CJI Gogoi to head SC Vacation Bench soon after Lok Sabha poll results

Gogoi on vacation Bench

Vacation Benches of the Supreme Court, which has just started its long holiday, traditionally consisted of junior judges. But this time, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi himself will sit from May 25 to May 30. The days are ominous because the general election results will come on May 23 and a hung verdict is in the air. Last summer, such a power struggle in Karnataka was resolved in the small hours by two judges who sat in the crowded vacation court till sunrise. Vacation Benches sometimes gain unexpected importance as when Justice Krishna Iyer refused to pass an absolute stay on the Allahabad High Court judgment unseating Indira Gandhi, leading to the 1975 Emergency. Perish the thought that something dramatic would come out of the Supreme Court next week.

'Inspiration to society'

Politicians are in the business of self-promotion. But Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National General Secretary Anil Jain took it to a new level on Monday when his office sent a press release informing that his young daughter Arushi, a first-time voter, was an "inspiration" to society. How? She travelled from the US to her hometown "just" to cast her vote. Laudable yes, but the press release was a tad over the top. "Setting up an example before others, Arushi Jain... has rushed back to her hometown... just to cast her vote and thus strengthen our electoral process," the statement declared. It also quoted Arushi to have said, "You might say that a single vote does not make any difference but you also need to understand that when such tendency prevails across the country, collectively there would be crores of people who would skip the voting; and thus it would increase the chances of the unsuitable candidates winning the polls.? The press release also said "youths like her are true aspiration (sic) for our society, who talk and act in national interest".

Puzzled punters

As Mumbai Indians (MI) trumped Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in an edge-of-the-seat Indian Premier League (IPL) final on Sunday, the betting market rates reflected the sheer uncertainty around the eventual outcome. If sources are to be believed, MI started as favourites with a rate of 88 paise and strengthened its position before wickets fell in the middle overs. To put it simply, these rates fluctuate after every delivery, depending on how the team is playing and are inversely proportional to the odds of a win. Chennai overturned the equation at the halfway stage with a 50-paisa rate, which kept lowering as the game progressed. The see-saw battle in the second half of CSK?s chase saw Mumbai touching as low as 36 paise and CSK bouncing back to 20 paise when they needed five off three balls. As Lasith Malinga started his run-up for the last ball, CSK still remained the favourite but a well-directed yorker from the veteran dashed the hopes of those betting on Chennai.