India and Saudi Arabia move beyond oil

By Siddharth Srivastava

Oil was expected to feature prominently in this week’s visit of King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia to India. But terror and geostrategy figured as much, signifying that Riyadh and New Delhi have worked out common grounds that have taken more than a decade to iron out. The importance that India attached to the visit – the first by a Saudi king since 1955 – was reflected by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who broke protocol to receive the monarch at the airport when he arrived late in the evening. King Abdullah, who headed a 250-member delegation, was also the chief guest at the Republic Day parade in New Delhi on Thursday, an occasion when India’s military might is on display, as much as its cultural, social and economic diversity. Apart from looking at India and China (prior to his India sojourn the king visited Beijing) as a rich market to sell its oil, and thus reduce its dependence on the United States, Riyadh has been trying to engage New Delhi in other spheres. One reflection is that it has moved beyond the traditional definition of looking at India through the Pakistan prism. There have been efforts to dehyphenate the Islamabad-New Delhi link, with Saudi Arabia expressing support to Indian efforts in Kashmir, including the institution of a permanent border along the Line of Control (that separates Indian and Pakistan Kashmir), which is opposed by Islamabad. Islamabad was further rattled when prior to his New Delhi visit, the king agreed to support India’s claim for observer status at the Organization of Islamic Conferences. As per OIC rules, no country that has an ongoing dispute with a member nation (Kashmir in the case of India and Pakistan) can be given observer status. Analysts say that such moves by Saudi Arabia are also calculated to prompt a decisive tilt by New Delhi away from Iran, which is a big competitor in the energy market. Officials accompanying King Abdullah said that Riyadh was uncomfortable with Tehran’s nuclear-development program, a stand that goes down well with New Delhi, which has been facing domestic political pressure because of its siding with Western powers on the issue. Observers also say that New Delhi pushing ties with Riyadh is a result of a well thought out process at a time when New Delhi’s relations with Iran are pegged to the way Washington perceives Tehran. India has enjoyed traditional ties with Iran and Iraq for a long time to meet its energy requirements. However, in the context of Tehran’s aggressive anti-Western tirades and independent nuclear program, and the problems in Iraq, India has been looking to extend its influence beyond the Persian Gulf to the Saudi peninsula. Riyadh is also uncomfortable with India’s growing relationship with Israel that has extended beyond defense ties. As part of the engagement between New Delhi and Jerusalem, Israel’s national security adviser is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi next month. The visit has been delayed by the ill health of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. In this context, one more highlight of the visit of King Abdullah was the subject of terror, which is of serious concern to both countries. A memorandum of understanding on combating crime was signed between the two countries during the visit. The agreement broadly covers terrorism, transnational crime and subversive underworld operations and deals with methods of combating the menace. “We have declared a war against terror and we will continue our struggle against terrorism until it gets over,” a spokesperson quoted King Abdullah as saying. “It might be a long-term struggle, but the battle will continue unless this scourge is eliminated,” the Saudi monarch told Singh. A meeting with Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee also provided perhaps the first opportunity for the heads of Indian intelligence agencies to interact with their Saudi counterparts. In the past, Indian security agencies have detailed several instances of arrested terrorists having visited Saudi Arabia, including some of the masterminds behind the recent attacks in New Delhi and Bangalore, who have been arrested. Officials in New Delhi believe Saudi Arabia is the meeting point of Indian and Pakistani-backed terrorists who plot their strikes in Indian Kashmir and elsewhere. Security officials believe the militants visit Saudi Arabia under the pretext of the hajj as the country is home to Mecca and Medina, the holiest shrines of the 150 million Indian Muslims. New Delhi also wants Riyadh to keep an eye on the sizable funds that are transferred to India, a big portion of which is suspected to be routed to fundamentalist institutions. Of equal importance to India is the Saudi shift from promoting radical and jihadi Islamists that saw the birth of the likes of Osama bin Laden and culminated in the September 11, 2001, attacks being perpetrated by Saudi fundamentalists. The intricate web developed by Saudi intelligence to wage jihad against the erstwhile Soviet Union in the early 1980s and Afghanistan has been well documented. However, there is a realization that such efforts have eaten away the innards of Saudi society. Terrorism has since turned on Riyadh with the country as much a victim of the monster it helped create. The Saudi decision to take on Islamic radicals and support the US against those who promote terror is critical for India. The agreement on terror, however, stopped short of a legal understanding that is considered to be a precursor to signing an extradition treaty. New Delhi has been pushing for a comprehensive agreement with Riyadh as it is because of such an arrangement with the United Arab Emirates that India has managed to plug holes in the underworld dragnet that perpetrates crimes in the country, including terror attacks. The perception of India as a “responsible” nation in Europe has also led to the extradition of dreaded gangster Abu Salem from Portugal. This has opened several leads to the operations of mobsters and terror attacks in the past. There is no doubt, though, that the bedrock of India and Saudi relations is business. Agreements were signed during the visit to strengthen the institutional and legal framework of doing business, with bilateral trade expected to cross US$7 billion by 2010. Public and private companies signed six pacts for cooperation in energy, financial services and the health-care sector. According to reports, Oil and Natural Gas Corp, India’s state-owned energy giant, is planning to rope in Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer, as its equity partner for the 7.5-million-tonne-per-annum Kakinada refinery project in Andhra Pradesh. Reliance, a private energy firm, is reported to have decided to invest in an $8 billion refinery and petrochemicals project in Saudi Arabia. India is Saudi Arabia’s fourth-largest oil export destination.

