Patnaik's 'anti- NCTC forum' unites opp

Worried Congress to discuss Mamata’s objections

GN Bureau | February 17, 2012



The Congress Core Committee is meeting today to discuss ally Mamata Banerjee’s objections to the National Counter Terrorism Centre. P Chidambaram’s ambitious project, to be launched from March 1, has run into rough weather with several chief ministers from opposition parties objecting to it.

Also see:

Mamata opposes NCTC, asks PM to withdraw order

Naveen Patnaik and J Jayalalitha too have said the NCTC’s powers go against the federal principles. The Congress does not want the opposition joining hands on this issue. Patnaik has been in touch with Jayalalitha, Banerjee, Sharad Pawar and N Chandrababu Naidu, for the past three days to create a forum against NCTC. Narendra Modi’s office is also in touch with Patnaik’s office to get a copy of his letter to the prime minister opposing NCTC.

Patnaik in a lighter vein joked that Chidambaram wants to snatch away the powers of the state and the chief ministers. According to him, whatever initiatives this eminent lawyer-turned-politician has taken up so far, as finance minister as well as home minister, have failed to take off: consider, for example, direct tax code, fringe benefit taxes, and now national counter terrorism centre.

Patnaik also joked that Chidambaram should first try to become chief minister of Tamil Nadu – then he would understand how a CM would look at the matter.

Meanwhile, Chidambaram is expected to meet the media on Saturday and respond to the states’ criticisms.
 

Comments

 

Other News

Borrowing troubles: How small loans are quietly trapping youth

A silent crisis is playing out in the pocket of young India, not in stock markets or government treasuries, but in smartphones of college students and first-jobbers who clicked on the Apply Now button without reading the small print.  A decade ago, to take a loan, you had to do some paperwor

A 19th-century pilgrim’s progress

The Travels of a Sadhu in the Himalayas By Jaladhar Sen (Translated by Somdatta Mandal) Speaking Tiger Books, 259 pages, ₹499.00  

India faces critical shortage of skin donors amid rising burn cases

India reports nearly 70 lakh burn injury cases every year, resulting in approximately 1.4 lakh deaths annually. Experts estimate that up to 50% of these lives could be saved with adequate access to skin donations.   A significant concern is that around 70% of burn victims fall wi

Not just politics, let`s discuss policies too

Why public policy matters Most days, India`s loudest debates stop at the ballot box. We can name every major leader and recall every campaign slogan. Still, far fewer of us can explain why a widow`s pension is delayed or how a government school`s budget is actually approved. That

When algorithms decide and children die

The images have not left me, of dead and wounded children being carried in the arms of the medics and relatives to the ambulances and hospitals. On February 28, at the start of Operation Epic Fury, cruise missiles struck the Shajareh Tayyebeh school – officially named a girls’ school, in Minab,

The economics of representation: Why women in power matter

India’s democracy has grown in scale, but not quite in balance. Women today are active participants in elections, influencing outcomes in ways that were not as visible earlier. Yet their presence in legislative institutions continues to lag behind. The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam was meant to addres


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter