Advertisement

The Election Commission said he had not acted with a sense of higher responsibility. The indictment came at a time when five states were going to polls. However, the EC refrained from holding him guilty of violating the model code of conduct for lack of conclusive evidence.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences and IITs, across the nation, became the hub of student agitation that took the nation by storm. Even as an adamant Govt refused to budge, and seemed in no mood to compromise, the irrepressible cops made their life miserable. On separate occasions, students were lathicharged even while taking out a peaceful rally.

While judiciary mostly remained a mute spectaator, society's anger knew no bounds. Fresh rounds of protests were witnessed when the reservation Bill was passed in both Houses of the Parliament.

India Inc, meanwhile, headed for another confrontation, over increasing employment for scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled tribes (STs), while the IIMs said they could not implement quota in one go. While industry spokesmen said they would oppose reservation at any cost, Minister for Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath almost threatened them in response. "The legal option is always open if companies do not fulfil their commitments on affirmative action," said Nath.

As chaos took over the national Capital as well as other parts of the country, Union ministers -- read Kapil Sibal and Arjun Singh -- engaging in a slanging match plunged the UPA govt in another turmoil.

The government said it would look at "all options" to ensure a balance between industry's concerns and the need for social justice. The latter countered by saying that if quotas were imposed through legislation, private industry's energies would be largely focused on how to dodge them.

So even as planners and experts came up with new ideas to even out things, seeking a semblance of justice in the society, the million-dollar question remained unanswered -- where will the vote bank politics and quota stop?