried to intervene but to no avail. Twenty years from now, the nation should not say we sold our souls. The integrity of the SC is at stake. The survival of independent institutions, be it any, must be strengthened. We owe a responsibility to the institution and the nation. Our efforts have failed in convincing the Chief Justice to take steps to protect the institution.’’

First 4 Pages Of The Letter To CJI:

Dear Chief Justice, 

it is with great anguish and concern that we have thought it proper to address this letter to you so as to highlight certain judicial order passed by this court because adversely affected the overall functioning of the justice delivery system and the independence of the high courts besides impacting the administrative functioning of the efforts of the Honourable the Chief Justice of India. 

From the date of establishment of the three Chartered high courts of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras, certain traditions and conventions in the judicial administration have been well established. The traditions were embraced by this court which came into existence almost a century of the above mentioned chartered high courts. These traditions have their roots in the anglo-saxon jurisprudence and practices.  

Of the well settled principles is that the chief justice is the master of the roaster with a privilege to determine the Roaster necessity in multi-number courts for an orderly transaction of business and appropriate arrangements with respect to matter with which number bunch of this court, as the case say be, is required to deal with which case or class of cases is to be made. The convention of recognising the privilege of the Chief Justice to form the roaster and assign cases to different members/benches of the court is a convention devised for a disciplined and efficient transaction of business of the court but not a recognition of any superior authority, legal of actual of the chief justice over his colleagues. 

It is too well settled in the jurisprudence of this country that the chief justice is not only the first amongst the equals- nothing more or nothing less. In the matter of determination of the roaster, there are well-settled and time-honored conventions guiding the chief justice, dealing with the strength of the bench which is required to deal with the particular case or composition thereof. 

A necessary corollary to the above-mentioned principle is the member of any multi-numbered judicial body, including this court would not arrogate to themselves, the authority to deal with the pronounce upon a matter which ought to be heard by a appropriate benches, both composition wise and strength why is due to regard to the roast of fixed. 

Any departures from the above two rules would not only lead to unpleasant and undesirable consequences of creating doubt in the body politic about the integrity of the institution. Not to talk about the chaos that would result from such departure. 

We are sorry to say that off late the twin rules mentioned above have not been strictly adhere to. There have been instances where case having for reaching consequences for the nation and the institution have been assigned by the Chief Justice of this court selectively to the ‘benches of their preference’ without any rational basis for such assignment. This must be guarded against at all costs.

We are not mentioning details only to avoid embarrassing the institution but note that such departures have already damaged the image of this institutions to some extent. 

In the above context, we deem it proper to address you presently with regard to the order dated 27th October, 2017 in ‘Arti Luthra vs Union of India to the effect that there should be no for the delay in finalising the Memorandum of procedure in the larger public interest. When the Memorandum of procedure was the subject matter of decision of the Constitution bench of this court in  Supreme Court advocates on record association and ANR vs. Union of India2016. It is difficult to understand as to how any other bench could have dealt with the matter.

New Delhi:  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday declared India does not eye any one’s territory nor it has intentions to exploit resources of any other nation.

Mr. Modi asserted that India’s focus has always been capacity building and resource development be it on bilateral or multilateral platforms like Commonwealth, India-Africa Summit or Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation. “On each of these forums, we have made efforts to take every one along,’’ he said.

Addressing the First PIO Parliamentarian Conference here, the Prime Minister said India’s development aid model was not based on “give and take’’ but on the needs and priorities of the recipient nations.

He said that India has always played a positive and constructive role on the global arena. “We have not seen our relations with any country on the scale of profit and loss but viewed them through the prism of humanitarian values,’’ he said amid applause from 134 PIO lawmakers and mayors from 24 countries.   

“Our strong relations with ASEAN countries have been further strengthened and these will be showcased to the entire world in a few days from now on the occasion of India’s Republic Day,’’ he said. As many as 10 leaders from ASEAN countries will be guests of honour on January 26 Republic Day celebrations in the Capital.

