The recent exposure of Lokesh to some of the meetings attended and addressed by Chandrababu Naidu in the US is just the beginning. According to TD sources, Lokesh is showing much interest in politics, but Chandrababu Naidu has asked him to stay away for the time being. The idea is to train Lokesh as a successful business magnate become formally launching him into the politics. However, Lokesh has been taking a lesson or two from Chandrababu Naidu from time to time. It's just a matter of time before Lokesh takes a plunge into politics. Chandrababu Naidu has time and again made it clear that the career decision is left to Lokesh. It means indirectly that Lokesh may join politics, if he wishes to. And Lokesh is said to be interested in politics.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Buzz: Lokesh getting lessons in politics?
ACB becomes active, thanks to Samal dhamal
In the last one week, the ACB sleuths conducted surprise raids on several officials and caught them redhanded. Perhaps, they might have that that the government would turn its ire on the ACB for turning a Nelson's eye on the corrupt officials that prompted Samal to expose several bureaucrats. So, they stepped up their activity all of a sudden and trapped the corrupt officials, so that the government would give an impression that it is not shielding the corrupt.
This sudden action of the ACB has also created a scare among the middlemen. For instance, the brokers at the RTA department, who collect huge amounts from the people for obtaining driving licences and vehicle registrations, disappeared from the scene the moment the ACB started its operations. The Samal effect might have created an embarrassment to the YSR government, but it has also provided the much-needed relief to the consumers!
Babu once again longs for Third Front
Already out of power for three years, Chandrababu Naidu has become quite restless and is itching for power. The recent events in the TD and his statements on developments in the State clearly show that Chandrababu Naidu cannot sustain himself without the backing of power. He wants to come to power by hook or by crook, those close to him admit in private.
Jayalalitaa has differed with the third front moves through her recent actions, decisions and statements. Yet Chandrababu Naidu is rushing to Delhi on September 25 to hold discussions with like-minded parties. Chandrababu Naidu has lost his key role in national politics and he wants to come on the centrestage throught the Third Front moves. This explains the longing of Chandrababu Naidu for the Third Front at the national level and a strong TD at the AP level.
Ganguly: India favourite in Twenty20 semi-final
Praising the captaincy of M.S. Dhoni, Ganguly after a strenuous practice session said: "Australia and India are both quality teams. But India has an advantage as they have won all three matches in Durban. Though it was a bowl out against Pakistan, but a win is a win. They have the advantage."
"I think toss will be crucial. At Durban anybody should bat after winning toss, especially if it is day-night match."
Asked to comment on India's performance, he said, "Obviously, India is playing well. England and South Africa are two good teams and additionally both were pressure games. Dhoni and the team have done really well."
"But a semi-final is a different game. It is a small game in which three-four overs can make a big difference. Australia without their regular captain (Ricky) Ponting will be weak in batting and India is playing good," he added.
Commenting on Dhoni as skipper, he said, "He is a cool customer. He looked outstanding. He was relaxed in the three-four matches he led the team. He made all the right decisions under pressure, which is important."
Sourav was all praise for Yuvraj Singh, who he thought played good cricketing shots en route his six sixes against England.
"He was brilliant. Six sixes in six balls is unbelievable," he said.
About his not playing in the Twenty20 championships, he said, "This was a personal decision. I am not missing it in that way. Besides, this is almost the same Indian team. Only we three are left out."
Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly had opted out of the Twenty20 World Cup on personal grounds.
Asked about his future position in the team, Ganguly said, "It will be Dhoni's plan. He is captain. My objective will be playing good cricket and helping the youngsters and standing by the skipper."
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Samal sending secret reports to TD?
Samal issue has come in handy for party president N Chandrababu Naidu, who is running short of ideas to run down the Congress government. His Palle Palleku programme hardly had any response from the people. So, it wants to make a ruckus using Samal's so-called sensational report. Day and in day out, the TD leaders issuing statements on Samal episode, as if there is no other issue of public concern. They even went to the extent of submitting a memorandum to Governor N D Tiwari demanding a special Assembly session to discuss the Samal report.
