Big B sees late friend Rajiv’s image in Rahul Gandhi

Amitabh Bachchan rarely gets this candid about his personal life. In an exclusive chat, Amitabh said his short dabbling with politics might have been an impulsive decision. The Bachchan family had close ties with the Gandhi family in times of Rajiv Gandhi. Despite visible cooling off of feelings between the two major families of India, Amitabh has talked about his appreciation for the current Gandhi – Rahul. Son of ex Prime Minister of India and the contemporary leader of the ruling party, Rahul Gandhi is being touted as the next big thing in Indian political scene.
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Amitabh said, “Rahul was born before me, and he is an appreciable lad. He is talented, educated, and has a heart in the right place.”

Further, when enquired about close ally Amar Singh, Amitabh denied he talks politics with the politician. He said, “I don’t talk politics with Amar Singh, and he never asks me why I did that particular role. And I don’t consider him just a friend – he is family!”

Very particular about not referring to Indian film industry as Bollywood, he said that films are just a profession for a set of people, and it is a form of art, almost a magical thing. He said, “Film is like magic. Does ever music play when you love someone or talk to someone in real life?” Amitabh inquired rhetorically.

Top Minister's Daughter's Affair With Rahul Gandhi?

If one has to say who the most eligible bachelor in India is, then one name tops the list. It is none other than Rahul Gandhi, the budding leader in Congress. While the question has been on as to when he will get married, a new buzz is currently making in the Congress circles.

There is a strong gossip that Rahul is currently involved in a deep affair. She happens to be the daughter of a noted politician from AP who was a noted minister at one point of time. It seems that the girl is quite a dynamic and aggressive person as in contrast to the timid nature of Rahul.

While many have been trying to dig out her name and some have got few details, they are said to be a bit scared as to how the consequences will be if this is leaked. Those who heard this gossip are happy that finally Rahul has found someone but the curiosity is, who is this girl???

Rahul Gandhi’s flying visit to Tamil Nadu cost over Rs.1 crore

All India Congress Committee General Secretary Rahul Gandhi at the helipad in Puducherry where he had come for a brief meeting with members of the Youth Congress on September 9.

CHENNAI: “As a politician, you have a duty to be austere,” Rahul Gandhi told reporters here last week during his tour of Tamil Nadu. But the travel bill the Congress general secretary toted up during his three-day visit down south ran to seven figures, not exactly a sum the word “austerity” conjures up. At about Rs.1.5 lakh an hour for a helicopter, and Rs. 1.1 lakh an hour for the Beechcraft aircraft that Mr. Gandhi used for most of the long haul, his Tamil Nadu darshan would have cost the Indian National Youth Congress over Rs. 1 crore in helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft hire charges, The Hindu has established.

The 2006 Beechcraft King Air 350 aircraft, operated by the New Delhi-based Air Charter Services Private Limited, has a 10 per cent plus service charge too. The crew in both instances need to be looked after by the persons hiring the aircraft. Added to this is the expense of the SPG, which tailed the Pawan Hans helicopter in an Army helicopter.

Mr. Gandhi, who was on a day-long whirlwind tour to southern districts on September 8, used a Pawan Hans helicopter from Thiruvananthapuram after arriving there in the Beechcraft (VT-ACD).

On his way back from Coimbatore, Mr. Gandhi took an eight-seater Falcon 2000 aircraft to New Delhi. It belonged to the Mumbai-based TajAir. According to the Taj website ( http://www.tajaironline.com), a New Delhi-Coimbatore one-way trip costs Rs. 20,31,250. “All flights originate from Mumbai. Thus, the fare is calculated ex-Mumbai and back,” the website explains.

The Congress leader hopped from Thiruvananthapuram to Nagercoil to Tirunelveli to Virudhunagar and to the Madurai Kamaraj University on the first day. After an overnight halt at the Circuit House in Madurai, he left for Thanjavur by the Beechcraft on day two. According to back-of-the-envelope calculations by airport sources, with the Thiruvananthapuram-Madurai trip and the overnight halt of the helicopter, the total cost incurred would be close to Rs. 15 lakh.