Indian swami takes the fizz out of Coke

By Siddharth Srivastava

Swami Ramdev may not be known to the West yet, but he is giving the jitters to many multinationals operating in India, where his enterprise, which revolves around yoga, is valued at more than US$50 million and is said to have touched 100 million people. The swami is open in his derision of cola drinks, packaged and fast food, and pharmaceutical companies selling allopathic drugs, even as he seeks to generate health consciousness through spiritual and simple breathing exercises (called pranayam) claimed to be particularly useful in dealing with lifestyle diseases (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiac problems, arthritis, cholesterol, overweight, kidney disorders, cancer) and aging. His take on cola giants Pepsi and Coca-Cola is that such carbonated drinks should be used to clean toilets, not consumed. The swami’s mantra is that most diseases can be controlled by proper breathing and diet (essential tenets of yoga) and Ayurvedic medicines, although regular drugs are essential to cure some diseases and during emergencies. He has even spoken out against french fries. Such is the impact of Ramdev, who appears on television to reach his dedicated followers, that yoga classes have mushroomed across India alongside new-age avatars such as cyber-cafes, gymnasiums, coffee shops and glitzy retail outlets of foreign brands such as Nokia, Nike and Reebok. It is said that Ramdev has revolutionized the way of life of Indians and drawn them away from junk food, non-vegetarianism and has made millions, including youngsters, wake up early in the morning to listen to his sermons on TV. Indian advertising guru Alyque Padamsee has said the advertising mantra of the yogi rivals David Ogilvy’s. Ramdev’s live pranayam sessions (he holds more than 150 a year) could put any rock star to shame, filling up the biggest stadiums. The swami has an earthy narrative style that connects with people, even as he coaxes them to continue with their deep inhalations while he talks. During his shivirs (live gatherings), many exult on camera the benefits of his exercises, though some yoga practitioners have criticized Ramdev for being simplistic. Nobody, however, doubts that Ramdev is India’s first tele-guru and has been called the Amitabh Bachchan (Bollywood’s mega-star) of spiritual TV. Ramdev’s sermons sit on top of a slew of similar shows on exclusive channels such as Aashtha (with Ramdev as the mascot), Zee Jagran, Quran TV, God TV (beamed from Israel) and Sanskar that have gained remarkable popularity in the recent past, with advertising revenues crossing $2 million. Surprisingly, television ratings show that people in the 15-35-years age group make up more than 35% of the viewers, even as these channels have begun peppering discourses with movies, music, discussions and comedies to retain the eyeballs and compete with youth-oriented programming on MTV and Channel V. Not much is known about the guru, except that he originates from the state of Haryana and has lived in Haridwar, a holy city on the banks of the River Ganges, for the past decade while learning his art. Pictures show him to be a man probably in his late 30s or early 40s. The swami’s Divya Yog ashram at Haridwar has a huge herbarium and a drug-manufacturing unit (for Ayurveda medicines) backed by a team of doctors. A new factory is being built close by. The swami’s dream project is a 120-hectare Ayurvedic ashram near Delhi, which Ramdev has said will rival the World Health Organization. Revenues are generated through brisk sale of medicines, registration fees for his live sessions, books, video discs, television and of course donations, especially from non-resident Indians, from across the world. Recently, an