HEAD LINE:

• Pranab to be in charge in Manmohan's absence (TOI)
• Don't link 26/11 with J&K: Pranab (TOI)

LEAD:

By the time you read this, a crack medical team from Mumbai would have started playing a star role in Indian politics. At 6.30am on Saturday, the team, led by surgeon Ramakant Panda, and assisted by AIIMS doctors, will embark on a redo (repeat) bypass operation on PM Manmohan Singh the 76-year-old leader who is the Congress candidate for a second-term prime ministership in case of a UPA victory in the polls. The success rate of bypass surgeries is high. However, a repeat bypass is little more complicated. The surgery, according to sources, could last for six-eight hours. Given that the PM is a diabetic, the recovery period might be longer sources put it at four-six weeks. During this period, the dates for the coming Lok Sabha elections are expected to be announced, setting the scene for feverish political activity. Prior to that, the govt will go in for a vote-on-account which, in the absence of Manmohan Singh, will be presented by senior minister Pranab Mukherjee. Dr Panda's team is already at AIIMS, where the PM checked in on early Friday afternoon. He is in a special room on the first floor that is kept ready 24x7 exclusively for the Indian PM. Dr Panda is a redo bypass surgery specialist who is credited with having conducted over 700 redo surgeries. (TOI)

• New Delhi: Foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee has said that the international community must not make the mistake of linking Mumbai terror attacks with the dispute in Jammu & Kashmir. While addressing a joint press conference with his Afghan counterpart Rangeen Dadfar Spanta in Kabul, Mukherjee said the incident in Mumbai was a case of global terrorism. "These attacks (on Mumbai) are not related to J&K and are a part of global terrorism. The international community has to take it as a part of global terrorism and deal with it accordingly," Mukherjee said, adding that Kashmir was an integral part of India and the people of the state had overwhelmingly exercised their voting rights in the recent elections. Speaking to reporters on an earlier occasion in Afghanistan, Mukherjee said perpetrators of terrorism must not be equated with victims of terrorism in any case. (TOI)
• New Delhi: External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee will take charge as the PM recovers from the heart bypass surgery scheduled on Saturday, presiding over Cabinet meetings if necessary while also overseeing the finance portfolio. Any situation that requires consultations in govt will be discussed by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs to be convened and headed by Mukherjee. "There has been a standing order that in the absence of the PM, CCPA, under its seniormost member, will be incharge," Mukherjee said. Sources said the PM was expected to be back in office by February 12 when President Pratibha Patil addresses Parliament. The consideration that the PM must attend the last session of the Lok Sabha during his tenure appeared to have influenced the timing for the surgery. (TOI)
• New Delhi: Australian PM Kevin Rudd's crucial and much awaited visit to India will not happen next week. Highly placed sources confirmed that Rudd, who was scheduled to meet PM Mammohan Singh on January 28, has postponed his visit owing to Singh's illness. Singh will undergo heart surgery on Saturday and may take some time to recover. Rudd was earlier scheduled to spend a day in India on January 28. While Australia, which is grappling with a financial crisis, was looking upon the visit as crucial to further its business interests in India, New Delhi was expecting Australia to acknowledge India's diplomatic offensive against Pakistan in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks. Australia remains one of the largest contributors to international forces in Afghanistan. (TOI)
• Mumbai: The September 29 Malegaon bomb blast may not have been the first such attack allegedly orchestrated by Lt. Col. Prasad Purohit, named the main conspirator in the case, and possibly some of the other accused, according to the chargesheet filed by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad in a Special MCOCA court this week. In the pile of documents and evidence submitted by the ATS as part of the chargesheet is a transcript of an audio recording allegedly found on Mahant Sudhakar Dwivedi's laptops where the arrested Army officer is quoted talking about "two operations" they had earlier conducted. (IE)
• New Delhi: Even as RSS has decided to extend full support to BJP in the coming parliamentary elections, it also acknowledges the fact that it will have "to sort out gaps" between the Sangh and the saffron party at the organisational level in at least four to five states. The Sangh hopes to iron out matters in these .troubled' states before March, when its national executive is scheduled to meet in Nagpur. Agreeing that there are problems between RSS and the party, for instance in Rajasthan which were visible during the recent assembly elections, Sangh sources said that these will be worked upon and sorted out. Orissa is another state where the state level Sangh organisation will have to be motivated to get into action in the interest of BJP for the polls. Interestingly, most of the states where a BJP-RSS disconnect is showing, are essentially in states where the party is in power either on its own (like it was in Rajasthan) or in a coalition (like it is Orissa with BJD). (TOI)
• New Delhi: The police on Friday registered a case against TV crew of a private news channel at Parliament Street police station in response to a police complaint filed by NSUI after speech notes and papers reportedly belonging to party general secretary Rahul Gandhi went missing. The police said the case was registered on the complaint of National Students Union of India president H Y Eden. It said that a bunch of internal papers of the NSUI went missing after TV crew members entered the hall during lunchtime. Speaking to TOI, Eden said, "We were discussing our plans for Uttarakhand elections and it was a daylong seminar, where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was also present. During lunchtime, when we had gone to a nearby restaurant, our office bearers informed us that some TV channel crew entered the hall."(TOI)

