The Hindu Business Line : Politics of the hawks

NOW that it is a while since she refused the crown, and halos tend to dim with passage of time, it is worthwhile to take a hard look at the way the Congress(I) President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, and her newly-elected MP son, Rahul, have behaved vis-à-vis the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh.

Taking the second Gandhi first: The entire nation was impressed, and even charmed, by the manner in which young Rahul handled media queries on BJP leaders, particularly the former Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihar Vajpayee, during the campaigning and before the results came in.

Asked to respond to Mr Vajpayee's comment at one of his campaign meetings, in an obvious reference to the young Gandhi's fray into politics, that "rajneeti koi bachchon ka khel nahi hei (politics is not child's play), the youngster had said with equanimity, "Vajpayeeji is a senior leader and I respect him a lot," adding that he did not wish to cross words or say anything derogatory about a senior and respected leader like him.

But, then, within a week or two, after his mother had turned down the prime ministership, the same Rahul Gandhi, after having watching in the Central Hall of Parliament and elsewhere Congress MPs bow and cajole his mother to accept the prime ministership, called the BJP a "sad joke".

Sure, and sadly, mudslinging is the hallmark of our politics, and people like the Sangh Parivar's Gujarat hero, Mr Narendra Modi, have made an art of stooping, something that has been acknowledged from time to time even by Mr Vajpayee, even if not too directly.

People today are enthused by the idea of young and educated entering the political arena in the desperate hope that this will improve the quality and integrity of governance, and bring into play dignified language and civil behaviour.

But with Rahul Gandhi almost obsessed with needling the UP Government, led by Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav's SP, an ally of the United Progressive Alliance Government, there seems to be an unnecessary controversy and headache being created for the Manmohan Singh Government in Delhi.

Mr Gandhi even went to the extent of calling for a `change' in the UP Government because the law and order situation in the State had deteriorated, and its infrastructure was in a shambles, leading to speculation that the Congress(I) was toying with the idea of working for the dismissal of the SP Government in UP, which it is supporting from outside at the moment.

Predictably, both Mr Mulayam Yadav and the SP General Secretary, Mr Amar Singh, have crossed swords with Mr Rahul Gandhi on this issue. The latter called him a kid, saying, "I can understand Rahul Gandhi's problem. He is a kid. He has to learn the tricks of politics." He reminded the Congress that it would have failed to come to power in Delhi had the SP not devastated the BJP in UP.

The netaji — as Mr Mulayam Yadav is popularly known in Lucknow and Delhi — was furious and asked the Congress(I) to first take care of the law and order problem and the high crime graph of cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, where it is in power.

One would have expected Ms Sonia Gandhi, particularly considering the maturity she showed in handling alliance partners — all except the SP, that is — to step in at some point and put an end to the war of words between her son and the SP leaders.

On the contrary, and disappointingly, she has herself attempted to fish in troubled waters by saying from Rae Bareilly, her constituency, that the state of affairs in UP indeed was cause for concern!

The war of words continues. While the SP leadership was to blame for refusing to accept the Congress(I) President's constant invitation for an alliance in UP to jointly take on the BJP, once the election results were out and had confounded even the Congress(I) by exceeding its most optimistic expectations, the Grand Old Party has hardly covered itself with glory in dealing with the SP.

Most people remember that even within an hour or two of counting on May 13, when it became evident that the BJP and its allies had fallen from favour with the electorate,

Mr Amar Singh dashed to the CPI(M) General Secretary, Mr Harkishen Singh Surjeet's house to pledge the SP's support to the "secular forces" that would attempt to forge an alternative coalition government at the Centre.

Senior Congress leaders' rage at the SP's volte face was understandable but at that crucial moment, as the entire nation reeled in a shock — remember the way the equity market behaved? — the politically astute thing would have been to graciously welcome the support offered by the SP.

Instead, it is learnt that when Ms Sonia Gandhi sighted Mr Amar Singh, who was invited by Mr Surjeet to that famous dinner thrown by the Congress President, she asked who had invited him.

Since then, the pitch has been queered and the first major crack has appeared in the coalition at the Centre, much to the delight of the BJP.

But these appear to be times when political parties seem to have lost their equilibrium, and the BJP is no exception. How else can you explain a hero of yesterday like the Divestment Minister, Mr Arun Shourie, an NDP minister with the unusual reputation for both integrity and efficiency, being at first overlooked when it came to renewing his Rajya Sabha membership?

It is really shocking that his candidature was at first deliberately overlooked by the BJP leadership and somebody like Mr Vajpayee had to intervene to point out the impropriety of the party supporting people such as Ms Najma Heptullah and hotelier Mr Lalit Suri, while rejecting Mr Shourie.

Once again, it is a troubled Mr Vajpayee who has finally brought out of the closet the issue of the Gujarat carnage of 2002 and the role played by Mr Narendra Modi in the defeat of the BJP-led coalition. He said the party High Command would discuss the question of his replacement as the Gujarat Chief Minister at the party's enclave.

But no sooner had he said this than the entire Sangh Parivar, led by the VHP General Secretary, Mr Praveen Togadia, was up in arms calling Mr Vajpayee and Mr L. K. Advani, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, "old men" who needed to retire.

The BJP President, Mr Venkaiah Naidu, was also quick in springing to Mr Modi's defence by saying exactly the opposite of what Mr Vajpayee had said. The BJP's priority is clear enough: Those confused by the party's bid to get in Muslim leaders such as Mr Arif Mohammed Khan and Ms Heptullah should note that the party still prefers a hawkish chief minister to a soft-spoken, suave, honest and efficient leader like Mr Shourie.

(Response may be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in)