According to TD sources, Samal has been in close touch with Chandrababu Naidu for quite some time. He reportedly forwarded several secret and classified documents pertaining to the corruption allegations against many bureaucrats and political leaders to the Telugu Desam. In return, the TD reportedly promised him with a plum post, if it comes to power. The TD wants to sling mud at Rajasekhara Reddy government during the Assembly session using these reports, sources said.
BJP desperate to make Ramasethu a poll issue
For, the BJP was of a fond hope that the Sethusamudram project would go ahead as usual and there would be ample fodder for the party leaders to be in the limelight. BJP senior leader and Rajya Sabha member, M Venkaiah Naidu reportedly told a few close media friends in Nellore the other day that it would have been advantageous BJP, had the project been continued as it was. There would have been every possibility that Ram would become an election plank for the BJP.
But with the UPA government retreating its step, the BJP has become desperate. It is still trying to make it a big political issue. Venkaiah Naidu is of the view that the issue would subside only if the Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh apologised to the people of the
country for the imbroglio related to Ramasethu. He hopes that the issue would snowball into a bigger controversy, now that DMK chief M Karunanidhi's controversial remarks on the existence of Ram and Ramasethu.
So, BJP desperately to get back its life before the next elections. Will that happen?
Fact Sheet: TD leaders play all gimmict: TD leaders play all gimmicks to woo youthks to woo youth
TD president N Chandrababu Naidu himself has set this trend by offering cash incentives to students and paying ex gratia to the victims of bomb blasts, flyover collapse, highway accidents and even the flood affected.
The TD leaders in the districts, who are keen on entering the Assembly and Parliament in the next elections, are following the suit. Take for instance, former MP from Anakapalle and present Telgu Desam MLA from Chodavaram Ganta Srinivasa Rao. He has started spending his personal money by distributing "unemployment fund" among the educated unemployed youth and students and is also paying to the Dwcra members and poor farmers of his constituency. He is spending about Rs 2 lakh-Rs 3 lakh per month on these donations. He says the unemployed youth can make use of this money for applying for jobs, traveling and other expenses. Similarly, the students are being paid scholarships and medals for their excellent performances. Of course, a request at the end of each such donation or scholarship: "please vote for me in the next elections"!!
Twenty20: India beat England by 18 runs
The young seamer was savaged in the 19th over by Yuvraj Singh, who made 58 off 16 balls, as India amassed 218-4.
South Africa's win over New Zealand had already eliminated England and, despite some brave hitting, they were always struggling to keep up with the rate.
The top five all got starts, with Vikram Solanki making 43 and Kevin Pietersen 39, as they ended on 200-6.
But this game will be remembered solely for the dramatic events in the final over of Broad's spell - which leaked 60 runs in four overs - as Yuvraj made the fastest fifty in international history, off 12 balls.
The ball disappeared with tremendous velocity over wide long-on, backward square-leg, extra-cover, backward point and mid-wicket while Broad and skipper Paul Collingwood played the role of startled rabbits.
It ultimately proved the difference between the teams - and yet there was no hint of the carnage to come when the openers cautiously went about garnering 23 in the first four overs.
They stepped on the gas to make more than double that in the next 24 balls as Gautam Gambhir pulled Andrew Flintoff and Virender Sehwag flogged Dimitri Mascarenhas over extra-cover for sixes.
England should have had a breakthrough when Sehwag sliced Collingwood to fine third man on 39, where Mascarenhas over-ran to miss the chance.
The right-hander profited by hammering over backward point for six and thrashing through the covers to reach 50 off 38 balls, while Gambhir got to his fifty off two fewer deliveries by punishing a Chris Tremlett full-toss.
Tremlett, who had come in for some severe punishment in his first appearance had two moments of joy when he knocked back Sehwag's leg-stump and cleaned up Robin Uthappa.
However, any suggestions that the innings might fizzle out were truly shattered by Yuvraj, who left England needing to hit the leather off just about everything from the start.
There was some humour at the end when England began the final over needing 36, and Luke Wright helped them get half of those before being brilliantly caught on the boundary by Harbhajan.
But, ultimately, they had no-one with Yuvraj's midas touch.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Fact Sheet: Yashki's struggle for existence!
