MPs jostle to brush with Bill

By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, MARCH 22. With an `angavastram', sporting the Indian colours around his neck, the U.S. President, Mr. Bill Clinton, bowled them over with his easy informality, winning many a friend by simply reaching out to shake hands.

Immediately after Mr. Clinton finished addressing a joint meeting of the two Houses of Parliament at the Central Hall this morning, he had a taste of the push and shove of Indian politics. For, as he walked down the aisle on his way out and reached out to the ``backbenchers'' to shake hands with them, there was a virtual scramble for shaking hands with the most powerful man. The security men had to jump into their act and escort him out as the crowd around Mr. Clinton became thicker. The Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr. Pramod Mahajan, had to rush to control the enthusiasm.

Some MPs stood up on their benches and jumped forward to reach the aisle, others pushed and shoved to get `there' and some had the audacity to virtually block his way in order to be able to smile up at him and shake his hand.

It was Mr. R. Ramachandraiah, a Telugu Desam Party MP, who was quick enough to place an `angavastram' on Mr. Clinton's shoulders, who seemed happy to have it. His dark suit, light blue shirt and red tie were the American colours and the natural white `angavastram' had bands of saffron and green.

The meeting began with a certain air of formality - the front row had been marked for selected Cabinet Ministers, former Presidents and Prime Ministers, a few American guests and leaders of political parties. Of course, some chose to break the protocol. Ms. Anita Arya, a first time BJP MP, snuggled into the front row and seated herself next to Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Mr. Clinton's powerful and warm 35-minute address that covered a wide range of subjects and his easy smiling manner bowled them over. It was as if he had personally swept away the cobwebs that hung menacingly over diplomatic relations between the two countries.

There was laughter when Mr. Clinton, at one point, almost signalled that the gathering was were free to applaud. There were also some odd moments as the MPs thumped their desks when they ought not to have - for instance, when Mr. Clinton referred to his meeting with the young widow of Ripan Katyal. But when the 50-minute function was over, there was an atmosphere of bonhomie and throughout the speech there was thunderous applause, not to mention the standing ovation he received when he stood up to make his speech.

Of course, there was the exception. The Left and the Rashtriya Janata Dal MPs chose to keep their distance from Uncle Sam. They did not attend the meeting.

As for the press, the fear that the galleries would give way under the sheer weight of men, women and equipment, did not materialise, thanks to the selected passes issued for today. Many scribes were disappointed, but they had the live coverage by the electronic media.....

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Section  : National
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