Navy Seal Commandoes, who carried out the operation against Osama, have a tale of their own. Their number is a mere 2,500-3,000 in the entire US army. To be a Seal, their age shouldn’t be more than 29. Records reveal that none of their missions has ever been a failure. The most interesting part is that any commander who is a part of this unit neither has a name, nor a face. Thus, no one can claim that he was present for so and so operation. The entire transmission system is in the helmets that they wear, which is normally controlled by the helicopter flying overhead. It is probably time to stop singing the same old song about Dawood and Sayeed, and organize a wing just like the Seals.

Getting out of thinktank meetings, and to maintain a balance with time and changing times, the Sangh’s leaders are worried. Their biggest worry is why the Sangh is no longer meaningful and relevant for the new generation. Seeing the way Anna Hazare got the support of the young India against corruption, the Sangh has asked its organizations to have all people and other organizations associated with the Sangh parivar to keep pace with Anna’s movement and also try to take on responsibilities in the same. Sangh feels that since South Indian forces were unable to do it, then the likes of Swami Agnivesh and Medha Patekar – who sympathise with the Naxalite cause – may try to own it or those such as Harsh Mander or Aruna Roy may take advantage of the same. All in all, Anna may end up becoming a puppet in the hands of those against the Sangh. In any case, Anna is trying to distance himself from the likes of Govindacharya and Baba Ramdev, who nurture Hindutva feelings. Anna has also announced that he has nothing to do with Baba Ramdev’s proposed fast. This makes it clear that Anna has no problems cashing in on the popularity of the likes of Baba Ramdev, but he will not let anyone use him at any cost. Is there any better politician than Anna himself?

Rebel poet Muktibodh says, “Jo hai us sey behtar chahiye, duniya ko saaf karney ke liye mehtar chahiye”. We, too, don’t think words are marketable, and think thoughts are efficient weapons. For more than a decade, Mirch Masala has, taken it upon itself to explore political sounds, to text it and then to convey the meaning of the same. It is a gossip column only in name, but we can guage the breaking of news. Only last week, through “Of CD and ED” did we give an example of the same. Exactly two days later on Tuesday, Economic Times made a bigger news of it and printed it on page one. By Friday, through this news, the Supreme Court gave the notice to the head of Sahara Shri and channel head Upendra Rai.

What a party the Congress is. Despite being shaken by political storms, its aggression towards the Opposition never ceases. Recently during an important meeting, a Congress leader confronted a prominent leader of the BJP. When the BJP leader asked the Congress person to look at themselves in the mirror, some youth Congressmen retorted back with a challenge saying, “We can also show you your pictures in the mirror, some with the dhoti and some without. Which ones would you like to see?”

Shiv Sena’s head Bal Thakrey, who is good at reading the signs in the political world has started to woo Kalmadi. As it is Kalmadi and Sharad Pawar don’t get along at all, and the Congress too kept pushing the Kalmadi case to please Pawar. But now that Kalmadi has been suspended from the Congress, Shiv Sena’s hopes are up that they will be able to rope him in for the Pune constituency.

“… Waqt hota hai bewafa yaaron/ aadmi bewafa nahi hota/ wo bhi manzil ki baat kartein hain/ jinko apna pata nahi hota.” Did Suresh Kalmadi ever imagine that he would fall upon such times and someone would throw shoes at him? On the day of the arrest when SBI officials took him to a small room for interrogation, there were just three chairs and a small stool. As he sat on the stool, Kalmadi said he wanted to speak to Sonia Gandhi… The SP present there gave him such a scolding that Kalmadi broke into cold sweat. The first round of questioning was over, and the three men sitting on the chair left. Poor Kalmadi sat on the stool waiting for them to return. But the officials didn’t return and all that he could hear was the sounds of his troubles approaching. The circumstances say that for now getting a bail may not be easy.

Delhi BJP is a little worked up with its party president’s big mouth. The silly saffron party doesn’t realize that it is through his oratory that Bijendra Gupta has reached the Delhi politics from neighbourhood politics. Since the poor man has lost the Majnu ka teela elections, no political person is ready to come close to him. It is worth seeing him and his wife Shobha Vijendra in the Delhi BJP party. Those against him in the party say that nowadays, more than the party, Gupta is concentrating on his wife’s NGO Sampoorna. A few days ago, National Mahila Morcha President Smriti Irani met Nitin Gadkari and complained a lot about Gupta saying that the person has become the party in Delhi and that she is being constantly ignored here. Smriti considers it an affront to her and openly believes that Delhi BJP is working on the orders of Shobha Vijendra. Wonder what the party president must have said to pacify her.

“Kya tej jagmagati thi quatil ke haath mein/ ab uski aasteen mein to khanjar bhi na raha…” Women’s blush and red lipsticks remind him of the terrorism in J&K. When he became the information and broadcasting minister in the NDA government in 1988, he gave his house in Allahabad to his own ministry’s “Song and drama division” at the quoted price. When he became the party spokesperson, he was caught consuming alcohol in the party headquarters on 11, Ashok Road. On Advani’s insistence, he was removed from the post, he lost the Lok Sabha elections from Rampur dismally, and currently he calls himself the party’s spokesperson, but isn’t. But if journalists covering the BJP beat are to be believed, there is no one better than him when it comes to “off the record” quips, and is also called the party’s “Off the record twitter”. This Friday, party President Nitin Gadkari ran him down, but doesn’t look like Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is going to mend his ways anytime soon. What to do: “Wo bhi manzilon ki baatein kartey hain, jinka apna pata nahi hota.”

Why is the Congress showing so much aggression against Anna Hazare and party? It is clear from Sonia’s letter to Anna dated April 13 in which she clearly writes in the second para that through Aruna Roy as the council member, the National Advisory Council was always working on the Lokpal Bill’s transparency, answerability and governance from the beginning. And the team of Roy and Harsh Munder met with the Bhushan father and son, Arvind Kejriwal and Santosh Hegde regarding the matter. The Congress feels that Anna and his people are trying to own the idea from the NAC and sat at Jantar Mantar in agitation.

Fairly unknown in the north Indian states, when Nitin Gadkari took over the reins of the BJP, there were doubts about his leadership and little expectations. But Gadkari’s proactive working style makes one feel that it will make his critics keep shut. Contrary to his predecessor Rajnath Singh, who was known for his inability to take decisions, Gadkari has a habit of taking them in haste. Compared to his other predecessors, he is always on the move. He likes to travel and Sangh Parivar seems to like it. But his plans and speeches about the party are long, but he is busy trying to build his image into someone who gives results. He is also worried about his excess flab, and instead of grains and carbs, is concentrating more on dal and vegetables. His aim is to reduce 15 kg in the next three months. Not that it will make any difference to his political weight he flourishes.