Madness in Mumbai

On Wednesday, Delhi Whispers spent a leisurely day at the International Trade Fair at Pragati Maidan. It was a bright day in more ways than one: milling crowds, enough shopping to ward away the recession gloom at least temporarily, and a true microcosm of India on display—men, women and children across all income groups, all regions, spending a peaceful, happy day out. In short, all that can be good about India. That lingering good feeling was wiped out in an instant with the flick of the TV remote the same night. The carefully orchestrated mayhem in Mumbai brought the country’s financial capital to its knees. And as we write this, the drama still continues. One more addition to the maximum city’s litany of terrorist woes. And another glaring example of how our country’s security can be breached almost nonchalantly. As we mourn the death of innocents and the loss of a city’s pride, let’s not be under any illusion that this will be the last time, or the last Indian city that will be thus threatened. Many members of the Indian media have written derisively about America’s ‘Homeland Security’ initiative—its sweeping powers, its apparent paranoia. They may not feel the same way anymore.

Relying on Tata?

Delhi Whispers learns that Shankar Adawal, RIL’s Group President-Corporate affairs, has planted this report in the “Third Eye” as he was recently summoned to Mumbai and told that the Corporate Affairs function is being transferred from him & V Balasubramanian to Nira Radia & Pradip Baijal of Neosys.

Baijal was seen lunching last week with Guglani (DDG- Legal BSNL). Who's agenda was he following? Tata's or RIL's? Both the companies are pitched against Anil Ambani's RCOM, which explains the perfect Nira Radia fit.
It may be recalled that Baijal as chairman TRAI had got mired in controversy because of several favours he had shown to both TATA's & Reliance at that time emails which later proved to be not genuine, were circulated on how Baijal had been "accommodated" by friendly Reliance hatchet man to help the company.

Economic Times 18.11.2008

YOU can’t get a stranger alliance than this. Third Eye had, sometime ago, alluded how a public relations agency, floated by the Tata Group some years ago, had launched a new consulting firm that would also manage PR for Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). At first, this seemed improbable because it was difficult to fathom how two traditional rivals could conceivably have the same PR outfit. But that has not only turned out to be true, they seemed to have gone one step further. Third Eye has learnt that the new consulting firm, Neucom, will also manage part of RIL’s government relations in Delhi. This is even more surprising because RIL has a 250-member Delhi office, which among other things, is focused on government relations. It is a bit of a puzzle that a firm floated by the Tatas should be doing government relations for Reliance. Is there a catch somewhere in this? All of us would await with great curiosity for some illumination on that score. Won’t we?

So here’s the big news ousted Congress leader Yogendra Makwana was alluding to: he’s formed the National Bahujan Congress Party. Makwana says the party will contest the upcoming Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh. No word yet on who else will defect to Makwana’s ranks. Makwana’s allegations against the Congress range from selling of tickets and neglect of Dalits to self-promotion by a coterie surrounding Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. Yup, it’s the same old story all over again. And it cuts across party lines. Now, two sitting BJP MLAs in Rajasthan have protested against the alleged sale of tickets for two constituencies in the state. They’ve left the party and are threatening to run as independents against their former party. Once again, just like the Congress kissa, this is more about self-interest than taking a moral stand. Both men didn’t get the tickets they wanted, thus the tantrum. Guess when you’re on the other side of the fence, ‘business as usual’ is suddenly recognized for what it is—sycophancy.

The shake-up in Reliance Industries’ corporate communications team continues. As we wrote a few days ago, the dismantling of Shankar Adwal’s fiefdom is on full swing. Just yesterday, 40 people from the team were reportedly sacked. And where was the man himself? Apparently celebrating the birthday of another team member Shiv Kumar, who handles the powerful Bihar bureaucracy, at a nearby five-star destination. A case of Nero fiddling while Rome was burning, perhaps?

First Margaret Alva, next Yogendra Makwana…senior Congress functionaries seem to be falling like nine-pins in the capital. All because they alleged that party tickets were sold in the Karnataka assembly elections—a charge that Rahul Gandhi has denied, assuring media that he was happy with ticket distribution. But before we all turn self-righteous and rush to Ms Alva’s defence, let’s not forget one thing. Rather than a crusade against patronage, her complaint was actually motivated by the fact that her son had not been given a party ticket in India while other politicians’ bachcha-log' in states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan had no problems on that score. Now, Makwana has called a press conference with other (as yet unnamed) Congress leaders from other states where he has promised to make “an important announcement”. We’ll keep you posted.

