Off the record: March 1, 2021

New party

Once a blue-eyed boy of Rahul Gandhi, former Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar, who quit the party ahead of the 2019 state assembly elections, has launched his own outfit. Tanwar, a former Lok Sabha member from Sirsa, launched the Apna Bharat Morcha and has been touring the state and targeting arch-rival former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Hooda is among the G-23 leaders who had written a letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi demanding a more active leadership for the party. Tanwar had dubbed G-23 as Gaddar-23. Tanwar hopes that being active in the state could pave the way for return to the Congress later when Rahul assumes the mantle of party chief.

Sagar Kulkarni, New Delhi

Brighter prospects?

Diving in the sea with fishermen off the Kerala coast and rustling up mushroom biryani in Tamil Nadu, Rahul Gandhi has focused his energies on the southern states where Congress stands a chance to put up a better performance. While Rahul continues to tour in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, his younger sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will be visiting Assam for campaigning. Priyanka has been touring extensively in Uttar Pradesh, seeking to project Congress as the key challenger to the BJP. A victory in Tamil Nadu and a surprise performance in Kerala could brighten the prospects of Rahul’s return as Congress President in June.

Sagar Kulkarni, New Delhi

Change in location

When J Jayalalithaa was alive, she used to seal alliances by receiving leaders from various political parties at her palatial bungalow in upscale Poes Garden in Chennai. After her demise, everyone thought the AIADMK would sign alliance agreements at the party headquarters. But, the current leadership has been sealing alliances at a five-star hotel. The luxurious property was where AIADMK’s alliance for Lok Sabha polls were signed. The venue has not undergone any change for the assembly polls. On Saturday, AIADMK and PMK signed the poll pact at the same star hotel. The same will be done for pacts with other parties too. Buzz is are these parties not willing to come to AIADMK HQ or the AIADMK leadership does not want them to invite to its office?

E T B Sivapriyan, Chennai

Eventful day

On February 28, the Congress and its allies, including the Left, held a joint rally at the Brigade Ground, sounding the bugle for the electoral fight in West Bengal. One of the major faces to miss the rally was former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, thanks to his party’s Kerala unit which is uneasy about his presence along with the Left in Bengal. In Kerala, Congress hopes of a comeback by fighting the Left. Now, all eyes are moving to Brigade Ground once again on March 7, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to hold a rally. The political grapevine is that more Trinamool Congress MPs and MLAs may leave the party. A senior Congress leader summed up: that is the last day for the BJP to bring out whatever artillery they have in store and after that, it will be too late to be a factor. However, he adds, he is not going to believe or disbelieve the rumours but will wait.

Shemin Joy, New Delhi

Mumbai zoo gets social!

Opened during the British Raj, the Mumbai Zoo is one of the oldest zoos in India. However, in terms of size, it may not be the biggest. Veer Mata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo, popularly known as Byculla Zoo or RaniBaug – however, is very popular among Mumbaikars. However, to attract more crowds, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has taken it to social media. Accordingly, ‘The Mumbai Zoo’ has a presence now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar recently inaugurated the social media pages. The social media platforms are live and are posting messages, updates and snippets on a regular basis.

Mrityunjay Bose, Mumbai