Mr. Modi said that 21^st Century is being described as Asian Century and India has definitely played an important role in it. “You will feel this influence of India’s growing stature across the world. India’s growing economy and power will certainly make you proud and it will inspire us to work even harder,’’ he said. The Prime Minister said the world is facing many challenges which can be met by the ideology of non-violence and peaceful protest as enunciated by Gandhiji. “Extremism and radicalization can be countered only through the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi,’’ he said.

Terming members of Indian diaspora as partners in development and progress of India, Mr. Modi said the government wants to establish lasting ties with PIOs.  In his 45-minute inaugural address, Mr. Modi dwelt at length on India moving up by 42 places in the ranking of ease of doing business in the past three years, attracting FDI worth 60 billion dollars in 2016-17, and going up in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index by 32 ranks. “Today bodies like World Bank, IMF and Moody’s are looking at India in a positive way,’’ he said.

He attributed these developments to far-reaching policy reforms brought in the economy by his government over the past three years. “Reform to Transform is our guiding principle. Our aim is to make the entire system accountable, transparent  and completely eradicate corruption,’’ he said.

The PM said that more than half the investment made till now in sectors like construction, air transport, mining, computer software, hardware, electrical equipment has come in the last three years.

Describing the gathering of PIOs as a ‘mini world Parliament’ , the PM said:  ”When there is news about how you all are influencing the geo-politics of where you live and how you are making policies, we feel proud. No matter where they are, I can imagine how happy your ancestors must be on seeing you all here.”

He said India’s relations with countries of the world was governed by spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (Entire World Is One Family ).

”During earthquake in Nepal, flood in Sri Lanka, water problems in the Maldives; India was the first to respond. When crisis struck Yemen, we saved our 4,500 people as well as 2000 from other countries.  India’s humanity even in grave situations like these is a part of  ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’,”  he said.

Earlier, in her opening remarks External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described the day-long conference of PIO Parliamentarians and Mayors as a “unique’’ event. She said that Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was launched in 2003 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government was in power and January 9 was chosen as it marked the day when Mahatma Gandhi, the most celebrated Pravasi, had returned to India from South Africa.

She said that as many as 270 PIOs from 28 countries were MPs and 11 countries have more than a million Indians living there and all of them have emotional and cultural links with India.

The inaugural session was also attended by Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha M. Thambi Durai, Rajya Sabha Vice Chairman P.J. Kurien and the two Ministers of State for External Affairs M.J. Akbar and General (Retd.) V.K. Singh. The biggest delegation of 20 MPs has come from Guyana. 

New Delhi : Questioning Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s claim that the electoral bond scheme would bring in transparency in election funding, CPIM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury today said it would rather make the funding more opaque.

”It is an anti-democratic move,” Mr Yechury said  responding to  Mr Jaitley’s views on the issue posted on his Facebook page two days back. If this system was adopted, nobody would know who was buying and who was redeeming the bond, and it would be like legalising money laundering, he said in an interaction with member of the Indian Women’s Press Corps here.

The political parties which depend on people’s collection of funds would find it very difficult to finance their electoral expenses, he said. The CPI(M) leader said he had written a letter to the Finance accepting his  invitation to join debate  on the electoral bond scheme.

Mr Yechury was of the view that if the Government was really serious about cleansing the system, it should first ban corporate funding of elections and put a ceiling on the expenditure of political parties, as today there was a ceiling only on the candidate’s expenditure.

He wanted the government to bring  in a legislation to address the issue in a comprehensive manner.

In his Sunday’s Facebook post, Mr Jaitley had said that electoral bond scheme was a substantial improvement in transparency over the present system of political funding,  and the government was open to suggestions to further cleanse the system.

The CPI(M) Leader, who answered a range of questions during the interaction, condemned the government for denying permission to Gujarat dalit leader Jignesh Mevani to hold a rally in the capital today, and said that the government was trying to persecute dissent by all means and denial of permission was a political message.

