Sonia puts the worry-lines back on BJP and SP in Uttar Pradesh
Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow
Sonia Gandhi's visit to Amethi has not only improved the prospects
of Congress nominee Satish Sharma, who is seeking re-election
from this constituency, but also provided
a shot in the arm for the otherwise dormant Congress party in
the country's most populous state.
It was no wonder that Sonia,
who is busy leading the Congress campaign in a bid to revitalise
its rank and file, stepped up her programme in Uttar Pradesh.
The over 100,000 crowd at Amethi on January 31,
enthused Sonia. And she swiftly planned at least seven more
election rallies in different parts of the state.
While the overwhelming response in Amethi did not surprise her critics, what
sent jitters in both the Bharatiya Janata Party as well as the United Front (read Samajwadi Party in
UP) was the way she took Varanasi by storm on February
6. Instead of the usual chanting of 'Har Har Mahadev,' it was
cries of 'Sonia Gandhi zindabad' and 'Desh ki neta Sonia Gandhi' that reverberated on the streets of this ancient city.
This was followed by an amazing turnout
in Ghazipur, Pratapgarh, Jaunpur, Farrukhabad, Meerut, and Mohanlalganj
(on the outskirts of Lucknow). She began her day on February 8 from Ghazipur on the eastern corner of the state and ended at Meerut on the western tip.
Predictably she avoided Lucknow; Congress candidate Ranjit Singh is a non-entity in the face of BJP stalwart and prime ministerial nominee Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
She began in Amethi by blaming the United Front and some its constituents for the tardy progress in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, while in Varanasi and east UP, she unleashed her first frontal
attack on the BJP for "vitiating the atmosphere of the nation"
while assuring the mammoth crowds that "the Congress alone was in
a position to provide ideal governance to the country." In
both places she chose to skilfully play upon the emotions of
the people.
If in Amethi she only made passing references to the Babri Masjid,
as "a religious structure", in Varanasi the Ayodhya episode was spelt out in as many words, with a warning to Muslims
to not get carried away by the "liberal facade" adopted lately
by the BJP. Sure enough, Sonia was anticipating an impressive
Muslim gathering. After all, the venue of the meeting -- the Benia
Bagh ground -- happens to be just next to a densely populated locality
of Muslims, who not only turned out in very large numbers but
could also be seen perched on rooftops on at least two sides
of the sprawling field.
Obviously she knew the audience she was addressing, so much
of her offensive was focused on the BJP and the ideological
forces behind it. While directly accusing the BJP of having "pulled
downed the Babri Masjid with the sole intent of grabbing political
power", she warned that the mosques in Kashi and Mathura
were also not safe with the BJP around. Referring to the oft
repeated assurances of top BJP leaders,
she emphasised that their claims about not having Mathura
and Kashi on their agenda "for the time-being" says it all.
Her apology on Ayodhya and denial of party ticket to Narasimha
Rao, branding him as the culprit, surely seems to have had its
desired impact on the Muslims.
This was borne out by the reaction of many, who seemed to have
begun to see a ray of hope in the Congress once again. Abdul Rehman,
a retired government employee, confessed, "I was disillusioned
with the Congress and had therefore started supporting the Samajwadi
Party but now with Sonia in the forefront, we could rest our hopes on the Congress once again."
Mohamed Israr Khan, a middle-aged self-employed person, took offence on
being asked if he had come to only have a glimpse of Sonia. "What
do you mean?" he shot back, "if that was the case I would not have
waited here for a good six hours." He too admitted to having been
a Mulayam fan until some time back and voting for
SP at the last general election. "But over the years we have found
that Mulayam has done nothing for us." Young Aminuddin, a labourer,
too did not hesitate to pledge full support to the Congress this
time -- "because the Congress is turning a new leaf under Sonia Gandhi."
Just as Sonia visibly made some dent with the Muslims, so did
she seem to make an appeal to women who had not only turned out
in large numbers but also appeared to have been affected by her
spell. Said Asha Kesri, a middle-aged housewife, "I am sure
the Congress will now see its rejuvenation under the leadership of
Sonia Gandhi." Nirmala Devi, carrying her infant in her
lap observed, "We have a lot of hope in Sonia -- after all her
family members have always been the well-wishers of the poor and
the needy so she will also follow the same course."
Likewise, back in the villages of eastern Uttar Pradesh, it was
not difficult to run into neo-supporters of the Congress,
who saw much promise in Sonia's leadership. Whether it was urbanites
in the ancient Hindu city of Varanasi, or the rural folk in remote
parts of adjoining Bhadohi Mirzapur, from where
Phoolan Devi is in the fray, Sonia's supporters appeared aplenty.
And despite her heavily accented Hindi, they find nothing wrong.
"She speaks better Hindi than many of us," remarks
Varanasi Congress nominee Ratnakar Pandey, who is stated to have
given her initial lessons in the language.
Some even protested to her being referred to as a foreigner.
Raj Kumar Yadav, a shopkeeper in Aurai village, was
forthright in admitting that he was a staunch SP supporter, but
did not hesitate to confess how "the Sonia factor had led
him to change his mind". And even as this scribe attempted to ask
him about Sonia's alien lineage, he retorted with anger, "What
do you mean? How can she be labelled as a foreigner when she has
not only been married here for nearly 30 years, wears a sari
and has adapted herself to Indian
customs and traditions?"
Ram Kishore, his companion, wanted to know,
"If Sonia is a foreigner, then even L K Advani should be called
a foreigner because he too came from Pakistan at the time of
Partition." And interestingly, just as they have begun to welcome
the idea of seeing Sonia as India's prospective prime minister,
so does she seem to now apparently relish the suggestion.
It is such feedback from the interiors of UP on Sonia,
that is making not only the BJP, but also the SP somewhat jittery. Their initial impression that people were gathering at her meetings
only to have a glimpse of her or Priyanka, has proved to be a
myth. And that speaks for the sudden attack on her even from
BJP leaders like Vajpayee and Advani, who had earlier chosen to
ignore her or dismiss her as "no factor". Both BJP leaders have, of
late, trained their guns on Sonia over the Bofors kickbacks,
which far from any defence, saw counter retaliation from her end.
SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has been displaying his discomfort
on account of the pervading Sonia factor in his reactions to the
star Congress campaigner's oft-repeated references to the Babri
Masjid. "I wish to caution the Congress leadership to shun even
a mention about the Babri Masjid, because if they continue to
do so then they should also be prepared to answer other questions that
would arise consequently -- who was in power when the idol of
Ram was installed surreptitiously inside the mosque in 1949? Who
was in power when the gates of the disputed shrine were unlocked?
And who was responsible for allowing the shilanyas of the proposed
temple?"
And in the same vein he goes on to add as a warning,
"Every time it was none other than the Congress." He even goes
to the extent of attributing this to "Sonia being a novice in
politics" and feels that her apology on Ayodhya and denial of
ticket to Rao "would amount to giving the BJP a clean chit".
Ironically, this is proving to be Sonia's main strength. And
even though it is still debatable as to what extent the
Sonia factor would give any meaningful upward swing in terms
of seats to the Congress, there is no denying that she has woken
up the Congress from its slumber in the country's largest
state . Says UP Congress chief N D Tiwari and party vice-president Jitendra Prasada, "We always held the view that her entry into the political arena will make all the difference -- and time will tell we were absolutely right."
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