There is little point in being repetitive but look at the folly of daily governance! The Delhi Govt. bans skirts in favour of the swadeshi salwar kameez, attracts disbelief and ridicule, and withdraws the order. The reasons given are extremely weak: The measure was designed to protect girls from mosquito bites. Will dhotis and knickers be banned next to cope with the mosquito menace? What will A.B. Vajpayee, M.M. Joshi and L.K. Advani wear? What will the RSS wear to their morning drills?

There is a great deal of political confusion and the BJP seems to be suffering from deploying a two-fold policy. The Hindutva line, clearly, is an extreme view, not shared by their allies. It is also clear that the BJP is in no position to win a stable majority on its own steam. The decision is not an easy one but all the dual talk results inconstant confusion and continuous suspicion both within India and abroad. The Opposition may make a bigger mess in the current situation but they will get their act together were the BJP to show adverse results in the impending polls in Rajasthan, Delhi and MP. My current prediction is that Rajasthan and Delhi will vote for the Congress and MP results will be in favor of the BJP. If this happens, it will favour the Congress and Ms. Sonia Gandhi. The BJP is on the defensive. it blames previous governments for the deterioration in law and order and for the runaway inflation and massive hike in prices. The impression, however, is that this Government will not last. As the BJP's image suffers, the negatives of the Opposition will be forgotten. It is clearly time for both the BJP and the Congress to face reality. The BJP, if it pursues the Hindutva plank, continues with the "Maharashtra migrations", and starts banning skirts and  enforcing "morality", will shrink from 176 seats to below150. The Congress, if it firms up UP and Bihar with the help of the Yadavs, will cross 200 seats comfortably alongwith its allies. it will then form Government with the Left. Things are extremely fluid. The BJP has not yet been defeated and the Congress is far from victory.

The Jain Commission report and the ATR have been tabled. Sadly, politicking continues as the BJP seeks to defuse the "J Bomb". It is obvious that Ms Jayalalitha and the Congress have not agreed to agree with each other. The BJP's honeymoon with the DMK seems to be over; the party has, perhaps, decided to go along with the "J factor". Subramaniam Swamy is being sacrificed but he is not likely to disappear without a fight.  Chandraswami will also once again display his extraordinary manoeuvring skills. Like the past seven  years, the follow-up will have little to do with Rajiv Gandhi's assassination but everything to do with the current power game. The sad reality is that a tragedy is being converted into a farce as political scores and past vendettas are being played out.