unseemly spat ensued between a prominent leftist-party leader, Brinda Karat, and the swami. Karat, angered by allegations of labor-law violations at a drug-manufacturing unit run by the guru, said some of the medicines being manufactured by Ramdev used human or animal body parts. Ramdev lashed out at Karat, accusing her of “championing multinational drug companies to undermine comparatively cheaper Ayurvedic medicines”. Though many multinational marketing and sales executives privately relished the controversy, Karat had to beat a hasty retreat when politicians across the spectrum, including her own party, spoke in favor of Ramdev. The Bharatiya Janata Party sought to give the incident a swadeshi (indigenous) versus videshi (foreign hue) slant. Union minister and Bihar political satrap Laloo Yadav said: “If herbal medicines help, it hardly matters if they contain bones, whether human or demon.” Karat finally had to sing the virtues of Ayurveda and yoga publicly. Indeed, it is to the credit of Ramdev that he has not only managed to teach the virtues of yoga to so many, but also turned it into a selling proposition. “He is a fitness guru with an Indian twist. He uses the Indian religious language to sell the idea of fitness to [the] masses,” Santosh Desai, president of ad firm McCann Ericson, said in a recent interview with Economic Times. Yoga is already a $30-billion-a-year business in the United States, with Western followers familiar with the meditation techniques of Deepak Chopra, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of the Art of Living, and Bhagwan Rajneesh, who appealed to his audience through a modern interpretation of Buddhist philosophy. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and Sri Satya Sai Baba also have large, loyal followings, but the numbers do not compare to Ramdev’s. It is said of Ramdev that he has moved beyond the abstract ministrations of the mind propounded by the above mentioned to actual physical exercises that are seen to provide succor to increasingly stressful lives associated with the advent of consumerist lifestyles and the proverbial rat race in India. It is estimated that close to 20 million Americans practice yoga, with most fitness clubs offering instruction. Retailers such as Wal-Mart and REI stock up on yoga accessories, including video discs, apparel, mats and other equipment. The average yoga practitioner’s annual expenditure for enlightenment turns out to be $1,500. It was indeed ironic that the benefits of yoga, which owes its origin to India traditions that are 4,000 years old, has been so successfully packaged in the West and not in India. That is, until the unlikely Ramdev brand emerged.

Congress Seeks Key Role for Rahul

A top Congress party official said yesterday that party leaders wanted Rahul Gandhi, the son of Sonia Gandhi, to play a meaningful role in the party.

AICC General Secretary Ambika Soni was answering questions at a media briefing on the proceedings of a Congress Working Committee meeting on the first day of the 82nd Congress plenary here.

“After the party’s conclave in Delhi, Congress leaders wanted Rahul Gandhi to join the organization in a meaningful manner so that more youth can be inspired to join the party to strengthen it,” Soni said.

However, she would not say whether any formal demand was made by any member at the CWC meeting yesterday to induct Rahul into the CWC. “I am not empowered to talk about what transpired at the extended CWC. I am neither denying it nor confirming it,” she said. Soni said the CWC meeting discussed the draft resolutions on political affairs, economic affairs, agriculture, employment and poverty alleviation and international relations and security for nearly four and a half hours.

