 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Varun, who won his first Lok Sabha election from his mother Maneka Gandhi Pilibhit parliamentary constituency in 2009 largely by forging a sharp communal divide with his diatribe, virtually enacted his father Sanjay Gandhi, who, during his heyday of the 70s, would condescend on Congress leaders as if they were his subjects.
Addressing a meeting of party workers at the BJP headquarters, Varun's entire focus was on telling them how old hands in the party ought to be treated, besides giving them tips for revival of the party in the country's most populous state where its fortunes had witnessed a sharp decline over the years.
Briefing on his visit to an ailing octogenarian party worker Ram Kumar Singh at his home in Bakshi-ka Talab area, about 25 km outside the city limits, Varun went about impressing upon all and sundry how he had made it a point to call on a forgotten veteran, who had been associated with Atal Behari Vajpayee in the Lok Sabha election from Balrampur way back in 1957.
"The idea behind my visit to Ram Kumar Singh was to make him feel that the new generation owes much to people like him , whose contribution is often ignored," said Varun.
The 31-year-old Gandhi scion did not hesitate to hint how the party fortunes had plummeted in the state mainly because workers were ignored.
Later, in a brief informal meeting with the media, he refused to take any questions. "I have come here only to have a cup of tea with you, so I will not take any questions," he declared at the very outset.
And he instantly went ahead with the same monologue about what all he was busy doing for rejuvenating the party and what was required to put the party back on its feet.
However, he could not restrain himself from sermonizing once again by pointing out, "We must not run after votes, what we need to do is to make serious effort to win the confidence of the common people. Credibility is of paramount importance in politics, if we are able to maintain and strengthen our credibility than votes will follow naturally."