Why? Why could he not have settled, for instance, for something like the Commerce Portfolio? The Commerce Portfolio ultimately went to Ramakrishna Hegde. He just wanted to be in the Government in a capacity that would benefit him. He didn't care if he was Defence Minister or Commerce Minister, so long as he was in there somewhere. George, on the other hand, had had his fill of being the Industries Minister sometime or the other. He made a killing there, much in the same way as he is making a killing in the Defence Ministry right now. George was insisting on the Defence Ministry all along. He threatened not to support the Government, if he was not given the Ministry.

It is a mystery, how the sensitive portfolio of a Government that was, in all seriousness, set to explode the nuclear bomb and manfully bear the brunt of the consequences thereafter, gave the portfolio, giftwrapped and all, to a known anti-nuclear activist. Was it by accident? Was it by design? Was it because of the sheer helplessness of the Government position in view of the fact that this time the BJP was desperate to taste power for more than a fortnight? The calculation of a fortnight is important, for had the BJP continued longer the last time they were in the gaddi, they would have exploded the nuclear bomb the last time.

No, George wanted the Defence Ministry because of his credentials as anti-nuclear activist. He wanted the Defence Ministry in view of the fact of his being a pro-Tibet activist, he wanted the Defence Ministry because he is implacably opposed to the regime in Yangon, he wanted the Defence Ministry so that he could make a meaningful difference in the struggle of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam against Colombo, this time he wanted the Defence Ministry so that he could get a cut from all the Defence Deals.

There is a rumour that when the Government decided to explode the nuclear weapon the one person they kept out of the information loop was George Fernandes? Isn't it a little strange that this should be so? Consider the implications: George was a security risk. He would squeal about it all the way to wherever he reports through his proxies and then the tests would be scuttled even before L K Advani got a chance to say Jack Robinson or more appropriately Jai Shriram, whichever can be said quicker. It is also rumoured that George took a personal interest in the gun-running activities through the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Seas.

The elevation of the then Fortress Commander Harinder Singh to Vice-Chief of Naval Staff should be seen in this very context. There is no other explanation. The LTTE uses the Bay of Bengal for various operations, and the MoD Harinder Singh, bypassing the then CNS Vishnu Bhagwat, indulged the LTTE on an industrial scale. It is also rumoured at the next Hero's Day celebrations somewhere in Northern Sri Lanka where Velupillai Pirabhakaran hides out, George is going to be made an honorary general. If George, cannot for some reason, receive the citation, his Samata Party colleague, Jaya Jaitley, who, it is actively rumoured, goes out on all sensitive official trips, will make a secret trip to receive the citation.