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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

NDA power matrix reshaped after success

AI generated image Mumbai: A quiet coup in the state has triggered a loud shift in the power dynamics of the nation’s capital. By engineering the defection of six additional MPs, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has nearly doubled his parliamentary muscle, transforming his Shiv Sena faction from a junior regional partner into an indispensable pillar of the NDA. Now sitting on a commanding 13 seats, Shinde has dramatically increased his political leverage—leaving a cautious BJP to weigh the...

NDA power matrix reshaped after success

AI generated image Mumbai: A quiet coup in the state has triggered a loud shift in the power dynamics of the nation’s capital. By engineering the defection of six additional MPs, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has nearly doubled his parliamentary muscle, transforming his Shiv Sena faction from a junior regional partner into an indispensable pillar of the NDA. Now sitting on a commanding 13 seats, Shinde has dramatically increased his political leverage—leaving a cautious BJP to weigh the cost of an emboldened ally demanding a bigger slice of the pie in both the Union and state cabinets. In a masterstroke of political engineering that has profoundly jolted political landscape, Shinde has once again demonstrated his formidable capacity for disruption. The rebellion of six out of nine Lok Sabha Members of Parliament from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), ostensibly joining Shinde’s ranks under the banner of “Operation Tiger,” is not merely a regional skirmish. It is a calculated power play that reverberates through the highest corridors of power in New Delhi. By nearly doubling his party’s strength in the lower house from seven to thirteen MPs, Shinde has dramatically altered his own political trajectory, elevating his faction from a helpful regional ally to an indispensable pillar of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Shinde’s Stature The immediate consequence of this crossover is a massive surge in Shinde’s stature within the NDA hierarchy. With thirteen parliamentarians, his Shiv Sena is now poised to become the fourth-largest bloc in the ruling national coalition, sitting just behind the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Telugu Desam Party, and the newly formed Nationalist Citizens Party of India. This numerical leap is of immense strategic value to the BJP-led central government. In a parliamentary environment where the ruling coalition possesses only a modest majority, every single seat counts. The central leadership is acutely aware of upcoming legislative hurdles, particularly ambitious constitutional amendments like the proposed delimitation bill, which will require a formidable two-thirds majority. By acting as the architect of this crucial numerical boost, Shinde has cemented his reputation as a reliable and highly effective operator for the NDA, significantly increasing his bargaining power and political leverage. National Relief For the BJP, this development evokes a complex mixture of profound national relief and acute regional anxiety. From the vantage point of PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Shinde’s successful poaching operation is a clear windfall. It simultaneously fortifies the NDA’s numerical strength in New Delhi while severely crippling a vocal opposition force in Maharashtra. The central BJP leadership views Shinde as a vital asset capable of bridging the gap between their current numbers and the overwhelming mandates of the past. However, the perspective from the Maharashtra BJP headquarters is noticeably more apprehensive. State BJP leaders openly acknowledge Shinde’s soaring political equity, but they are increasingly wary of his expanding ambitions. They recognize that an emboldened Shinde, eager to fill the political vacuum left by Uddhav Thackeray and a fragmented Nationalist Congress Party, will aggressively attempt to expand his footprint across the state, potentially encroaching upon the BJP’s own traditional support bases. Power Sharing This dramatically enhanced political heft immediately raises pressing questions regarding power-sharing arrangements, both at the Centre and in the state. Armed with thirteen MPs, Shinde’s camp is undoubtedly preparing to seek greater political rewards. In the Union Cabinet, his demand for an additional, high-profile ministerial berth is now backed by solid arithmetic. Given his heightened utility to the national coalition, the BJP high command is highly likely to accommodate this request during the next cabinet reshuffle. However, the power struggle within the Maharashtra state cabinet promises to be far more contentious. Shinde, who had to settle for the Deputy Chief Ministership behind Devendra Fadnavis following the last assembly elections, may now feel emboldened to petition the BJP leadership for the top job. The BJP’s state unit is actively preparing to fiercely resist any such demand. Senior BJP leaders are quick to emphasize that despite his parliamentary gains, Shinde’s legislative strength in the state assembly hovers around 57 MLAs, dwarfed by the BJP’s commanding 132 legislators. Consequently, conceding the Chief Minister’s chair remains highly improbable. Instead, the BJP will be forced into a delicate balancing act, likely appeasing Shinde by granting his faction a larger share of influential, heavyweight portfolios within the state government to keep the alliance stable. Ultimately, through sheer political audacity, Eknath Shinde has ensured that neither New Delhi nor Mumbai can afford to govern without catering to his increasingly formidable political weight.

Why Did Trump Pick Kash to Lead FBI?

  • AP
  • Dec 2, 2024
  • 4 min read

Updated: Dec 3, 2024

Kash Patel

Kash Patel has called for radical changes at the FBI and was a fierce and vocal critic of the bureau's work as it investigated ties between Russia and Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.


