Above the Fold: Top stories of the day
1. The Opposition intensified its attack on the government for holding on to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who are both involved in assisting fugitive Indian Premier League founder and alleged money launderer Lalit Modi with getting UK travel documents after his Indian passport was revoked.
2. A key eyewitness in the case where a journalist was burnt alive by the police after exposing the alleged illegalities of an Uttar Pradesh state minister has now turned hostile, saying the journalist immolated himself.
3. In a surprise victory, Bangladesh beat the Indian cricket team by 79 runs in the first of three One Day Internationals the teams are playing.
The Big Story: Advantage Advani (Only for the moment)
It has been a long time since Bharatiya Janata Party patriarch LK Advani has been heard from, at least when it comes to national headlines in major newspapers. That changed briefly on Thursday when Advani made it to the front page of the Indian Express, ahead of the 40th anniversary of India's Emergency, saying the country was as susceptible today as it was then because its politicians still do not have a commitment to democracy. Predictably the Opposition has taken this as an "indictment" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, whose Aam Aadmi Party has been facing the brunt of the BJP's wrath and ability to use institutions and laws as attack dogs, agreed with Advani, saying Delhi is the party's first emergency experiment. The Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Janata Dal (United), parties that have united to fight the BJP in Bihar, also agreed with the statement. The hope is that this will put the government already reeling under the "Lalitgate" allegations on the backfoot.
But Advani has had lots of opportunities to sling mud at Modi, both directly and from the shoulders of others in the party. This, in addition to his age, is what earned him a membership in the party's senior-leaders panel, which barely has any influence on the workings of the government or the BJP. And as far as mud-slinging goes, especially when it comes to Advani vs Modi, this is mild. It is, however, a useful reminder of how far we have come in two years, where at this time in 2013 Advani's comments, if directed at others in his party, might have been taken very differently.
The Big Scroll: Scroll.in on the day's biggest story
Read about how Modi overcame the Advani camp on is path to taking over the party and eventually the country.
To get Scroll's Daily Fix, a compendium of all you need to know for the day (and a little more) on your phone, download our Android app.
Politicking and Policying
1. The Ministry of External Affairs could soon see lateral-entry employees, with the ministry working on a proposal to allow experts from other sectors make their way into the service, a long-standing demand.
2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been shy about meeting and praising people from the Muslim community of late, coinciding with the advent of the Islamic month of Ramzan and also ahead of the elections in Bihar.
3. The Central Board of Secondary Education has told the Supreme Court that it is simply impossible to attempt to hold a fresh medical exam within four weeks, after the first one was cancelled because of the involvement of high-tech cheating teams.
Punditry
1. Nestle took more than a month to communicate directly with its employees about the Maggi crisis, and that too only by e-mail, writes Shyamal Majumdar in the Business Standard, saying companies often forget that Human Resources can also have a role in mitigating a crisis.
2. A leader in the Hindu praises the government for raising the number of days available under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, saying it will alleviate distress.
3. The government's ceasefire with Naga rebel groups only applied to Nagaland, ignoring the majority Naga communities in three other surrounding states, writes Sudeep Chakravarti in Mint.
Don't Miss
Dhirendra Jha asks if the government is trying to fill a government-run rural youth programme with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh youth members.
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1. The Opposition intensified its attack on the government for holding on to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who are both involved in assisting fugitive Indian Premier League founder and alleged money launderer Lalit Modi with getting UK travel documents after his Indian passport was revoked.
2. A key eyewitness in the case where a journalist was burnt alive by the police after exposing the alleged illegalities of an Uttar Pradesh state minister has now turned hostile, saying the journalist immolated himself.
3. In a surprise victory, Bangladesh beat the Indian cricket team by 79 runs in the first of three One Day Internationals the teams are playing.
The Big Story: Advantage Advani (Only for the moment)
It has been a long time since Bharatiya Janata Party patriarch LK Advani has been heard from, at least when it comes to national headlines in major newspapers. That changed briefly on Thursday when Advani made it to the front page of the Indian Express, ahead of the 40th anniversary of India's Emergency, saying the country was as susceptible today as it was then because its politicians still do not have a commitment to democracy. Predictably the Opposition has taken this as an "indictment" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, whose Aam Aadmi Party has been facing the brunt of the BJP's wrath and ability to use institutions and laws as attack dogs, agreed with Advani, saying Delhi is the party's first emergency experiment. The Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Janata Dal (United), parties that have united to fight the BJP in Bihar, also agreed with the statement. The hope is that this will put the government already reeling under the "Lalitgate" allegations on the backfoot.
But Advani has had lots of opportunities to sling mud at Modi, both directly and from the shoulders of others in the party. This, in addition to his age, is what earned him a membership in the party's senior-leaders panel, which barely has any influence on the workings of the government or the BJP. And as far as mud-slinging goes, especially when it comes to Advani vs Modi, this is mild. It is, however, a useful reminder of how far we have come in two years, where at this time in 2013 Advani's comments, if directed at others in his party, might have been taken very differently.
The Big Scroll: Scroll.in on the day's biggest story
Read about how Modi overcame the Advani camp on is path to taking over the party and eventually the country.
To get Scroll's Daily Fix, a compendium of all you need to know for the day (and a little more) on your phone, download our Android app.
Politicking and Policying
1. The Ministry of External Affairs could soon see lateral-entry employees, with the ministry working on a proposal to allow experts from other sectors make their way into the service, a long-standing demand.
2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not been shy about meeting and praising people from the Muslim community of late, coinciding with the advent of the Islamic month of Ramzan and also ahead of the elections in Bihar.
3. The Central Board of Secondary Education has told the Supreme Court that it is simply impossible to attempt to hold a fresh medical exam within four weeks, after the first one was cancelled because of the involvement of high-tech cheating teams.
Punditry
1. Nestle took more than a month to communicate directly with its employees about the Maggi crisis, and that too only by e-mail, writes Shyamal Majumdar in the Business Standard, saying companies often forget that Human Resources can also have a role in mitigating a crisis.
2. A leader in the Hindu praises the government for raising the number of days available under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, saying it will alleviate distress.
3. The government's ceasefire with Naga rebel groups only applied to Nagaland, ignoring the majority Naga communities in three other surrounding states, writes Sudeep Chakravarti in Mint.
Don't Miss
Dhirendra Jha asks if the government is trying to fill a government-run rural youth programme with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh youth members.
For the last few months, the Modi government has been trying to reorient the Yuva Kendra Sanghathan, so that it could take up the new job without any obstruction. In March, the government appointed three RSS leaders – Vishnu Dutt Sharma, Dilip Saikia and Shekhar Rao Perala – as its vice-chairmen. Soon after his appointment, Sharma declared, “The youth sees a hope in Modi. The focus of over 4,000 Yuva Kendras will be to take his schemes forward and create a cadre of disciplines youth passionate about the country.”
