Letter from Delhi: 'Social worker' Ram Naik named in scam

Power does strange things to people. The case in point is Petroleum Minister Ram Naik. Till he joined the Vajpayee government some five years ago, the popular Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Mumbai North was widely known for his honesty and commitment to his constituents. But five years later Naik's five-decade-long record of service to the people is in clear danger of being blemished.

For, at the heart of the raging controversy revolving around the alleged complaint of the Central Vigilance Commission, P. Shankar, to the Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, figures the name of Naik. Since he has the administrative control over some of the richest public sector undertakings, Naik had been allegedly milking them for his own ends.

Now Shankar, unlike his predecessor, N. Vittal, does not believe in either grandstanding or carving a niche for himself. Known for his correct ways and his rectitude, Shankar did not breathe a word over his meeting with Vajpayee. Cabinet Secretary Kamal Pandey is cut from the same bureaucratic cloth.

The leak in all likelihood took place when Vajpayee consulted his senior ministerial colleagues. Soon ruling party circles were abuzz with the rumour that the CEC had named at least six ministers for misusing the PSUs under their control. And it was in all the newspapers.

The annual budgetary exercise is on in North Block. The only difference is that the people expected to be a part of it have nary a role to play. For, the heads of departments in the Finance Ministry that Jaswant Singh has appointed are more or less innocent of all things finance. The upshot of this lack of expertise - in Finance Secretary D. C. Gupta, who also doubles as the Expenditure Secretary in the continued absence of the regular appointee, and Revenue Secretary Vineeta Rai and Banking Secretary N. S. Sisodia - is that outside experts are having a field day.

The buzz in the Finance Ministry circles is that the budget is being prepared by a team of experts led by RBI Governor Y. B. Reddy, his predecessor Bimal Jalan, who is now a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, Adviser to the Finance Minister, Vijay Kelkar, and the superannuated bureaucrat for all seasons, Naresh Chandra. This quartet is able to direct the budgetary exercise given Singh's own predisposition – his natural inclination lay in shaping the nation's foreign or defence policies rather than determine its economic thrust and direction.

Gupta and the others do not care so long as they are able to retain their jobs.

Fortune may soon smile on the BJP's octogenarian leader, the redoubtable Jagdish Prasad Mathur. One of the five founding members of the Jana Sangh – Prime Minister Vajpayee was one of them and Advani wasn't since he was still serving the RSS in Rajasthan when its political wing was formed back in early 50s – Mathur has been a life-long bachelor who has devoted all his time to the cause of the Sangh parivar. As the Jana Sangh General Secretary, he had not exactly endeared himself to the currently dominant BJP leadership in the government. But he is a darling of the media for his calculated leaks.

Mathur's brusque manner resulted in his being denied a gubernatorial assignment. The other four RSS-BJP leaders who had shared the 'bachelor quarters' on Ashok Road with him were different - Kailshpati Mishra is now the governor of Bihar; Vishnukant Shashtri of Uttar Pradesh; Jana Krishnamurthy to the Rajya Sabha and as the BJP chief; Sundar Singh Bhandari served a full five-year term as the governor of Bihar and Gujarat till his retirement last year.

Now, it seems there is a move to do 'justice' to Mathur who is being considered for Lt. Governor of Pondicherry after the previous incumbent K.R. Malkani, died a few days ago. The Governor of Rajasthan, N.C. Jain, too died of a massive heart attack. Mathur could bag either of these plum assignments.

Make it Dollar Mehndi, please

No, there is no truth in reports that after the alleged immigration racket involving Daler Mehndi and his travel agent brother, the well-known Punjabi pop singer has affected a minor change in his name, that is, from Daler to 'Dollar' Mehndi.