Congress MP from Nizamabad Madhu Yashki Goud is virtually struggling to retain his existence in the State politics, as he is fully aware that his days in the Congress are numbered and that he would not get the Congress ticket in the next 2009 general elections.
So, he is trying to build up his own image in Nizamabad district, that might come to his help in seeking the Telangana Rashtra Samithi ticket in the next elections. He is spending most of his time in the district, mobilizing the people, and particularly the student community, in support of Telangana. He is calling upon the teachers and students to participate actively in Telangana separate statehood movement.
Madhu, however, is cautious enough not to distance himself from the Congress for the time being, but to be still loyal to Madam Sonia Gandhi. While lambasting the anti-Telangana forces in the Congress, he is making it a point to display his loyalty to Sonia, saying the Congress president was fully aware of the aspirations of the Telanganites, notwithstanding the negative campaign unleashed by anti-Telangana forces. "I am confident that the pParty would definitely take a positive decision, if the State Congress leaders explain public opinion before high command," he said.
Attempting To Understand Religions and Gods!
Religion is a set of instructions set by some matured souls in body form to move forward to merge in the ocean of Spirituality. Religion is a training platform that moulds the soul to turn capable to merge into the ocean of Spirituality . Religion is a torch that shows path to the ocean of Spirituality. Religion is a lubricant for the soul to get rid of the friction of confusion, doubtfulness, uproar and other similar factors those hamper the smooth journey of the soul towards the ocean of Spirituality.
Religions took their shape in different places by different people under different circumstances.
Since the energy, the soul and the spirituality cannot be visualized by the physical bodies, an imagination was incorporated which was in tune with the physical bodies in assuming the energies in the form of gods and goddesses just only for the matter of concentration and self conviction. One has to realize, while worship, that it is the energy that has to be concentrated but not merely the assumed shape of the energy. The concentration should go beyond the assumed human shapes of energy.
There was a time when the lands we see now stayed united. There was a time when the land was not broken and flown away. There was a time when the waters have not broken the land. That was the time when the groups of humans lived together like we live now in specific nations, states and islands. They had a religion as if we have now. They had the masters to put the humans in religious control as if we have now. Those masters with a noble notion of driving the fellow humans towards the spirituality have formulated and incorporated many ideas in the brains of the people. Noble thoughts can come only when there is peace, good acts can be performed only when there is peace, the journey towards spirituality is possible only when there is peace. And this peace can be possible with love, brotherhood, non-violence and doing the acts through which guilt and disease cannot arise and so on. To bring all these aspects in an easy possible way, the concept of adoration is formulated. Love, brotherhood, peace and other similar aspects are the subsets of adoration. Masters asked their fellow humans to adore everyone, every thing and every element. Many of the fellow humans turned resistant to understand and follow the concept.
Masters understood that the point 'adoration' is abstract and hence it is not understandable for many humans. Consequently, they decided to make it concrete by mixing the abstractism in concrete things. First they started with five elements which are unconquerable by human beings. They said, "Sun is god. He is invincible. He is all energetic. He is the light who is giving lives. He is the light who is guarding lives. He is the light who gets angry when the peace is disturbed on land. He is the light who punishes the humans who cause disturbance to peace, who does violent acts, who pains the fellow humans. He punishes with his hot and dangerous rays."
Listening to this the humans understood that there is someone beyond them who is divine. They started adoring the Sun. They understood the feel of adoration. They felt the fear of being controlled. Masters were happy. Their noble mission took an initial step towards the vision of bending the humans towards spirituality. Eventually, the masters continued to divinize other elements in nature, the water, the fire, the sky and the land. By then, the humans were capable of adoring all elements of nature. But still the violence on fellow humans and animals didn't halt. Masters pondered once again. They understood that the fellow humans are adoring the elements of nature and developing many abstract feelings which are useful for the journey towards spirituality. That was because they could able to see god in those elements. Even then that fear of being controlled by the elements of nature had not become sufficient for humans to keep their fellow humans and animals in peace. That was because they weren't able to see god in them as they were seeing in the elements of nature.
