Brahmins in the Congress are worried about the selection procedure adopted for State presidents. The traditional combination of Brahmin-Dalit-Muslim has been changed to OBC-Dalit-Muslim combine. It is said that AICC general secretary Oscar Fernandes, general secretary BK Hariprasad and AICC general secretary incharge for Rajasthan Mukul Wasnik are responsible for this new combine.
Some senior leaders say Digvijay Singh may also have a hand in this. Former president of UPCC Rita Joshi and former MPCC president Suresh Pachauri are Brahmins and both have been removed. Nirmal Khatri was appointed in place of Rita Joshi and Kanti lal Bhuria replaced Pachauri. A Mahadalit has been made State president of Bihar Congress — a move welcomed by the community since there has been no Dalit president in the last 25 years. But the Brahmins say that no president from their community, too, has held the post in the last 21 years.
Meanwhile, Pratap Singh Bajwa has been given charge of Punjab Congress and Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is in charge of Himachal Pradesh. Yashpal Arya is president of Uttarakhand Congress and Dalit leader Phool Chand Mullana heads Haryana Congress. Rajasthan is in the hands of Chandrabhan. Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu is president of Jharkhand Congress. JP Aggrawal is in Delhi, Manikrao Thakre is in Maharashtra and Arjun Modhwadia is president of Gujarat Congress.
The only Brahmin State president from the north, north-east and west India is West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee president Pradeep Bhattacharya.
A slick move
Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily has shown that he has excellent PR abilities. lately, he has been the eye of a storm over the funding of his NGO. It was alleged that his NGO got funds from corporate houses when he was Corporate Affairs Minister.
However, Moily clarified by saying that he took funds from only those corporate houses whose cases were not pending before the Corporate Affairs Ministry. The funds were accepted only after checking this fact. The Minister was targeted for taking funds from ITC.
But Moily realised that this explanation will not suffice. An e-mail sent by his son surfaced in which he had written something to his partner giving Moily’s reference. So, Moily devised a way out. He personally met the BJP leaders and requested them not to raise the issue. The request was accepted.
Yatra Saga
The Congress, the BJP, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the JD(U) have appointed their State presidents. They are all gearing up for the polls and election yatras have been organised.
The RJD has called for a Parivartan Rally at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan on May 15. RJD chief lalu Prasad Yadav has been on a Parivartan Yatra for a few months now. lJP’s chief Ram Vilas Paswan is also on move with his Bihar Bachao Yatra.
Various allies of the NDA are also competing with each other. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar held a rally in Patna in November last year and another rally in Delhi on March 17. The BJP has called a rally this month to be held at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan. It is said that Nitish Kumar, who left Adhikar Yatra midway due to people’s protest, is once again ready with Seva Yatra.
Recently, Upendra Kushwaha and Arun Kumar recently launched Rashtriya lok Samata Party. They have addressed a rally at Patna and are set on an extensive tour of the whole State as well.
Eor active role
Karnataka is probably the only State from where seven former Chief Ministers have an active political role to play in the State. Then there is present Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar. Even former Chief Minister DV Sadananda Gowda will have a role to play from the BJP camp.
Veerappa Moily, former External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and former Chief Minister and lok Sabha member N Dharam Singh represent the Congress. Though, none of them holds a specific post, they all have a say.
Former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda-led JDS and his son JD-S State president HD Kumaraswamy are also former Chief Ministers. Gowda has said that the Assembly elections will be his last. It is said that his sentimental appeal may get him the votes.
BS Yeddyurappa, who has formed his Karnataka Janata Party (KJP), is also a former Chief Minister. He, too, will have an active role in this election.
Who’s the favouriteIJ
Muslim politics in Karnataka used to centre around former Railway Minister CK Jaffer Sharief. He always played a big role in Muslim areas. But now, K Rahman Khan plays a pivotal role.
Meanwhile, CM Ibrahim, who was once a close associate of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, has been made chairman of the Congress Election Strategy Committee for May 5 Karnataka Assembly polls. Ibrahim was made Minority Affairs Minister, a post held by Salman Khurshid.
Ibrahim is said to have a good hold over Muslim voters in the State. There are 13-14 per cent Muslim voters in Karnataka. This is a solid votebank of the Congress. Sources say that there an internal tug-of-war between the three Muslim leaders who are doing their best to get tickets for their favourites.
In the national team
The BJP leaders in Bihar have a take of their own on the strategy worked out by their national president Rajnath Singh. The BJP has ignored the warning given to the party by Nitish Kumar and JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav and increased the role to be played by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. By doing so, the party has ensured it will have an upper hand. Since there is a probability that JD(U) will part ways with the BJP, the leaders from the forward class have been given priority in the new team.
The BJP has very smartly accommodated leaders like CP Thakur who has been made national vice-president. Rajput leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy has been elevated to the post of general secretary, Brahmin leader Mangal Pandey has been made State president and Kayastha leader Ravi Shankar Prasad has been given the post of Deputy leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha.
SS Ahluwalia has been made vice-president and Rameshwar Chaurasia and Renu Kushwaha, secretaries. Shahnawaz Hussain, who is the spokesman along with Rudy, is also the party’s central election committee (CEC) member. Former State president Radha Mohan Singh has been elevated to the post of disciplinary committee president.
A walkoverIJ
The Congress has finally appointed Ashok Chaudhary, a Mahadalit, as president of Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC). It is said that party vice-president Rahul Gandhi himself chose Chaudhary. But State party leaders opine that with this move, the Congress has given walkover to the BJP and other regional parties.
Chaudhary faces several charges, including alleged involvement in the 2005 murder of a former party parliamentarian Rajo Singh. Though the police have given him a clean chit, Rajo Singh’s grandson has filed a case in the High Court naming him as an accused.
Congress leaders opine that the party has lost an opportunity to attract forward class voters who feel cheated by Nitish Kumar and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. However, the Mahadalits will vote for Nitish Kumar for the special treatment given to them.
But then so is Meira Kumar. If the Congress can’t get the Mahadalit votes in her name, what will Chaudhary doIJ Chaudhary was Minister in Rabri Devi’s Cabinet. There is talk that his appointment as State president may increase the chances of an alliance between the RJD and the Congress. But lalu is also wooing the Muslims as well as forward class voters. Chaudhary will not fit in.
lalu’s new strategy
It appears that Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief lalu Prasad Yadav has either given up hope for an alliance with the Congress or wants to give the impression that he has the wherewithal to fight the 2014 lok Sabha elections on his own.
The reason, sources say, is because the Congress has been trying to woo Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar too. The party has appointed Ashok Chaudhary, a Mahadalit, as State president. lalu would have benefitted if the Congress had appointed a forward class or a Muslim as State unit president. But, this did not happen. So, lalu has started working on a strategy that will be advantageous for him and his party.
He is busy trying to unite anti-NDA forces in Bihar. It is said that he has talked with Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Tariq Anwar. Recently, former Minister Nagmani, a powerful leader of the backward Kushwaha community, joined the NCP and became its State president. Sources also say that the NCP needs two lok Sabha seats — Katihar for Tariq Anwar and Ujiyarpur for Nagmani. The NCP also needs the Jharkhand seat.
Besides the NCP, lalu is also in talks with Upendra Kushwaha who has recently launched Rashtriya lok Samata Party with a pledge to oust the NDA Government in Bihar. Though there are rumours that Upendra is waiting for JD(U) to part ways with the BJP so that he can form an alliance with the BJP. However, if the JD(U)-BJP alliance continues, Upendra may go for a tie-up with lalu.