She said all the 47 CWC members, except A.B.A. Ghani Khan Chowdhary, attended the meeting along with other members of the extended body.
Congress Committee, delegates and over 7,000 state Congress delegates had come to participate in the plenary. Besides, up to 6,000 Congress workers from northern states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan had come to Hyderabad.
“They are neither AICC nor state delegates but ordinary party workers. We are in touch with security officers to let them into the AICC session. But the security agencies have not given clearance so far,” she added.
After the CWC meeting, Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee made a presentation to the plenary on the programs of the United Progressive Alliance government. However, neither Prime Minister Manmohan Singh nor Congress President Sonia were present at this presentation.
Soon after the plenary, Sonia is likely to meet Janata Dal (Secular) leader and former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda to discuss the Karnataka crisis. At her news briefing, Soni, however, maintained that the Karnataka issue did not come up at the extended Congress Working Committee meeting yesterday.
She rejected suggestions that the party was a silent spectator to the imminent fall of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka. “This is not a matter of watching it silently. The man in charge of Congress affairs in Karnataka, A.K. Anthony, and CWC member Ahmed Patel are reviewing the developments in Karnataka. No political party can concede its defeat in such issues. There is every possibility of JD(S) president and Congress president having a meeting to discuss the matter in a few days. There is every possibility that H.D. Deve Gowda will prevail upon his (rebellious) party men. Chief Minister Dharam Singh is confident of surviving the trust vote on Jan. 27,” she said.
She conceded that the crisis in Karnataka had shown the fragility of coalitions. “Coalition governments are formed on the basis of common minimum programs. Sometimes, there are hiccups in coalitions. Such incidents (like the one in Karnataka) occur. But then Congress has been successfully running coalition governments in states such as Maharashtra, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir. There has been a peaceful change of guard in Jammu and Kashmir after three years. The coalition government in that state is a good example of coalitions working well,” she observed.
She said Congress had stuck to its principled stand in Karnataka that there should be no truck with communal forces. “Not a single Congress MLA has deviated from that stand. Deve Gowda has also said that there is no question of his having a truck with communal forces,” she added.
The beleaguered Dharam Singh was conspicuous by his absence at the extended CWC meeting. “I have not seen Dharam Singh here. I don’t know whether he will come here tomorrow or not. His presence is needed there,” she quipped. Soni said Congress would make every effort to see that the coalition governments led by it in the states complete their tenures. “Coalitions, after all, are managed by all coalition partners. The UPA is successfully running a coalition government at the center on the basis of a common minimum program,” she added.