Masters decided to divinize humans and animals. They pondered once again. They have formulated some tales and divinized some characters in them. They divinized many animals by associating them to the divinized characters in the tales. They said in their tales that some animals are the friends, some are vehicles and some are loved ones of some divinized characters who were called gods and goddesses.
To incorporate the receptive nature in fellow humans, masters even divinized knowledge and wisdom in human form. Thus they divinized many aspects; one comes across in his life. They decided to show good and bad in concrete form. They gave form to some tales by showing the good and evil in the characters of the tales. Some happened events in their past, some imagination, some fantasy and some exaggeration conglomerated together and formed as epic tales. There were some master souls and super souls who took birth in human form to make the humans understand the values those drive them towards spirituality. They were the epic heroes or legendary personalities in epics.
As time has flown, the lands are divided with waters and emerged as different continents. Evidently, even the people separated and restricted to respective lands in the time of many successive generations. But the religion they carried from their ancestors was still carried further, but with many amendments and many changes. Even then the major thread of the religion, the tale or the characters shows many similarities when observed carefully. The so called Hindu Religion and Greek Religion which are considered to be the oldest religions, derived from that religion which prevailed in ancient times when the land was united. Greeks' Apollo, the Sun god is Hindus' Surya. Similarly, Romans' Minerva, the goddess of wisdom is Hindus' Saraswathi and so on.
In due course of time as we know the Islam and Christianity took their shape under certain situations. By the time these religions took their birth, the violence on fellow humans was considered to be the central point of disturbing peace and hence the major focus of these two religions was kept on the love and peace on fellow humans.
When one thinks of Jesus Christ the energy that strikes him is the Love. Loving all the people as one loves oneself. When love is all-pervaded the scope for uproar, confusion, doubtfulness and other similar factors almost wane off. Thus the journey towards the ultimate destiny becomes smooth.
When one thinks of Allah the energy that strikes him is the peace. ' Salaam alaikum- Let peace be upon you' is the daily wish of every Muslim. When there is peace the journey of the soul towards the ultimate destiny becomes smooth.
When one thinks of Hindu philosophy the energy that strikes is the Bhakthi, the adoration. When one adores the other and the other adores another there will be no scope for uproar, confusion and doubtfulness and thus the journey towards the ultimate destiny becomes smooth. Many right aspects we come across in life are personified and worshipped in this religion. The personification of all the beings, elements and knowledge is for the matter of identification and concentration. As someone said earlier, if ants have the same cognizance as that of man, they assume the ultimate energy as a magnificent ant. Since we are humans we are assuming the energies in human forms.
Thus the underlined concepts of all the religions are interlinked and carrying the souls to the same destiny, the Spirituality.
Photo Feature: Sania Mirza with Sachin Tendulkar!
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Dhoni to lead in ODIs; Pathan, Harbhajan recalled
Mahendra Singh Dhoni Tuesday replaced Rahul Dravid as captain for the One-day International home series against Australia and Pakistan, while Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh come back to the side.
Dhoni, 26, is currently leading India at the Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa. Dravid, who had opted out of the Twenty20, had made himself unavailable for the captaincy to concentrate on his batting after the recent tour of England.
Announcing a 15-member team for the first three ODIs against Australia at a press conference, cricket board secretary Niranjan Shah said here that Yuvraj Singh, who is senior to Dhoni, would be the vice-captain.
"We thought he was the best man for the job. He is a good (Twenty20) captain and it is the right time to groom him," said Dilip Vengsarkar, chairman of the selection committee.
Referring to speculation that Sachin Tendulkar had declined to lead the ODI team, he said that no one was offered the captaincy before Dhoni was finally picked.
Rohit Sharma, Ajit Agarkar and Munaf Patel, who were part of the team that recently toured England, were dropped for the first three matches.
The three ODIs will be played at Bangalore (Sep 29) Kochi (Oct 2) and Hyderabad (Oct 5).
The team for the remaining four one-dayers will be announced later.
A hard-hitting batsman who can change his game according to the situation, the Ranchi-based Dhoni has played 84 ODIs since making his debut against Bangladesh at Dhaka in 2004 and scored 2,477 runs at 44.23. In 20 Tests, he has scored 1,019 runs at 36.39.