Now the steadfast Trump ally has been tapped to lead the federal law enforcement agency he's pushed to overhaul.


A look at Patel, Trump's pick to replace Christopher Wray atop the FBI.


Side-by-side with Trump

Patel has for years been a loyal ally to Trump, finding common cause over their shared skepticism of government surveillance and the “deep state” — a pejorative catchall used by Trump to refer to government bureaucracy.


He was part of a small group of supporters during Trump's recent criminal trial in New York who accompanied him to the courthouse, where he told reporters that Trump was the victim of an “unconstitutional circus.”

That close bond would depart from the modern-day precedent of FBI directors looking to keep presidents at arm's length.


Former FBI Director James Comey, who was fired by Trump in May 2017, memorably recoiled when Trump asked him during a private dinner to pledge his loyalty to him. And Wray, who had no personal connection to Trump when he was picked to replace Comey, broke with Trump on different hot-button issues and served as FBI director during investigations into Trump that ultimately led to his indictment.


A determination to upend the FBI

Patel has signalled through interviews and public statements a determination to upend the FBI and radically reshape its mission.


He's called for dramatically reducing its footprint and limiting its authority, as well as going after government officials who disclose information to reporters.


In an interview earlier this year on the “Shawn Ryan Show,” Patel vowed to sever the FBI's intelligence-gathering activities from the rest of its mission and said he would “shut down” the bureau's headquarters building on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., and “reopen it the next day as a museum of the deep state.'”


“And I'd take the seven thousand employees that work in that building and send them across America to go chase down criminals,” he added.

In a separate interview with conservative strategist Steve Bannon, Patel said he and others “will go out and find the conspirators not just in government but in the media.”


”We're going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections,” Patel said, referring to the 2020 presidential election in which Biden, the Democratic challenger, defeated Trump. “We're going to come after you, whether it's criminally or civilly. We'll figure that out. But yeah, we're putting you all on notice.”


A loud critic of the FBI's Russia investigation

Patel first came to prominence in Trump's orbit as an outspoken critic of the FBI's investigation into potential ties between Russia and Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.


As a staffer on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, chaired at the time by Rep Devin Nunes, a Trump loyalist, Patel helped author a four-page report that detailed what it said were errors the Justice Department made in obtaining a warrant to surveil a former Trump campaign adviser.


The document, which came to be colloquially known as the “Nunes memo,” was released over vigorous objections from Wray and Justice Department leaders.


A subsequent inspector general report identified significant problems with FBI surveillance during the Russia investigation, but also concluded that the inquiry had been opened for a legitimate purpose and found no evidence that the FBI had acted with partisan motives in conducting the probe.


Entangled in Trump's legal woes

Patel has played a role in several legal investigations into Trump. He appeared in 2022 before the Washington grand jury investigating Trump's hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida after receiving immunity for his testimony. He also testified at a Colorado court hearing related to Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the run-up to the violent Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Patel, who at the time of the riot was chief of staff to the then-acting defence secretary, testified that Trump had pre-emptively authorised 10,000 to 20,000 troops to deploy days before the attack. But a Colorado court later found that Patel was “not a credible witness” on the topic.


Earning some K$H

Shortly after Trump left office, Patel launched Fight with Kash, an organisation that funds defamation lawsuits and peddles a wide variety of merchandise, including branded socks and other clothing with the “K$H” logo.


Patel has also turned to publishing. He wrote a book called “Government Gangsters,” which is part memoir and part screed against the so-called deep state. Patel teamed with Bannon to release a film version. Patel has also authored children's books that lionize Trump — “The Plot Against the King” features a thinly veiled Hillary Clinton as the villain going after “King Donald” while Kash plays a wizard who thwarts her plans.


Patel has been a pitchman for a variety of products marketed to Trump supporters. One dietary supplement he's promoted claims to be a COVID vaccine “detoxification system.”


Records show that Patel has earned hundreds of thousands of dollars a year from consulting for Trump-related entities, including a political action committee and the company that owns Truth Social.


Patel helped produce “And Justice For All,” a rendition of the Star Spangled Banner sung by a group of men incarcerated for their role in the Capitol riot.


A favourite of MAGA media

Patel's candidacy has won support from prominent Trump supporters, including people who support the president-elect's agenda at the FBI and Justice Department and the idea of using his electoral win to pursue retaliation against his perceived adversaries.


He's been a regular guest on right-wing podcasts and live-stream online shows hosted by Bannon, Tim Pool, Benny Johnson and others.


Even as Trump was said to be considering more conventional picks for the job whose confirmation prospects were seen as more certain, some conservative backers of the president-elect actively boosted Patel's candidacy and disparaged other potential selections, including Mike Rogers, a former FBI agent and ex-Republican chairman of the House intelligence committee.


A Trump aide recently said on social media that Rogers was not getting the job. The FBI employs approximately 35,000 people, including special agents and support professionals such as intelligence analysts, language specialists, scientists, and IT specialists.

-AP

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