India and Saudi Arabia move beyond oil

By Siddharth Srivastava

Oil was expected to feature prominently in this week’s visit of King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia to India. But terror and geostrategy figured as much, signifying that Riyadh and New Delhi have worked out common grounds that have taken more than a decade to iron out. The importance that India attached to the visit – the first by a Saudi king since 1955 – was reflected by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who broke protocol to receive the monarch at the airport when he arrived late in the evening. King Abdullah, who headed a 250-member delegation, was also the chief guest at the Republic Day parade in New Delhi on Thursday, an occasion when India’s military might is on display, as much as its cultural, social and economic diversity. Apart from looking at India and China (prior to his India sojourn the king visited Beijing) as a rich market to sell its oil, and thus reduce its dependence on the United States, Riyadh has been trying to engage New Delhi in other spheres. One reflection is that it has moved beyond the traditional definition of looking at India through the Pakistan prism. There have been efforts to dehyphenate the Islamabad-New Delhi link, with Saudi Arabia expressing support to Indian efforts in Kashmir, including the institution of a permanent border along the Line of Control (that separates Indian and Pakistan Kashmir), which is opposed by Islamabad. Islamabad was further rattled when prior to his New Delhi visit, the king agreed to support India’s claim for observer status at the Organization of Islamic Conferences. As per OIC rules, no country that has an ongoing dispute with a member nation (Kashmir in the case of India and Pakistan) can be given observer status. Analysts say that such moves by Saudi Arabia are also calculated to prompt a decisive tilt by New Delhi away from Iran, which is a big competitor in the energy market. Officials accompanying King Abdullah said that Riyadh was uncomfortable with Tehran’s nuclear-development program, a stand that goes down well with New Delhi, which has been facing domestic political pressure because of its siding with Western powers on the issue. Observers also say that New Delhi pushing ties with Riyadh is a result of a well thought out process at a time when New Delhi’s relations with Iran are pegged to the way Washington perceives Tehran. India has enjoyed traditional ties with Iran and Iraq for a long time to meet its energy requirements. However, in the context of Tehran’s aggressive anti-Western tirades and independent nuclear program, and the problems in Iraq, India has been looking to extend its influence beyond the Persian Gulf to the Saudi peninsula. Riyadh is also uncomfortable with India’s growing relationship with Israel that has extended beyond defense ties. As part of the engagement between New Delhi and Jerusalem, Israel’s national security adviser is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi next month. The visit has been delayed by the ill health of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. In this context, one more highlight of the visit of King Abdullah was the subject of terror, which is of serious concern to both countries. A memorandum of understanding on combating crime was signed between the two countries during the visit. The agreement broadly covers terrorism, transnational crime and subversive underworld operations and deals with methods of combating the menace. “We have declared a war against terror and we will continue our struggle against terrorism until it gets over,” a spokesperson quoted King Abdullah as saying. “It might be a long-term struggle, but the battle will continue unless this scourge is eliminated,” the Saudi monarch told Singh. A meeting with Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee also provided perhaps the first opportunity for the heads of Indian intelligence agencies to interact with their Saudi counterparts. In the past, Indian security agencies have detailed several instances of arrested terrorists having visited Saudi Arabia, including some of the masterminds behind the recent attacks in New Delhi and Bangalore, who have been arrested. Officials in New Delhi believe Saudi Arabia is the meeting point of Indian and Pakistani-backed terrorists who plot their strikes in Indian Kashmir and elsewhere. Security officials believe the militants visit Saudi Arabia under the pretext of the hajj as the country is home to Mecca and Medina, the holiest shrines of the 150 million Indian Muslims. New Delhi also wants Riyadh to keep an eye on the sizable funds that are transferred to India, a big portion of which is suspected to be routed to fundamentalist institutions. Of equal importance to India is the Saudi shift from promoting radical and jihadi Islamists that saw the birth of the likes of Osama bin Laden and culminated in the September 11, 2001, attacks being perpetrated by Saudi fundamentalists. The intricate web developed by Saudi intelligence to wage jihad against the erstwhile Soviet Union in the early 1980s and Afghanistan has been well documented. However, there is a realization that such efforts have eaten away the innards of Saudi society. Terrorism has since turned on Riyadh with the country as much a victim of the monster it helped create. The Saudi decision to take on Islamic radicals and support the US against those who promote terror is critical for India. The agreement on terror, however, stopped short of a legal understanding that is considered to be a precursor to signing an extradition treaty. New Delhi has been pushing for a comprehensive agreement with Riyadh as it is because of such an arrangement with the United Arab Emirates that India has managed to plug holes in the underworld dragnet that perpetrates crimes in the country, including terror attacks. The perception of India as a “responsible” nation in Europe has also led to the extradition of dreaded gangster Abu Salem from Portugal. This has opened several leads to the operations of mobsters and terror attacks in the past. There is no doubt, though, that the bedrock of India and Saudi relations is business. Agreements were signed during the visit to strengthen the institutional and legal framework of doing business, with bilateral trade expected to cross US$7 billion by 2010. Public and private companies signed six pacts for cooperation in energy, financial services and the health-care sector. According to reports, Oil and Natural Gas Corp, India’s state-owned energy giant, is planning to rope in Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer, as its equity partner for the 7.5-million-tonne-per-annum Kakinada refinery project in Andhra Pradesh. Reliance, a private energy firm, is reported to have decided to invest in an $8 billion refinery and petrochemicals project in Saudi Arabia. India is Saudi Arabia’s fourth-largest oil export destination.