On day two, he landed at the Indian Air Force strip in Thanjavur. After meeting people and Youth Congress workers, he left by the same aircraft for Puducherry where he met PCC office-bearers. He hopped on to a helicopter for Villupuram and Vellore. Later in the day, after his engagements at Vellore, he flew into the nearby Naval Air Station in Arakkonam, INS Rajali, in a helicopter, before taking the B-350 to Chennai.

From Chennai to Hosur, Mr. Gandhi travelled by the same B-350. A TNCC source said the party paid Rs. 7,500 for landing and parking to Taneja Aerospace for the use of a private airstrip at Hosur. Mr. Gandhi took the same aircraft to Salem and from there to Coimbatore.
Foolproof security

Salem airport authorities said all charges for the landing and ground handling at Salem were paid in Chennai itself, as the Salem airport did not have normal operations. The same aircraft was used to reach Coimbatore. For landing, parking, and route navigation, the Coimbatore airport collected a total of Rs. 6,800 from both the operators. Besides, Rs. 1,500 was paid to a private firm for ground handling.

A senior police official, when contacted, said Mr. Gandhi’s movement by road was restricted to the extent possible in Tamil Nadu. Foolproof security arrangements were imperative in the backdrop of heightened threat to the VVIP perceived by Central and State intelligence agencies.

Besides having in place a three-tier security shield for Rahul Gandhi, who is also protected by the elite Special Protection Group (SPG), the State police chalked out an elaborate scheme for his protection based on specific inputs.

Citing reports of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the police official said a handful of top Sikh militants and cadres of the Lashkar-e-Taiba met at an undisclosed destination in Pakistan recently and allegedly decided to target Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani, and Mr. Gandhi.

Further, reports of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) indicated the movement of a suspected Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam cadre and a sympathiser along the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu.

The last communication was intercepted in the last week of March 2009 and it appeared the suspects were organising the movement of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees. “Reports in a section of the media that appeared in the United Kingdom alleged that India had extended military support to Sri Lanka in the war against the LTTE. The resentment has surfaced as hostility to Rahul Gandhi,” the official added.

Rahul Gandhi's got a Fake driving licence in Bihar

A fake driving licence has been issued in the name of Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi in Bihar's Saran district, officials said on Monday. The Congress MP's address on the licence is the official residence of Saran's district magistrate.

The district administration was not aware of the incident till a week ago.

"A driving licence (1847/09) in the name of Rahul Gandhi was issued by Saran district transport officer Puneeta Srivastava on May 18, 2009," a district official said.

The licence, which was stated to be valid from May 18, 2009 to May 17, 2022, also mentioned Rahul's father Rajiv Gandhi as the father of the licence holder. His permanent residence was given as Sansad Bhawan Marg, New Delhi.

"There is a signature of Saran district transport officer Puneeta Srivastava and her official seal is also on the driving licence issued in Rahul Gandhi's name," the official said.

The picture in the driving licence is not of the Congress MP, but of an unidentified youth.

Srivastava, however, denied having issued any such driving licence.

"It is a fake licence with my fake signature and official seal. In the past also several fake driving licences have been reported to defame me," Srivastava said.

This is not the first time a fake driving licence in the name of a well-known person is being issued in Bihar. In the early 1990s, a fake licence was issued in the name of then Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) chief V Prabhakaran.

A motorcycle licence had been issued in Prabhakaran's name by Dhanbad district transport officer Ramji Prasad on Aug 21, 1993.

After that issue hit the headlines, the State Legislative Council set up a committee to inquire into it and the case was later handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Rahul Gandhi takes a Metro after rain brings Traffic to halt

The massive traffic jams after rains pounded the Capital led an unlikely passenger to take the Metro on Friday night.

Rahul Gandhi coming out of Rajiv Chowk station after taking a ride on a metro to avoid traffic jams following heavy rains in Delhi. (PTI Photo)


The passenger was none other than Rahul Gandhi. Rahul took the Metro to reach as close as possible to his 10 Janpath home after he returned to the Capital from Raipur after a two-day visit to Chhattisgarh, according to a security official.

The AICC general secretary after landing at the IGIA took a detour and went to nearby Metro station at Dwarka to board the underground train that took him to Rajiv Chowk station, about two kms from his home.

Rahul covered a substantial part of his journey home by the Metro train.

Traffic on all arterial roads in the capital went haywire for several hours after the heavy rains and hundreds of vehicles remained stuck for varying durations in the snarls.