Board president Sharad Pawar, who approved the team, endorsed the choice of Dhoni and the team as a whole.
"Anything that takes the team forward should be welcomed. We also have to see that the young generation is given opportunity and if the captain is also young that's good," he said.
The seven-match One-day International series against Australia will be played from Sep 29 to Oct 17.
The Pakistani team will visit India for five ODIs and three Test matches to be played between Nov 6 and Dec 12.
The captain for the Test series will be named later, said Vengsarkar.
On the recall of left-arm pacer Pathan and off-spinner Harbhajan, both of whom are playing Twenty20 World Championship, he said they have done well to merit a recall.
On Virender Sehwag, who is also playing in South Africa but was again ignored for the ODIs, Vengsarkar said that since the team was only for three matches, "he will get his opportunity" later in the series.
Team: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain/wicket keeper), Yuvraj Singh (vice captain), Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, Robin Uthappa, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Sreesanth, Piyush Chawla, Ramesh Powar, Zaheer Khan and Rudra Pratap Singh.
| Australia in India | |||
| Date | Match | Venue | |
| Tue, Sep 25 | Australia team arrival | ||
| Sat, Sep 29 | First ODI | Bangalore | |
| Tue, Oct 2 | Second ODI | Kochi | |
| Fri, Oct 5 | Third ODI | Hyderabad | |
| Mon, Oct 8 | Fourth ODI | Guwahati | |
| Thu, Oct 11 | Fifth ODI | Baroda | |
| Sun, Oct 14 | Sixth ODI | Nagpur | |
| Wed, Oct 17 | Seventh ODI | Mumbai | |
| Pakistan in India | |||
| Date | Match | Venue | |
| Fri, Nov 2 | Pakistan team arrival | ||
| Tue, Nov 6 | First ODI | Faridabad | |
| Fri, Nov 9 | Second ODI | Mohali | |
| Mon, Nov 12 | Third ODI | Kanpur | |
| Thu, Nov 15 | Fourth ODI | Gwalior | |
| Sun, Nov 18 | Fifth ODI | Jaipur | |
| Thu, Nov 22 - Mon, Nov 26 | First Test | Delhi | |
| Fri, Nov 30 to Tue, Dec 4 | Second Test | Kolkata | |
| Sat, Dec 8 - Wed, Dec 12 | Third Test | Bangalore | |
Gaddar exposes himself before Vijayashanti
Gaddar bared his chest and danced along with Vijayashanti on the dais at Osmania University and promised to be a part of the Telangana United Front and lead the Telangana movement. According to sources, the entire show at Osmania University was sponsored by the Congress leaders themselves with behind the screen support from Chief Minister's advisor K V P Ramachandra Rao. And it is an open secret that Narendra, Vijayashanti and Jayaprakash Reddy have the blessings of Y S Rajasekhar Reddy.
So, one wonders what credibility Narendra and Vijayashanti has in the Telangana front. Narendra is able to avoid inquiry by the CBI into the fake passport scandal only because of the support of Pranab Mukherjee through YSR. And Vijayashanti only makes guest appearances once in a while, on the occasions like Bonalu festival and Telangana liberation day. What would Gaddar get by joining hands with them is anybody's guess. Only thing is that Gaddar himself will lose his credibility.
Of KCR and his communal politics
If one were to read between the lines his unusual silent on Telangana Liberation Day on September 17, one can realize that his prime objective was not to recall the glory of erstwhile independent Hyderabad State, but to gain immediate benefit for the TRS in the forthcoming Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Elections. Hyderabadi Muslims still feel that the end of Nizam rule would mean loss of independence for Muslims and therefore, they do not appreciate the political parties celebrating this Hyderabad liberation day.
And KCR, who is eyeing on GHMC hot seat, does not want to antagonize the Muslims. Therefore, by staying away from Hyderabad Liberation Day celebrations, he wants to woo the Muslim community. He argues that what matters now is not celebrating the past incident, but re-liberating the Telangana from the clutches of Andhra rulers. And he wants the Muslims to take part in regaining their past glory by liberating Telangana. That's KCR and his communal politics!
