Set own house in order first: Rumblings in Congress over caste survey issue
The demand for making the SEBC survey conducted by the Odisha government public has intensified with the state Congress raking it up again. Though the seriousness behind such a demand by the state Congress is not in evidence as the party has not followed it up, sources said that it has been forced to toe the line adopted by its national leadership. But one thing has forced the state leadership to play down the issue as the representation of the OBCs in the top posts of the state party is less than their percentage in the population. The OPCC president, campaign committee chairman, manifesto committee chairman and legislative party leader are all held by upper caste leaders.
Sources said that a senior OBC leader of the party has raised the very issue with the national leadership. He is reported to have written a letter to the national president demanding that Congress should first appoint OBC leaders to top positions before raising the issue here. Otherwise, the caste census pitch would have no effect in a state like Odisha, he has said.
Selfie war to intensify on campuses as BJD, BJP, Congress firm up their arsenal
As the politics over setting up selfie points in college and university campuses reached a crescendo, the state Congress has decided to frustrate the photo-ops of the BJP and BJD by holding agitation across the state from December 20. Close on the heels of the University Grants Commission (UGC) directing universities across the country to set up selfie points on their campus with the picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the backdrop, the state government swiftly issued similar instruction to colleges and universities to create such points with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s photograph in the background.
Alleging the move to politicising the campuses, the Congress has decided to launch a month-long agitation from December 20 to January 20 in colleges and universities. The National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), the students’ wing of the Congress, has decided to put up posters of Mahatma Gandhi and Gopabandhu Das in place of Modi and Patnaik. The campus politics which has almost disappeared after a virtual ban imposed by the state government since 2018 on student union elections, is likely to hot up over the ‘selfie war’.
Govt’s 'data being collected' refrain in Assembly has raised hackles of legislators
Question hour has a special significance in Assembly proceedings as MLAs across party lines seek reply from ministers and hold them accountable for the functioning of their departments. The information and data laid in the House are deemed to be factually correct. But incomplete information or replies like ‘data are being collected’ in response to several questions have now become the order of the day. Take the example of the recently concluded winter session when several questions remained unanswered and the written reply in many was a single sentence - ‘Tathya Sangraha Karajauchhi’ (data is being collected).
The way the ministers and their respective departments are treating some important questions on vital issues has not only left the legislators irked, it has also set a bad precedent. As per the rules of procedure and conduct of business in the Odisha Legislative Assembly, not less than 14 days' notice is given for a question to be replied in the House. “If the duration is not sufficient, the rules can be changed accordingly. But the ministers should not skip questions by saying information or data are being collected. Questions to power are vital to a functioning democracy. It should not be taken so lightly,” said a member.
(Bijay Chaki, Bijoy Pradhan, Hemant Kumar Rout)