MANMOHAN SINGH & GOVT

PM Manmohan Singh's sudden illness has come as a bolt from the blue for Congress leadership just when it was heaving relief at five years well spent a tenure in which Singh has filled the key post without hiccups or worries for the first family. Called a PM by accident, Singh is crucial to Congress's succession plans. A trusted man who fills in till .the chosen one' from 10, Janpath is ready to take over. Singh is seen by the leadership to have done the job admirably for five years but he remains crucial in the party's scheme of things post May-2009 if Congress is voted back to power. Informed observers say Singh has a strong probability of being asked to stay at the helm till the moment deemed appropriate to blood, mandate allowing, the heir apparent Rahul Gandhi. Singh would be useful also in the event the post-poll maths enhances allies' leverage over Congress in coalition matters. According to observers, suspense over May mandate keeps alive Singh's utility in Congress's succession plan, as in 2004 when events conspired to see the mantle fall on him after a stunning party win.(TOI)

BJP

Taking a tough stand, leader of opposition L K Advani on Friday told Pakistan that there is anger among people in India over the Mumbai terror strikes and said Islamabad has to ensure that the guilty are brought to book. Speaking to a Pakistani TV channel on the sidelines of a function to commemorate the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, the senior BJP leader, who had supported the UPA govt in Parliament on its stand to fight terrorism, said that the three days of live TV footage of the terror strikes had angered the people of India. The attacks were unlike any other terror strike that the country had witnessed so far. It was a sort of war on India, Advani said, adding that it was on this ground that the people wanted to see that the guilty are brought to book. With Pakistan having declared that the terror accused would be tried in Pakistani courts, Opposition BJP has raised doubts about a "fair trial" of those who are responsible for the killing of more than 150 people, including foreign nationals, in Mumbai. (TOI)

• The BJP has decided to send two of its senior leaders, Mr Yashwant Sinha and Mr Thavar Chand Gehlot, to find out reasons behind the party's poll debacle in Rajasthan. Both leaders will go to Jaipur on January 25. BJP national treasurer Ramdas Agarwal dashed a letter to the central leadership to apprise them of the state of affairs in Rajasthan. According to sources, Mr Agarwal said the party should weigh the suggestions made by Mr Narpat Singh Rajvi, son in-law of former vice-president Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. It is learnt that Mr Rajvi called on Mr L.K. Advani after the poll results and requested he should be appointed as Leader of the Opposition. Mr Rajvi assured he will be able to dislodge the Congress govt, which was short of majority. The Rajasthan BJP is divided in three factions while former CM Vasundhara Raje has full control as she has been enjoying the backing of the party high command. (AA)

CONGRESS

The Congress on Friday criticised Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi's statement that his country had authorised China to negotiate with India on its behalf to deal with the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks. Congress spokesman Manish Tewari said India-Pakistan issues had to be addressed within the parameters of the Shimla Agreement, the Lahore Declaration and the composite dialogue mechanism. "There is no scope for mediation or intervention by anyone else." According to the Congress, Mr. Qureshi's statement showed the fundamental difference between India and Pakistan. While India had an independent foreign policy and refused to be aligned with any one country since Independence, Pakistan allowed its foreign policy to be dictated by others. Mr. Tewari pointed out that Mr. Qureshi's statement came a day after U.S. President Barack Obama threatened to hold Pakistan accountable for security on Afghanistan border. "So, Pakistan went seeking China's help."(HINDU)

• New Delhi: In the wake of PM Manmohan Singh's indisposition, a senior Congress leader on Friday ruled out any possibility of appointing any senior minister as officiating PM. "He [Manmohan Singh] is the PM and he will be back with better health very soon. There is no question of appointing anybody as officiating PM," M. Veerappa Moily said on the sidelines of a book release function here. Mr. Moily, however, said that some of the activities will be handled by some senior Ministers in his absence. To a question whether the Congress had any backup plan in case Dr. Singh's health deteriorated, Mr. Moily said: "There is no question... This is very temporary phenomenon, the PM will be back soon hale and hearty." Asked whether this is the right time for Rahul Gandhi to become PM, Mr. Moily categorically said: "This is a different matter. Rahul has himself expressed that he would not like to be the PM immediately." (HINDU)
• New Delhi: Congress-SP alliance talks have entered the final lap, with the high commands taking over from their negotiation teams to clinch a decision. Congress chief Sonia Gandhi will now be talking directly with Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar Singh, having secured a detailed groundwork on give-and-take options from the panel of Rahul Gandhi, Digvijay Singh and UPCC chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi. The pact seems on track, with the possibility of Congress settling for around 25 LS seats including those where it would like to pitch its candidate even though SP has sitting MPs. As per the indications, Congress may even go ahead with a list of candidates while talks carry on till month-end. SP has already declared a chunk of seats. Sources said Sonia had taken over the final leg of negotiations to expedite a deal lest it was mired in differences of opinion. She is the authority whose generous concession or tough call would convey a finality to both partymen as well as the ally. There is no appellate body against what the party supremo marks as the take-it-or-lump-it bargain. Insiders said Sonia was for a pact with SP, as she felt a strong UPA has to be put in place before polls just as was done in 2004.(TOI)