Idol Manufacturers and Haleem Makers Are Weeping
"Every year we notice 20 percent of growth rate in the sales of Ganesh idols. But this time the sale is tremendously less. We have thousands of idols at us those weren't sold out. The main reason for all this is the recent bomb blast incident in Hyderabad. People haven't shown much interest in many years to celebrate the festival in bigger way. Majority people also took away only smaller size idols this time. Police is also keen in giving permissions for public mandapams and that is another reason for the fewer sales of idols", said an idol maker with dull voice.
Same is being told by a Haleem maker near Charminar. "We are not seeing crowds in big way as we saw in previous years. People are afraid of bomb blasts. We used to enjoy a great customer count with the interest shown by our Hindu brothers towards Haleem. But this time, even Muslims are found in less number when compared to previous years. The macca masjid blasts and lumbini blasts are still frightening many", he said.
Tania Sachdev won the Asian Women's Chess Championship
Isn't she cute?
Monday, September 17, 2007
Spotlight: IITs Started New Political Party
This is the revolution that started from IIT students. They have started a new political party from UP. See what they say:
"Bharat Punarnirman Dal is a political party, founded by a group of IITians and other such individuals and professionals, with the objective of making "Bharathvarsha a prosperous and powerful nation and re-establish it as the world-leader, a position, which the nation rightfully deserves".
The formation of this political organization is the culmination of the efforts taken by a group of individuals from different parts of the country and from different walks of life towards realizing a long nurtured vision of making Bharat a prosperous and powerful Nation.
After years of study and hands-on experience at the grassroots level it became clear to the group that without reforming the political system any attempt to reform the society or the governance will be futile. Soon it became clear that the problem is not the lack of resources but it is inefficient management of the resources. In other words in order to get a lasting and widespread solution instead of trying to solve the problems and issues themselves it is better to improve the problem solving mechanism. This problem solving mechanism or the System that governs the country is already there and has sufficient reach and resources but because of inefficiencies at every level of this system it has become ineffective.
Bharat Punarnirman Dal was founded with a belief that qualitative improvement at the topmost level will be reflected throughout the structure that lies beneath them. Thus this political organization is an attempt to fundamentally reform the political system, which produces the top level managers – the politicians, by introducing quality and dynamism at the political level so as the country is run by politicians by choice not by chance or by birth".
Buzz: No more vigilance commissioners?
Behind The Scene: Naidu instigated Samal?
Former Chief Minister and Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu could be the brain behind former Vigilance Commissioner R C Samal's sensational allegations against the corrupt bureaucrats, police officials and politicians.
This was the suspicion expressed by none other than Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhar Reddy. After remaining tightlipped over Samal's allegations for more than two days, YSR appeared before the media and refuted the allegations. He suspected that Naidu must have instigated Samal to make such wild allegations against the Chief Minister's Office and certain ministers only to defame the government. "Earlier, Naidu provoked Christian Evangelist K A Paul to make all sorts of baseless against me and my government. Now, he must have used Samal to fire at us again," he expressed doubt.
There is every truth in YSR's observations, since Naidu is capable of doing such gimmicks. That Samal tried to defame the YSR government by saying that it had withdrawn all the cases against several IAS officers, who were found guilty by the previous TD regime, itself shows that Samal had an understanding with Naidu. Samal needs an explanation for this.
Fact Sheet: Naidu's double talk on corruption
Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu, who is crying from roof tops about the high-level corruption in Y S Rajasekhar Reddy government, did not take any action against the corrupt officials pointed out by the Vigilance Commission and ACB during his nine-year Telugu Desam regime.
The Chief Minister pointed out that the previous Telugu Desam government had taken action against only four All India Service Officers in nine years, while the Congress government took action against 13 officers in three years including three officers who have been compulsorily retired. "No raids were conducted against them during TD rule where as we have raided homes and offices of 5 AIS offices including Vizag rural SP and IPS official Murali for the first time," he said.
He alleged that the Chief Minister's Office during the Telugu Desam regime had suppressed ACB reports. The Naidu government had blackmailed officers and extracted work from them. On the other hand, the present Congress government is taking action against 128 officers, including IAS, IPS and IFS officers, out of 800-900 All India Service Officers, against whom the Vigilance Commission had recommended action.