Bedtime blues

Every minister of state looks up to his or her senior minister for a briefing on dos and don’ts, after taking charge. When A K Antony became the defence minister during the previous UPA regime, his deputy — M M Pallam Raju — met him to know what Antony expected from him. Among other things, Antony told his junior minister, “Don’t get used to the perks of power because it may not remain with you tomorrow.” Antony is known for his simple lifestyle despite having been chief minister of Kerala on different occasions. His only problem in Delhi is that his “early to bed and early to rise” schedule has gone for a toss. “In Kerala I used to go to bed by 9 pm. But here, even at 11 pm if I call people, some of them will reply, ‘Let’s talk later at night’.”