Indian swami takes the fizz out of Coke

By Siddharth Srivastava

Swami Ramdev may not be known to the West yet, but he is giving the jitters to many multinationals operating in India, where his enterprise, which revolves around yoga, is valued at more than US$50 million and is said to have touched 100 million people. The swami is open in his derision of cola drinks, packaged and fast food, and pharmaceutical companies selling allopathic drugs, even as he seeks to generate health consciousness through spiritual and simple breathing exercises (called pranayam) claimed to be particularly useful in dealing with lifestyle diseases (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiac problems, arthritis, cholesterol, overweight, kidney disorders, cancer) and aging. His take on cola giants Pepsi and Coca-Cola is that such carbonated drinks should be used to clean toilets, not consumed. The swami’s mantra is that most diseases can be controlled by proper breathing and diet (essential tenets of yoga) and Ayurvedic medicines, although regular drugs are essential to cure some diseases and during emergencies. He has even spoken out against french fries. Such is the impact of Ramdev, who appears on television to reach his dedicated followers, that yoga classes have mushroomed across India alongside new-age avatars such as cyber-cafes, gymnasiums, coffee shops and glitzy retail outlets of foreign brands such as Nokia, Nike and Reebok. It is said that Ramdev has revolutionized the way of life of Indians and drawn them away from junk food, non-vegetarianism and has made millions, including youngsters, wake up early in the morning to listen to his sermons on TV. Indian advertising guru Alyque Padamsee has said the advertising mantra of the yogi rivals David Ogilvy’s. Ramdev’s live pranayam sessions (he holds more than 150 a year) could put any rock star to shame, filling up the biggest stadiums. The swami has an earthy narrative style that connects with people, even as he coaxes them to continue with their deep inhalations while he talks. During his shivirs (live gatherings), many exult on camera the benefits of his exercises, though some yoga practitioners have criticized Ramdev for being simplistic. Nobody, however, doubts that Ramdev is India’s first tele-guru and has been called the Amitabh Bachchan (Bollywood’s mega-star) of spiritual TV. Ramdev’s sermons sit on top of a slew of similar shows on exclusive channels such as Aashtha (with Ramdev as the mascot), Zee Jagran, Quran TV, God TV (beamed from Israel) and Sanskar that have gained remarkable popularity in the recent past, with advertising revenues crossing $2 million. Surprisingly, television ratings show that people in the 15-35-years age group make up more than 35% of the viewers, even as these channels have begun peppering discourses with movies, music, discussions and comedies to retain the eyeballs and compete with youth-oriented programming on MTV and Channel V. Not much is known about the guru, except that he originates from the state of Haryana and has lived in Haridwar, a holy city on the banks of the River Ganges, for the past decade while learning his art. Pictures show him to be a man probably in his late 30s or early 40s. The swami’s Divya Yog ashram at Haridwar has a huge herbarium and a drug-manufacturing unit (for Ayurveda medicines) backed by a team of doctors. A new factory is being built close by. The swami’s dream project is a 120-hectare Ayurvedic ashram near Delhi, which Ramdev has said will rival the World Health Organization. Revenues are generated through brisk sale of medicines, registration fees for his live sessions, books, video discs, television and of course donations, especially from non-resident Indians, from across the world. Recently, an unseemly spat ensued between a prominent leftist-party leader, Brinda Karat, and the swami. Karat, angered by allegations of labor-law violations at a drug-manufacturing unit run by the guru, said some of the medicines being manufactured by Ramdev used human or animal body parts. Ramdev lashed out at Karat, accusing her of “championing multinational drug companies to undermine comparatively cheaper Ayurvedic medicines”. Though many multinational marketing and sales executives privately relished the controversy, Karat had to beat a hasty retreat when politicians across the spectrum, including her own party, spoke in favor of Ramdev. The Bharatiya Janata Party sought to give the incident a swadeshi (indigenous) versus videshi (foreign hue) slant. Union minister and Bihar political satrap Laloo Yadav said: “If herbal medicines help, it hardly matters if they contain bones, whether human or demon.” Karat finally had to sing the virtues of Ayurveda and yoga publicly. Indeed, it is to the credit of Ramdev that he has not only managed to teach the virtues of yoga to so many, but also turned it into a selling proposition. “He is a fitness guru with an Indian twist. He uses the Indian religious language to sell the idea of fitness to [the] masses,” Santosh Desai, president of ad firm McCann Ericson, said in a recent interview with Economic Times. Yoga is already a $30-billion-a-year business in the United States, with Western followers familiar with the meditation techniques of Deepak Chopra, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of the Art of Living, and Bhagwan Rajneesh, who appealed to his audience through a modern interpretation of Buddhist philosophy. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and Sri Satya Sai Baba also have large, loyal followings, but the numbers do not compare to Ramdev’s. It is said of Ramdev that he has moved beyond the abstract ministrations of the mind propounded by the above mentioned to actual physical exercises that are seen to provide succor to increasingly stressful lives associated with the advent of consumerist lifestyles and the proverbial rat race in India. It is estimated that close to 20 million Americans practice yoga, with most fitness clubs offering instruction. Retailers such as Wal-Mart and REI stock up on yoga accessories, including video discs, apparel, mats and other equipment. The average yoga practitioner’s annual expenditure for enlightenment turns out to be $1,500. It was indeed ironic that the benefits of yoga, which owes its origin to India traditions that are 4,000 years old, has been so successfully packaged in the West and not in India. That is, until the unlikely Ramdev brand emerged.

