Mumbai: When Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar met Shiv Sena boss Bal Thackeray on Dec 23, whatever unity claims the ruling partners in Maharashtra, the Congress and NCP, may have been making this year, stood exposed.
The meeting made the political weather as unpredictable as it was during this year`s Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections, in which the Sena-BJP combine retained power. The Congress didn`t have a tie-up with the NCP in the civic body polls.
The Pawar-Thackeray meeting came against the backdrop of Revenue Minister and former Sena man from Konkan Narayan Rane`s scathing attack on Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, his party colleague.
It triggered speculation about a possible realignment of forces before the state goes to the polls in 2009. Congress leaders felt that Pawar was trying to send out a message to the Congress about the shape of things to come if the party tried to make former Shiv Sainik as Chief Minister.
A day after Rane expressed his dissatisfaction over the "malfunctioning" of his party`s government in the state, Sonia Gandhi granted him an audience, prompting Rane to remark that "if I had said something wrong, she would not have met me".
It is common knowledge that Rane, who joined Congress in 2005, belongs to the anti-Deshmukh camp and has good rapport with state unit chief Prabha Rau and AICC general secretary in-charge of Maharashtra, Margaret Alva, both known Deshmukh detractors.
The last few months were rife with speculation about Congress high command`s decision to replace Deshmukh, now in his second term as Chief Minister.
But Deshmukh supporters blamed "aspirants for the chief ministerial chair" for "planting" reports in the media.
Sena`s traditional ally BJP, however, played down the Thackeray-Pawar meeting, saying it would not disturb its existing alliance with the party nor would the tie-up expand to include a third party.
BJP general secretary Gopinath Munde said the party`s two-decade-old alliance with Sena would remain intact to fight the next Assembly elections.
Earlier during the year, differences between BJP and Sena, which had reached a flash point over their claim on the Chimur Assembly seat last year, widened on the issue of Presidential poll. The Sena angered BJP by supporting the UPA candidate Pratibha Patil on the "Maharashtrian" plank.
The Congress, on the other hand, is trying to consolidate its vote base. The Chief Minister recently announced a separate department for minority welfare.
Deshmukh has already submitted a status report to the party high command on the implementation of the Srikrishna Commission report on the 1992-93 Mumbai riots. The report has indicted several politicians, including Bal Thackeray and some police officials, for their alleged role in the riots.
The government also announced setting up of fast-track courts to deal with the cases.
The Congress, however, suffered a setback when former MP from the Konkan region, col. Sudhir Sawant, parted ways with the party. There are reports that he may join Mayawati`s BSP.
The BSP leader`s rally in Mumbai on November 25 heralded her arrival on the state`s political stage. She made it clear that Maharashtra was next on the radar of her party, which rules Uttar Pradesh.
A large turnout of BSP workers at the rally was perceived as a warning signal for the Congress and the various factions of the republican party of India that the BSP has the potential of damaging their traditional vote bank in Assembly elections, due in 2009.
2007 saw justice being done to Mumbai
The year 2007 saw justice being finally done to this metropolis, which was ravaged by a series of blasts on March 12, 1993 killing more than 250 people. Fourteen years later, on May 18 the TADA court started sentencing the convicts.
Special TADA judge Pramod Kode sentenced 100 of the 123 accused. Twelve of them were awarded capital punishment, while Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt was sentenced to six years RI for possessing illegal weapons, though he was acquitted of charges of being involved in the blasts conspiracy.
A PIL filed by local residents demanding that the security wall around the famous Siddhivinayak Temple be demolished hogged the limelight in the Bombay High Court.
The High Court decided to take the matters in hand when 21-year-old Alister Pereira got away with six months imprisonment for killing seven labourers in a car accident.
The High Court took up the case and enhanced his sentence to three years. Prosecution and investigation came in for a sharp rebuke by the court.
Another PIL filed by a local NGO, Bhrashtachar Nirmulan Sanghatana, dragged superstar Shahrukh Khan to the court alleging that the Bollywood icon`s bungalow, Mannat, encroaches on the proposed road in the development plan.
After Pratibha Patil was named the UPA`s Presidential candidate, a case was filed in the High Court seeking probe into the murder of Vishram Patil, a local Congress leader. The petitioner demanded that Pratibha Patil`s brother, G N Patil, be made an accused.
Deplorable working conditions of sanitation workers were exposed when a PIL highlighted the high mortality rate among them.
The High Court adjudicated upon an unusual dispute, when director of "Dharm", a contender for India`s nomination for Oscars moved the court against the selection of Vidhu Vinod Chopra`s "Eklavya". The case ended amicably, as Bhavna Talwar finally withdrew her petition.
Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah`s house was in the news as his daughter Dina Wadia moved the Bombay High Court reclaiming its ownership from the Indian Government.
The Maharashtra government faced an embarrassment when the High Court took it to task for the delay in deciding whether to prosecute policemen accused of killing Khwaja Yunus, a Ghatkopar blast accused. Finally government decided to chargesheet four policemen in this case.
Former Sena leader and state Revenue Minister Narayan Rane also approached the court seeking to restrain Shiv Sena mouthpiece "Samana" from allegedly defaming him.
Business heavy weights Ambani brothers fought out their family battle in the High Court too. Anil Ambani dragged brother Mukesh Ambani to the court for the latter`s Reliance Industry`s refusal to commit a gas supply for his Reliance Natural Resources Limited.
Right to Information activists got a shot in the arm when the High Court decided that the record of former minister Surupsingh Naik`s stay in hospital -- while serving a sentence -- was open for public scrutiny.
Bureau Report
