The Hindu Business Line : `I'll fight from Rae Bareilly again'

What obviously started off as a move by the Gandhi family to settle a personal score with the Bachchan family, resulting in the disqualification of Ms Jaya Bachchan as a Rajya Sabha MP, has finally ended with the Congress (I) President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, resigning from her seat in the Lok Sabha.

Ms Gandhi had no option. It would have been humiliating for the woman, who only 22 months ago could have become Prime Minister but turned down the crown with great fanfare, to be slapped a notice by the Election Commission on the complaint that she held offices of profit. But even while saying in the brief statement she made to the media that she was "hurt" by the Opposition parties' claim that the UPA government was planning an Ordinance just to protect her, it was a defiant Sonia who said: "Of course I'll fight the election from Rae Bareilly again, and I'm sure the people of Rae Bareilly will support me."

While Sonia has made her course of action very clear, what hangs in balance is the fate of Lok Sabha Speaker, Mr Somnath Chatterjee, who refused to preside over the Lok Sabha on Wednesday after the Trinamool Congress MP, Ms Mamata Banerjee, had raised the issue of his holding the office of the Chairman of Sriniketan-Shantiniketan Development Corporation.

Several other Congress MPs including Mr Karan Singh and Mr T. Subbirami Reddy, and BJP MPs such as Mr V.K. Malhotra, would come under the ambit of a rule that is seen as outdated in an era when both the Houses of Parliament draw members from the business community, and when many MPs have some business interest or the other.

Left for legislation

As far as the Left parties are concerned, both the CPI and the CPI (M) have made it clear that they are not in favour of the Ordinance route to change the law. Speaking to Business Line the CPI (M) General Secretary, Mr Prakash Karat, refused to comment on the resignation of Ms Gandhi. "But as far as any proposed Ordinance is concerned, we've made it clear that we are against such a move; let Parliament legislate on this issue," he said.