Congress Seeks Key Role for Rahul

A top Congress party official said yesterday that party leaders wanted Rahul Gandhi, the son of Sonia Gandhi, to play a meaningful role in the party.

AICC General Secretary Ambika Soni was answering questions at a media briefing on the proceedings of a Congress Working Committee meeting on the first day of the 82nd Congress plenary here.

“After the party’s conclave in Delhi, Congress leaders wanted Rahul Gandhi to join the organization in a meaningful manner so that more youth can be inspired to join the party to strengthen it,” Soni said.

However, she would not say whether any formal demand was made by any member at the CWC meeting yesterday to induct Rahul into the CWC. “I am not empowered to talk about what transpired at the extended CWC. I am neither denying it nor confirming it,” she said. Soni said the CWC meeting discussed the draft resolutions on political affairs, economic affairs, agriculture, employment and poverty alleviation and international relations and security for nearly four and a half hours.

She said all the 47 CWC members, except A.B.A. Ghani Khan Chowdhary, attended the meeting along with other members of the extended body.
Congress Committee, delegates and over 7,000 state Congress delegates had come to participate in the plenary. Besides, up to 6,000 Congress workers from northern states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan had come to Hyderabad.
“They are neither AICC nor state delegates but ordinary party workers. We are in touch with security officers to let them into the AICC session. But the security agencies have not given clearance so far,” she added.
After the CWC meeting, Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee made a presentation to the plenary on the programs of the United Progressive Alliance government. However, neither Prime Minister Manmohan Singh nor Congress President Sonia were present at this presentation.
Soon after the plenary, Sonia is likely to meet Janata Dal (Secular) leader and former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda to discuss the Karnataka crisis. At her news briefing, Soni, however, maintained that the Karnataka issue did not come up at the extended Congress Working Committee meeting yesterday.
She rejected suggestions that the party was a silent spectator to the imminent fall of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka. “This is not a matter of watching it silently. The man in charge of Congress affairs in Karnataka, A.K. Anthony, and CWC member Ahmed Patel are reviewing the developments in Karnataka. No political party can concede its defeat in such issues. There is every possibility of JD(S) president and Congress president having a meeting to discuss the matter in a few days. There is every possibility that H.D. Deve Gowda will prevail upon his (rebellious) party men. Chief Minister Dharam Singh is confident of surviving the trust vote on Jan. 27,” she said.
She conceded that the crisis in Karnataka had shown the fragility of coalitions. “Coalition governments are formed on the basis of common minimum programs. Sometimes, there are hiccups in coalitions. Such incidents (like the one in Karnataka) occur. But then Congress has been successfully running coalition governments in states such as Maharashtra, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir. There has been a peaceful change of guard in Jammu and Kashmir after three years. The coalition government in that state is a good example of coalitions working well,” she observed.
She said Congress had stuck to its principled stand in Karnataka that there should be no truck with communal forces. “Not a single Congress MLA has deviated from that stand. Deve Gowda has also said that there is no question of his having a truck with communal forces,” she added.
The beleaguered Dharam Singh was conspicuous by his absence at the extended CWC meeting. “I have not seen Dharam Singh here. I don’t know whether he will come here tomorrow or not. His presence is needed there,” she quipped. Soni said Congress would make every effort to see that the coalition governments led by it in the states complete their tenures. “Coalitions, after all, are managed by all coalition partners. The UPA is successfully running a coalition government at the center on the basis of a common minimum program,” she added.