Mr Yechury did not agree with a questioner that the adverse impact of the economic moves like the note ban and the GST did not have any electoral cost for the BJP as it won Gujarat despite that. He pointed out that the BJP lost both in terms of percentage and seats, and the marginal victory it secured was only due to the communal divide it created

”The BJP sought to dilute much of discontent over its bad economy through communal polarisation,” he said.

On whether he saw any hope for Opposition unity and what would be its basis to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the CPIM) leader said  the basis of Opposition unity should be an alternative vision for India, alternative policies– not only  economic, but encompassing social fabric of the country.

On a question about Mr Rahul Gandhi’s succeeding his mother as Congress president, Mr Yechury,” We will have to wait and see what will be his policies.”

Replying to a question on India’s foreign policy under the Modi government, Mr Yechury said,” I am really worried about it.” he saw a definite shift in the foreign policy in which India had become a just a supplicant of the US’s global strategic interest, which was wholly detrimental to India’s interest.

He also criticised the Modi Government’s ”flip flop” on the Pakistan policy. ”At one time, you yourself go to Pakistan, and at other time you accuse Dr Manmohan Singh of conspiring with Pakistan, and also have your NSA and Pakistan NSA talking. This flip flop will not work,” he said.

On the issue of Aadhar, he said he totally disagreed with the Government contention that the Aadhar was necessary for delivery of services to the people. ”it does not require complete surveillance of people . It’s violation of personal liberty.”

NEW DELHI : The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) has the responsibility of taking mobile connectivity to the unconnected. But it seems USOF believes in furthering the interests of corporate sector first and is least bothered with the welfare and development of regions deprived of proper mobile connectivity. It is high time to scrap USOF which has failed miserably to live up to its mission of serving the deprived regions of the country.

We present to you yet another case of gross apathy of USOF while dealing with the Northeast mobile connectivity project. This time it is Meghalaya state which has to have mobile towers funded by USOF. Yet again USOF dilly dallying tactics has stalled implementation of the project. Moreover, the entire modus operandi of USOF in dealing with Meghalaya reeks of favourtism. USOF is not only neglecting state-run BSNL but also openly violating laid government guidelines by going ahead with important financial decisions without any feasibility study or proper evaluation. Moreover, it is taking dubious decisions despite clear instructions from the PMO…

In 2014 the Union Cabinet approved the proposal to implement a comprehensive telecom development plan for the North-Eastern 

region covering eight states with an estimate of Rs.5,336 crores with funds coming from USOF. Cabinet approved 2G coverage for uncovered areas of Assam and Arunanchal Pradesh to be given to BSNL while other states, including Meghalaya, were to be connected through a tender process by USOF.

It took USOF three years to complete its tender process which ironically had just one bidder — Bharti Airtel. But later Meghalaya tender comprising 2,173 towers was cancelled as USOF found that tender rates were 70% higher (Rs.2,351 crore instead of Rs.1,374 crore as estimated total outgo). USOF suggested re-tendering with technology upgradation, from 2G plus Edge to 2G puls 4G, and increased it costs to Rs.4,302 crores without conducting any financial viability of the project.

This development led to severe criticism from the PMO with Principal Secretary to PM writing Â“even after the delay in finalisation of tender, the works in Meghalaya have not been awarded as yet. Noting that the process of bidding would further delay the project, the proposal for awarding the project to BSNL on cast plus basis should be examined“.

But this too was conveniently ignored by USOF despite the fact that BSNL has been instrumental in completing mobile tower project in Naxalism-affected states which is considered one of toughest task in the telecom sector and where no private player dared to venture. Moreover, BSNL is currently implementing mobile tower project in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh after undergoing a successful tender process. It was on this basis that the PMO had suggested BSNL’s name. But the top echelons of DoT led by USOF ganged up to disallow BSNL a chance to participate in the project.

