Animal spirits

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad is known for his rustic wit and Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh rarely misses the opportunity for tart repartee. But when the two exchange words, though, there’s clearly a communication gap. At a Lok Sabha session last week, Prasad was remonstrating with Ramesh about the proposed restrictions on a traditional and long-standing annual animal fair in Bihar, narrating at length how the fair attracted all kinds of animals from cows and goats to elephants, horses and even birds. After Prasad’s lengthy exposition, Ramesh prefaced his reply by saying that he did not claim to know the “animal kingdom” as well as the member did. It was a clear barb but it went right over the head of the RJD boss.