ANDHRA PRADESH

The Congress has begun the exercise of identifying suitable candidates for the general elections. Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president D. Srinivas on Friday issued directions to the DCCs to prepare a list of three or more aspirants for each Assembly and parliamentary constituency. "The list of aspirants prepared by the DCCs would be handed over to the APCC by February 15," Mr. Srinivas told reporters here. The Pradesh Election Committee will vet the list by February 25 and forward it to the AICC by March 1. It would be compared with the list and reports of pre-poll surveys conducted by the party as well as the CM. (HINDU)

RAJASTHAN

The new Congress Govt in Rajasthan has set up a Commission of Inquiry, headed by a retired judge of the Rajasthan High Court, to probe the whole gamut of charges of corruption and irregularities against the previous BJP regime in the State. Justice N. N. Mathur will head the three-member Commission, with a six-month tenure, while former Chief Secretary Indrajeet Khanna and retired Indian Police Service officer H. N. Meena will be its members. Justice Mathur is at present the Vice-Chancellor of the National Law University, Jodhpur. Mr. Khanna in his previous assignment was the Chief Election Commissioner of Rajasthan. Mr. Meena was a member of the Rajasthan Public Service Commission. Ever since the previous govt led by CM Vasundhara Raje was voted out of power in December, there has been an outcry from various sections of civic society for a probe into the controversial land deals and other corruption charges pertaining to her five-year rule. Among those who demanded an inquiry were former Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Mr. Shekhawat, also a former CM of the State, in fact had called for Ms. Raje's arrest on corruption charges.(HINDU)

TAMIL NADU

Arguing that a solution to the Sri Lankan Tamils problem could not be found without the support of the Congress, the party's whip Peter Alphonse said the Indo-Sri Lankan accord alone could offer a lasting solution. Speaking on a special calling attention motion in the Assembly, Mr. Alphonse said the accord secured some rights for the Tamils and could have secured more. "But the LTTE spoiled everything. They took assistance from the Sri Lankan Army and confronted the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF)," he alleged. Citing reports in The Hindu, he said the LTTE was not allowing the staff of the United Nations to return from the Wanni with the convoy that had gone there to deliver relief supplies to the displaced Tamils. Some parties were raising the issue to isolate the Congress and bring down the DMK govt. "What is your agenda? Come clean and we are ready to help in finding a solution," he said. (HINDU)

UTTAR PRADESH

Rattled by cross-voting by four of its MLAs in the biennial elections to the Vidhan Parishad (Upper House of the State Legislature) here on Thursday, the Congress in Uttar Pradesh is at its wit's end to overcome the setback ahead of this year's Lok Sabha polls. Aware of the seriousness of the issue, a report on the fiasco was sent to the party high command in New Delhi by the leader of the Congress Legislature Party, Pramod Tiwari, on Thursday night. Efforts are now on to identify the black sheep, though at the outset the identification was deemed difficult as the biennial elections were held through secret ballot. UP Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who was away in Jhansi, told The Hindu over phone on Friday that the party high command had taken a very serious view of the cross-voting. She has been asked by the leadership to conduct a probe into the episode . "The inquiry has begun and the report would be sent to the high command soon," the UPCC chief added. The Congress has 21 MLAs in the UP Vidhan Sabha, but because of the rebellion by four of its members, the Congress candidate, Ranjit Singh Judeo, could garner only 17 votes. Mr. Judeo, who was seeking re-election.(HINDU)

• The murmur is turning into an uproar and Muslims in Uttar Pradesh are now accusing the Samajwadi Party of betraying them by joining hands with former BJP leader Kalyan Singh, an accused in the Babri demolition episode. Former BSP MP Shahid Ikhlaq, who had to face disqualification after he defected to the Samajwadi Party, convened a panchayat of Ulemas and Muslim leaders at his farmhouse on the Meerut-Hapur road on Thursday where all the Muslim leaders unanimously criticised the Samajwadi leadership for forging an alliance with the BJP leader. Mr Ikhlaq said, "Muslims can never forgive Kalyan Singh for his role in the demolition of the Babri mosque. (AA)

EDITORIAL

Special incentive: Neither the decision by US President Barack Obama and his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to appoint a special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, nor their choice of veteran American diplomat Richard Holbrooke for the assignment should come as a surprise to India. On the eve of the US presidential elections last November, this newspaper had reported on Obama's firm plans to appoint a high profile special envoy for the subcontinent. Nevertheless, New Delhi should note the speed with which the new administration has acted and the political capital it is investing in the project to bring order to the northwestern parts of the subcontinent.(IE)