Surprisingly, DoT and USOF decided to change the technology part from 2G plus Edge as implemented in entire Northeast to 2G plus 4G just for Meghalaya without taking consent from Union Cabinet. It increased the cost of project for Meghalaya to a whopping Rs.4,302 crores without going for any financial viability, technical studies and ROI (return of investment) studies.

The way USOF is implementing the ambitious project, Meghalaya project is also a major setback for Prime Minister’s ‘Make In India’ initiative. BSNL is bound to implement preferential market access (PMA) policy allowing only domestic equipment manufacturer to bid in its project, but private operators are not bound by PMA. In Northeast, which shares crucial borders with China, foreign players including Chinese telecom equipment-makers are being allowed to put up their equipment in gross negligence of national security interests.

Now there are several questions which USOF and DoT need to answer before going ahead with Meghalaya project…

1. Was any financial viability study conducted before voluntarily deciding 2G plus 4G technology for Meghalaya? Whether it is financially prudent to invest Rs.4,302 crores in Meghalaya alone when other regions of the Northeast and remote locations of India await technology upgradation for mobile and broadband services?
   
2. Was Union Cabinet kept in loop before Telecom Commission and USOF spent months in making a case for 2G plus 4G technology leading to massive cost escalation and further delay in the project?
   
3. Why such a huge amount be given to a private operator for setting up tower network which it will use to its advantage? Why was BSNL, being a government-run company and which is struggling financially, deprived the first right to use public funds? 
   
4. Why other seven states not given same treatment of getting 2G plus 4G technology? Why other people of North-eastern states deprived of advanced technology?
   
5. Why BSNL not given a chance to upgrade its technology? Will it not weaken BSNL and deprive its customers of better services?
   
6. What happens to Prime Minister’s ‘Make In India’ initiative? Why PMA guidelines just for BSNL and why private players are kept out of it?
   
7. Is it not comprising national security by allowing foreign players to put up telecom gear in the Northeast which shares border with China?
   
8. USOF allowed single bid in Northeast and even awarded tender which is against violation of government guidelines and against the rules of fair competition. When BSNL can attract three Indian bidders for its Northeast project, why USOF allowed just one company? Why did USOF not ask BSNL to take the project to attract more players?
   

These are some unanswered questions which Telecom Commission and USOF will have to deal with. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visits to the Northeast have been promising better telecom connectivity for the region before 2019. But this tasks is highly unachievable, thanks to poor planning and gross apathy on part of USOF. It is due to its indecision and absurd decision making that none of the Northeast project is likely to completed on time.

While BSNL is running late in completing its share of the Northeast project as USOF has failed to take timely decisions on tendering process and release money, in other states also the 2019 deadline is unlikely to be met.

The Prime Minister needs to understand, it is not the USOF or the top bureaucrats in the Telecom Commission who have to face the public; but it is the political leadership, it is you the leader of the government who is answerable to the people.

NEW DELHI : Indian Railways has decided to deploy “Drone” cameras (UAV/NETRA) for various railway activities especially project monitoring and maintenance of tracks and other railway infrastructure. It has been given directions to Zonal Railways to procure such cameras. This is in-line with Railways’ desire to use technology to enhance safety and efficiency in train operations.

“Drone” cameras shall be deployed to undertake monitoring activities of relief and rescue operation, project monitoring, progress of important works, conditions of track and inspection related activities. It shall also be used to assess preparedness of Non-Interlocking (NI) works, crowd management during fairs and melas, to identify scrap and also for aerial survey of station yards. It is going to be instrumental in providing real time inputs related to safety and maintenance of tracks and other railway infrastructure.

Under this initiative, West Central Railways with headquarter at Jabalpur (M.P) has become the first Zonal Railway to procure “Drone” cameras in Indian Railways. West Central Railways has already done a trial-run of those cameras last week on its all the three divisions in the following locations.

