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Analysis | Share This Page | |
Kejriwal Alters Sonia’s Script! |
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by Dr. Rajinder Puri |
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There seem to be two reasons why the strategy adopted by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi to overcome her party’s corruption taint may fail. Earlier it was conjectured in these columns that the controversy raked up over Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) would divert public attention from the mega corruption that would have fatally damaged the Congress in elections. It was further speculated that the diversion was a deliberate ploy by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi because after the Coalgate exposures the net was closing in on the party’s top leadership.
The IAC team seized the obvious issue to refocus on corruption. It went for the jugular. Mr. Kejriwal and Mr. Bhushan drew attention to the old exposure about Mrs. Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Mr. Robert Vadra’s swift climb from modest to huge financial assets facilitated by his interaction with the DLF Company. The revival of these old allegations raised the political storm that ought to have arisen many months ago. The storm arose only due to the media and to the Congress party itself which felt compelled to respond which it did with inept overdrive. Even till now the opposition reaction is curiously muted and restrained. The Vadra affair should be of course merely the start. Robert Vadra is the tip of an iceberg and much, much more about an unholy nexus between politics and commerce can come out. The IAC team may not confine itself to targeting the Congress. Opposition leaders might become the next victims. The IAC team would do well to spread its net as widely as possible to expose corruption in all parties. If the team wants genuine change it will have to fight not any one or two political parties but the entire political class and the political culture by which it operates. Up till now signs of an attempt for genuine change are positive. This, then, is the first reason why Mrs. Sonia Gandhi’s diversionary tactic seems to be failing. The second reason may be traced to the mess within the Congress party. Rats desert a sinking ship. And the UPA ship is badly wobbling. There are signs of shifting loyalties and new alliances within the party that compound confusion and uncertainty. One may ignore the bit players and focus for the moment only on two key individuals. The first is Mr. Robert Vadra himself who is in the eye of the storm. After the controversy flared Mr. Vadra tweeted on his Facebook account on the Internet to ridicule “mango people in a banana republic”. ‘Mango people’ was of course a pun on aam admi. On July 2nd with tongue in cheek it was written in these columns:
After his controversial tweet Mr. Vadra has closed his Facebook account and has declared intention to start another. He criticized people for lacking a sense of humor. All said, he remains somewhat of a loose cannon and it remains to be seen how he conducts himself in the future. One doubts if Dynastic discipline could be exercised over him too effectively. Does that constitute a snub for Mr. Ahmed Patel? Has Mrs. Gandhi distanced him? If so, will Mr. Patel meekly acquiesce? Up till now he has been the Congress party’s main hatchet man and has effectively dealt with the media and underlings in the party on behalf of his boss. His reach and influence remain formidable. If he is indeed unhappy, how might he use or misuse his power? He is the second key leader in the Congress that needs watching. |
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10-Oct-2012 | ||
More by : Dr. Rajinder Puri | ||
Views: 1571 Comments: 0 | ||
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