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He came, he spoke, but he did not quite conquer. Arvind Kejriwal was greeted warmly by the Muslim audience when he rose to speak at a recent convention but in the end, the polite applause notwithstanding, Kejriwal did not quite manage to leave a mark. He did not unveil any new policy for the community. Neither did he announce a plan to tackle such key areas of concern as education, employment and security. Kejriwal may not have presented substantial ideas but he cannot be faulted for not trying to establish an emotional bond with the community. His plea to take on Narendra Modi in the electoral battle — after yet another show of hands on the part of the audience — was greeted enthusiastically. Incidentally, the Aam Aadmi Party may have succeeded in forming a government for a while but it has not been able to wean away Muslim voters from its competitors. Kejriwal’s new aim is to make a dent in the Muslim vote bank. But being high on emotions and low on concrete ideas is unlikely to win him fans.
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Given the fickle-minded janata, there is safety in numbers. Hence, most heavyweight netas are intent on contesting not from one but two seats. Mulayam Singh Yadav is no exception to this rule. He has decided to contest the polls from Mainpuri and Azamgarh. He has chosen two seats for two reasons. First, to drub his opponent from the Bharatiya Janata Party and, thereby, show who the real leader of the Yadavs is. The second, and perhaps more important reason, is to ensure that one seat could be spared for his younger son, Prateek Yadav. Incidentally, there are whispers that Prateek wanted to contest from Azamgarh. But party pundits were of the opinion that Mulayam Jr would not be a match against the BJP rival. Netaji then chose to enter the fray himself, leaving Prateek with a long face.
But it does not look like Prateek will remain despondent for long. Earlier, Mulayam had fought from Mainpuri and Kannauj. After winning both seats, he gifted Kannauj to Akhilesh, who, in turn, passed it on to his wife, Dimple, after becoming the chief minister. Thus, Prateek’s chances of bagging the seat are quite bright. After all, like most other leaders, family comes first for Mulayam too.
Just before the assembly elections in Delhi, a few enthusiastic morning- walkers had organized a spot poll in the Lodhi Gardens. The results went on these lines: more than 50 per cent of the ‘voters’ rooted for the AAP. Nearly 30 per cent supported the BJP while the Congress tally was in single digits. Now that the general elections are round the corner, the exercise was conducted all over again. A wooden box was placed and morning-walkers asked to deposit chits of paper with their party preference written on them. The outcome is surely to broaden the smiles in the saffron camp. Of the 483 votes cast, the BJP polled 69 per cent, the AAP 20 per cent, and the Congress 8 per cent. Ten respondents opted for ‘Nota’.
Rahul Gandhi isn’t known to be a surly loser. So there was some light banter about Arvind Kejriwal, who is not known to be gracious in defeat, describing the voters as ‘moneybags’, ‘agents’ or worse.
Happy days are here again for the veteran politician, ND Tiwari. He has managed to reunite with his ‘son’, Rohit. Not just that, he is now busy declaring him as his political heir. The 89-year-old Tiwari has suddenly developed a strong desire to return to active politics. Consequently, he often expresses a wish to attend public meetings or grace functions. His staff have found a novel way to deal with the ageing leaders tantrums. Each time the former chief minister and governor demands to be taken to a public occasion in Dehradun, his staff summon the car, take him for a spin around town and then tell him that the event has been cancelled. Given his years, Tiwari does not seem to mind or suspect that something is amiss.
Why is AK Antony’s name missing from the army of Congress leaders going to the poll war? Apparently, Madam wants to shield Antony from the heat of the battle so that he can use his skills to win over Amma in the event of a hung House.
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Footnote
All play
Didi had admitted the other day that with the electoral code of conduct in place, she has very little work on her hands. Mamata Banerjee may be complaining about the lack of work but the babus are delighted. They are now whiling away their time discussing the possible direction in which the poll winds would blow. Heated debates are taking place in the chambers of various ministries and departments about India’s political future. The majority among the babus feels that the BJP will form the next government. But Didi will be happy to know that officials from Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh believe that a non-BJP, non-Congress coalition will win. But not everyone has the time for idle chatter. Private secretaries and personal assistants, facing an uncertain future owing to the polls, are busy lobbying with potential ministers.