1. Jabalpur Division – Narmada Bridge near Bhitoni
2. Bhopal Division – (i) Nishatpura Yard; (ii) Third Line work between HBJ – Misrod.
3. Kota Division – (i) Chambal Bridge near Kota; (ii) Dakania Talav Yard near Kota.

WCR further plans to use Drone for project monitoring in 3rd line work of Bina-Katni, Doubling work in Katni-Singrouli, Important Bridge inspections and Mansoon preparedness in deep cutting portions of Ghat Sections of Bhopal and Jabalpur Divisions. Earlier, demonstration of “Drone” camera was done for project monitoring of Railway Electrification work of Jabalpur Yard.

Mumbai : Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children in association with Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati Temple Trust organized the 5^th edition of the children’s most favourite event- “Little Hearts Marathon 2018” at Bandra Kurla Complex on 7^th Jan 2018. More than 25,000 children from across Maharashtra participated in the marathon.

Mrs Amruta Fadnavis, Wife of Hon. Chief Minister of Maharashtra Mr Devendra Fadnavis, graced the occasion and flagged off the marathon. Also present at the flag-off event were Dr Ramdas Ambatkar, State General Secretary, BJP Maharashtra, Ms. Shraddha Jadhav, Corporator & Ex Mayor of Mumbai, Mr Arvind Sawant, MP, Mr Rajesh Mahapuskar, Director of the award-winning Marathi film ‘Ventilator’, Mr Ness Wadia, MD, The Wadia Group and Dr Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO, Wadia Hospitals. 

Approximately 100,000 babies are born each year with “major” and “critical” Congenital heart diseases (CHD) in India. As symptoms for congenital heart diseases begin at 1 or 2 months of age, often the diagnosis of the same is missed; making it the biggest reason for increased mortality and morbidity. Due to general lack of awareness, approximately 10% of infant mortality in India can be accounted for by CHD alone. The number of children who are in waiting list for heart surgeries is more then 500 in Maharashtra state alone. Also the rate of cardiac diseases in young adults is increasingly alarmingly with sedentary lifestyle. The Marathon also promotes the message of a healthy active lifestyle amongst children.

Mrs. Amruta Fadnavis Said “Awareness of doing physical activity is very important in children. Running, walking will help them to keep healthy. Today’s generation play on laptops, phone, and video game. Little hearts marathon has seen more than 25000 children participated for healthy lifestyle & creating awareness. She concluded by appreciating the initiative of Wadia hospitals of ‘Save Heart Save Life’ and gave them best wishes for the event.”

Ness Wadia, MD, Wadia Group, said, Â“We are extremely happy to see how Little Hearts Marathon has evolved over the last 5 years. The zeal with which children have participated year after year gives us sheer joy and encourages us to do more to ‘Save Hearts Save Lives’. In our endeavour to have no waiting lists for cardiac surgeries throughout the country, we will be taking Little Hearts Marathon to more cities across India in coming years. We wish more and more people come forward from the community to support this noble cause.”

Dr. Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO Wadia Hospitals, said, “We dedicate the success of Little Hearts Marathon to the lovely children who enthusiastically participate to support children of their age suffering from heart diseases. Today there exist only a handful of specialized centres offering dedicated paediatric cardiac services across India. Wadia Hospitals is the first children’s hospital to have introduced expert Paediatric Cardiac Care services in the bustling and heavily populated metropolis of Mumbai. At Wadia we have a specialized team including Paediatric Cardiologist, Paediatric cardiac Surgeon and Paediatric Cardiac Intensivists,” added Dr Bodhanwala. 

Mr. Aadesh Bandekar, Chairman, Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati Temple Trust, said, Â“Siddhivinayak temple has always supported Little Hearts Marathon and helped to create awareness and treatment of those children suffering with cardiac disease. With Wadia Hospitals, we are doing a lot of health activities since many years and helping with funds for needy patients and we will continue to do so.”

