Articles by Mohit Sen

SOUTH New Configurations in Andhra Mohit Sen THE announcement that Brahmananda Reddy has been appointed Chairman of the Finance Commission was also the formal declaration that his faction had wound itself up in Andhra. What had seemed so powerful and pervasive proved to he utterly hollow, illustrating the superficiality of the view that there are omnipotent state bosses in the Congress. Indeed, there had been any amount of speculation that by unseating Brahmananda Reddy the Prime Minister was taking the top off a volcano. It was not, however, a dormant volcano that she was tackling but an ant heap that crumbled at a kick, the ants scurrying off elsewhere, too terrified even to bite.

of the Committee's report by the Agriculture Ministry, What is significant is that in spite of the sharpness of the controversy, very little of it has found expression on the floors of Parliament The controversy has remained within the lobbies and committee rooms of different parties. What this suggests is that issues have to be clinched within the various parties first since there does not seem to be a single party, whether of the Right or the Left, which does not have a strong farmers' lobby operating within it Even the Opposition parties have maintained almost total silence 011 the issue during the sessions of the two Houses of Parliament though the issue would have provided an excellent opportunity to embarrass the government. This speaks volumes for the real nature of the interests that all parties, including those that sport socialist and communist labels, hold close to their hearts.

February 19, 1972 IT IS only Andhra and Karnataka that will go to the polls in the South but, after all, the political stock-taking throughout the country will not leave Kerala and Tamil Nadu unaffected. Nor, let it be remembered, would these two states fail to feel the impact of yet another revelation of the political mind of the nation.

November 27, 1971 economies, namely the USA, the government recently chose to impose a total price freeze (covering, incidentally, also new models of ears incorporating technical and other improvements which would, on the basis of the Indian Supreme Court's judgment be entitled to a price rise on that ground). Such decisions of the government have not been challenged in any other country; in this country in future they would apparently he open to challenge before the judiciary.

October 30, 1971 SOUTH Kerala's Features Mohit Sen ON several accounts Kerala is considered a test case. It is so above all for the CM. Consequently, as has been noted by many commentators, it was no accident that the ninth congress of the party was to be held in Cochin, If the success of the congress and the public mobilisation for it are any indication, Kerala may be claimed to be a successful lest case.