Our favourite city may well have landed itself in a soup with the Commonwealth Games Federation. The chairman of the coordinating committee recently told media that unless the work on the Games village is completed in time, Delhi may jeopardise its chances of hosting the Games. The delay is because the site, next to the Akshardham Complex, is stuck in a legal mire following a PIL that claims that it will deplete groundwater (the venue lies on the Yamuna riverbed). Is this a typical case of the city trying to bite off more than it can chew or will the legal wrangle be resolved quickly? IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi says he is optimistic that all will be well. We'll wait and watch.

Behuria to be next TRAI Chairman?

Even though the term of the TRAI chairman Nripendra Misra ends only in March 2009, the Government is keen to announce and appoint his successor in January 2009 itself so that should the UPA not return to power in April, it would have its own man in place. A meeting was held last week under the stewardship of the Cabinet Secretary to discuss possible successors. Front runner is Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behuria who incidentally is himself a crucial member of the selection committee. Always easy to recuse yourself from a situation where the committee is fixed to take decision in your favour. Raja has given his blessings as have the powers that be in geo stationary and code division mobile orbits

Bhardwaj meets Mukesh in Mumbai on eve of critical court hearing.

Mumbai’s legal and corporate circles were abuzz with rumours that our wily Law Minister Hans Raj Bhardwaj had a secret meeting with RIL supremeo Mukesh in Mumbai on November 11, two days before the Mumbai High Court resumes its hearing on the no holds barred gas wrangles between the brothers Ambani. Was it to reach an understanding on how to tackle Ram Jethmalani who is set to grill both the Government and the company in cross examination in the next two days? Given that the congress is in election mode and Assembly elections in Delhi, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh are only a few weeks away the covert meeting between Bhardwaj and Mukesh is bound to raise judicial eyebrows

Watching Planes take off new hobby of IB

The IB has developed a new hobby in Delhi. It is watching private jets take off on election escapades. BJP boss Advani has been constantly using the Essar Plane of the Ruias and Rahul Gandhi often uses a Tata group jet. Poor Ambanis. No one want to touch their planes.

What is happening in great Reliance Empire?

The Prime Minister invited both the Ambani brothers to come for the Industrialists’ meet on Monday, the elder one came and the younger one stayed away.

Mukesh Ambani’s old warhorse Balu (V. Balasubramanium) was seen prominently accompanying his chief in the pictures published in a few papers. Whatever happened to Shankar Adwal? According to a spade of rumors disseminated last week, Shankar’s team is being dismantled, cars & expenses withdrawn and he was being confined to do corporate work in Punjab & Haryana.

Delhi whispers learns that Mukesh Ambani has posted Adwal’s old bete noir Samir Saran at the Observer Research Foundation as a fellow and given him the portfolio of media and government relations working with Nira Radia & associates.
Samir Saran, it may be recalled had caught the attention of the Intelligence Bureau sometime ago, when they tapped the phones of some Supreme Court fixers, who were suspected to be laundering money for the Muslim underworld .

The subsidiary Intelligence Bureau had twice interrogated Samir Saran in this connection.

A full scale war has erupted between Saran and Adawal and Mukesh Ambani has apparently decided to back Saran. Meanwhile a huge fancy office, costing several crores, has been setup in Gopal Dass Bhawan for Najeeb Jung, the foreign returned lobbyist for the group. He is supposed to supervise Nira Radia’s day to day activities.

It’s O-fficial. Obama has routed John McCain to become the first black president of the US. And the capital seems to be reacting with its heart. Despite the misgivings of many foreign policy experts about an Obama presidency for India (restrictions on outsourcing, harsher trade barriers, diminishing imports and less than whole-hearted support for the N deal), New Delhi is reflecting the Indian—and global—sentiment by showing its delight at America’s choice of president. From housewives to students, journalists and shopkeepers, everyone’s happy, lauding Obama’s dynamism, pragmatism and ability to shatter the glass ceiling. Guess the Happy Diwali message he sent Indians last week didn’t hurt either.