Rajnikanth can cut into the votes of the AIADMK and the DMK. Mid term poll cannot be ruled out. 

Mega star Rajnikanth has taken a shade over two decades to overcome the nagging doubts and vacillation before taking the political plunge last Sunday on New Year’s eve. His legion of fans were ecstatic that he will float his party at the appropriate time and contest all the 234 seats in the Tamil Nadu assembly.

What cannot be denied is the cine star’s immense appeal and charisma among the people in the southern state. Dravidian politics surged to the fore in 1967 when the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) sent the entrenched Indian National Congress packing bringing about a path breaking change in Tamil Nadu’s political terrain.

Rajnikanth believes the state has become a laughing stock in the country compelling him to change his mind even if it is twenty years too late. His entry into politics has the portends of denting the vote base of the two domineering Dravidian parties — the AIADMK holding the reins of power in Chennai and its arch rival the DMK. 

The highly circumspect Dravidian majors sought to put up a brave front in the wake for Rajnikant’s foray into politics emphasising it was unlikely to affect them adversely. 

However, with the death of AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa in December 2016 after she had steered her regional party to a second successive victory in the assembly elections in the earlier part of that year, the second rung leaders appear out of depth looking over each other’s shoulders and finding it difficult to keep the flock together.   

Then TTK Dhinakaran, a nephew of jailed Sasikala, a confidant of the late Jayalalithaa, managed to win the RK Nagar assembly seat handsomely in a bye-election recently. The prestige of this seat was self evident as Jayalalithaa had represented this constituency on the outskirts of Chennai. 

This has added a new dimension to the ongoing intrigues within the AIADMK on the one side and the independent Dhinakaran on the other. He has threatened to see the back of the shaky and rudderless AIADMK government within three months. 

The DMK candidate at RK Nagar finished a poor third facing the ignominy of losing his deposit. 

The next assembly election in Tamil Nadu is due in 2021. However, considering the intense differences within, the factions headed by chief minister A Palaniswamy and deputy chief minister O Paneerselvam have managed to keep themselves afloat so far. 

The chances of this arrangement pulling through another three years till the assembly elections  2021 appears remote. Discriminating Tamil Nadu watchers believe irrespective of Rajnikanth entering politics, the AIADMK is a sinking ship. Senior leaders intending to quit the party would find Dhinakaran a better option than opting for Rajanikanth. 

In the DMK camp there are underlying fears that if Rajnikanth’s party is able to draw a few thousand of votes from its kitty, it might prove dangerous for them as their chances of regaining power in Tamil Nadu goes for a toss. 

The significance of this is that unlike the Lok Sabha polls, a few thousand or even a few hundred votes, can tilt the balance in an assembly election. This is particularly so in Tamil Nadu.  

Under the circumstances the DMK, whose patriarch M Karunanidhi is as good as out of the contention because of age and ill health, might have to redraw their strategy by cobbling up a winning combination. 

On the other hand Rajnikanth lacks the experience as a politician. He wants to register his fan clubs all over state even as members of this organisation have been doing social work for promoting the actor. 

Nevertheless, the arrival of Rajnikanth in politics can pose a challenge to the AIADMK and the DMK. The AIADMK lacks a tall and credible leader as Jayalalithaa deliberately did not build a second line of leadership thus snuffing out any challenge to her leadership. 

For the DMK the march to victory might become more difficult. Also the cine fans forming the AIADMK’s original support base could migrate to Rajnikanth’s party. 

There are those who believe Rajnikanth sharing his thoughts in his retirement age is unlikely to work. Interestingly, the actor has drawn attention to pursuing “spiritual politics” which is an indication that he might align with the BJP. 

As evidenced during the 2014 general elections, the Lotus party remained keen to have a truck with a charismatic personality in Tamil Nadu having the prospects of being catapulted to seat of power at Fort St George in Chennai. 

The BJP is desperate for a breakthrough in Tamil Nadu which is critical for enlarging its base in that state which contributes a sizeable 39 seats to the Lok Sabha. The question is will Rajnikanth be able to provide an alternative to the two major Dravidian parties. 

For now the mega star has not spelt out anything about the party in terms of its name, the flag or the key points of his manifesto. He has also said that if he does not fulfil the pledges in three years he will call it quits. 

Not all film stars with a political itch have been able to catch the imagination of the people of Tamil Nadu. If MGR and Jayalalithaa were highly successful, those who have fallen by the wayside include Sivaji Ganesan and Chiranjeevi among others. 

It might be premature to assess what impact Rajnikanth’s proposed party will have on the people. Even as his moves need to be watched closely, the star struck people of Tamil Nadu appear hell bent on having him as the chief minister at least once. Lets wait and see.  

(Views are personal.)

On January 4, The Tribune in Chandigarh reported how anonymous sellers over WhatsApp were providing access to Aadhaar data for a fee of mere rupees 500 via Paytm. Now, a first information report (FIR) has been registered against The Tribune newspaper and its journalist Rachna Khaira over the uncover of the loopholes in the Aadhaar database system which the Unique Identification of India (UIDAI) calls a ‘misreporting’.

However, after the reports by The Tribune, Sanjay Jindal, Additional Director-General, UIDAI Regional Centre, Chandigarh, accepting that this was a lapse, told The Tribune: “Except the Director-General and I, no third person in Punjab should have a login access to our official portal. Anyone else having access is illegal, and is a major national security breach.”

Today, the clueless UIDAI has sent a letter to the Editor of The Tribune with a questionnaire: a.)Whether it was at all possible for your correspondent to view or obtain Fingerprints and Iris scan of any person through the aforesaid access to UIDAI portal? b) How many Aadhaar numbers did the correspondent actually enter through the said login ID and password and whom did those Aadhaar numbers belong to?

According to a report in The Indian Express, a deputy director of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has registered an FIR, which also names Anil Kumar, Sunil Kumar and Raj (all of whom were contacted by the Tribune reporter as part of the story).  The FIR has been lodged per the crime branch’s cyber cell “under IPC Sections 419 (punishment for cheating by impersonation), 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document), as well Section 66 of the IT Act and Section 36/37 of the Aadhaar Act”.  The FIR further says, “They (The Tribune and the reporter) have unauthorisedly accessed the Aadhaar ecosystem in connivance of the criminal conspiracy… The act of the aforesaid involved persons is in violation of (the various sections mentioned in the FIR)… Hence, an FIR needs to be filed at the cyber cell for the said violation.”

After the FIR filed against the newspaper, there has been strong echo of support in the favour of the journalist and The Tribune. Many techie, digital experts and criminal lawyers are are criticising the UIDAI move to target the media for the FIR against the reporter who worked in the public interest. However, the UIDAI official Twitter handle tweeted back to back two statements: “In the recent case of The Tribune’s report in which an FIR is filed, an impression is being created in media that UIDAI is targeting the media or whistleblowers or “shooting the messenger”. This is not at all true.” 

“This is a case in which even though there was no breach of Aadhaar biometric database, it is for the act of unauthorised access, criminal proceedings have been initiated.”

The Patiala Media Club has condemned the registration of case against Tribune reporter Rachna Khaira. Nistula Hebbar of The Hindu has tweeted, “In a resolution passed in a meeting of club members, PMC terms this action as attempt to murder of fourth pillar of democracy. Seeks withdrawal of case and action against UIDAI officials.”

The Tribune had published, “It took 10 minutes in which an “agent” of the group running the racket created a “gateway” for this correspondent and gave a login ID and password. Lo and behold, you could enter any Aadhaar number in the portal, and instantly get all particulars that an individual may have submitted to the UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India), including name, address, postal code (PIN), photo, phone number and email.”