India News Online » News Analysis » Indian Politics » 

Congress may plump for elections in February : Rahul as PM buzz

	September 29, 2008

With inflation not yet under control, reports say the Con¬gress is in no hurry to face Lok Sabha elections. An election in November has been ruled out and the party top brass believe that February 2009 might be a good time. The final decision will, however, rest with the Election Commission.



If the Government decides to dissolve the Lok Sabha in about three months to force early elections, the UPA will try to en¬force pro-people programmes more effectively while highlighting the UPA’s achievements.



While the Congress is happy at the likely implementation of the Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement, inflation is a dampener. Some segments in the party believe that high inflation will undo the success achieved in ending the country’s nuclear apartheid.



Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked the Government leaders to act fast to bring down inflation.





Rahul Gandhi’s remark creates flutter



Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi’s remark at a meet¬ing with Punjabi University students in Patiala on Sept.22 creat¬ed a flutter, when asked about his possible elevation as Prime Minister, he said the question will remain “open, not closed.” While saying that he does not aspire to become the Prime Minister but wants to make the party strong at the grassroots level, Rahul Gandhi said: “The question of my elevation to the Prime Minis¬ter’s post is still open, has not been closed as yet.”



With the remark creating a flutter, the AICC rushed to issue an official denial.



Wary of opening the floodgates of statements by senior Congress leaders rooting for “the Rahul-as-PM cause”, which might only result in undermining the authority and stability of the incumbent PM, Dr Manmohan Singh, seven months before the sched¬uled general elections,AICC media department chairman Veerappa Moily, issued a rebuttal on Sept., 23 saying that the statement reported in a section of the media was “incorrect”.



According to Moily, “Rahul Gandhi categorically stated that he is not focusing on post and position and he is focusing at present only on building the Youth Congress and student organisa¬tions.” Moily added that “no TV crew or media persons were present in this gathering”. Moily’s denial was, however, already overtaken by voices from within the Congress leadership in favour of Gandhi’s PM prospects. AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh reportedly said, “ You may call it sycophancy, but I would main¬tain that Rahul, who is leading the party in UP, has the full potential to become the PM.”



AICC spokesman Shakeel Ahmed was earlier in the day quoted as saying that the party needs young leadership. “Just like in the Indo-US nuclear deal issue, when the party was stuck on the horns of a dilemma whether to save the deal or the government, and then Rahul Gandhi took the initiative in boldly advocating for pressing ahead with the deal regardless of the consequences - so, we need such decisive leadership.”



Officially, however, the Congress continues to shy away from projecting Rahul Gandhi- the 38-year old Amethi MP and heir apparent of Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi - as its PM candidate for the coming parliamentary polls. It is another matter that this issue would have the overwhelming support of virtually the entire Congress leadership whenever it is allowed to be raked up depending on the green signal from Sonia Gandhi and Rahul.





Congress-SP differ over UP seats



The divide between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party on sharing of seats in Uttar Pradesh in the coming Lok Sabha elec¬tions is growing wider. The Congress has reportedly presented its wish-list to the Samajwadi Party asking for 21 to 34 seats, according to different reports. What has incensed the Samajwadi Party is that the Congress has staked claim to several seats now held by Mulayam Singh Yadav’s outfit.



An indication of the tough talking going on between the two parties became evident on Sept. 25 when Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh said that the support extended by his party to the UPA government at the Centre does not mean capitulation. He said the Congress leaders have failed to reciprocate the support extended by his party. Amar Singh said he has faith in Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, but said he has no faith in Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil.



Addressing a news conference in New Delhi on Sept. 25, Amar Singh claimed that an alleged BSP worker Hashmat Ali was trying to blackmail him in the cash-for-vote case. He expanded the attack to include Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil who, he said, had refused to help him apprehend the blackmailer.



Ali reportedly drove the three BJP MPs to Singh’s residence on the day of the trust vote. He was picked up from Singh’s house on Thursday, Sept. 25.



Amar Singh said Ali had demanded Rs 5 crore for speaking in favour of him while appearing before the parliamentary panel probing the “cash-for-vote’ scam. He said Home Minister Patil was “cold” to his request for police help when Ali turned up. “I called Shivraj Patil, requesting him to send the police to arrest Hashmat Ali. But he refused to provide help and asked me to directly complain to the police, saying that (if he intervened) it would look like as if the Congress is also involved in the incident,” he said. “If Amar Singh can get such a cold response, I can well imagine the condition of the common man,” Singh added.





Congress central leadership against power-sharing in Tamil Nadu



While Tamil Nadu leaders of the Congress have proposed that the party should join the M. Karunanidhi-led government in the state, the central leadership is cool to the idea. Karunanidhi, of course, has said that any move on power sharing between his party, the DMK, and the Congress would have to be initiated by Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. But the Congress high command appears to be of the view that joining the DMK-led coalition will not serve its long-term strategic interests. The party feels that the Congress joining the Karunanidhi government at this juncture will result in the party sharing the anti-incum¬bency burden of the DMK during the coming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. It will also reduce the party’s options in the changing coalition equations in Tamil Nadu.





BJP looking for state allies



The Asom Gana Parishad, after getting breakaway factions including the one led by former Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mohanta to merge with the party, has announced that it is working on forging an alliance with the BJP and other like-minded parties to counter the ruling Congress in Assam. Newly elected AGP president Chandra Mohan Patowary said in Guwahati on Sept. 22 that the party will give renewed thrust to having an alliance with the BJP, the Asom United Democratic Front and, if possible, the Left parties.



On another front, the BJP has deferred a decision on poll alliances in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. In Uttar Pradesh, the party is considering an alliance with Ajit Singh’s Rashtriya Lok Dal. But the party has deferred the decision as reports say, former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh has threatened to quit the party if the BJP formed an alliance with the RLD.



In Haryana, the BJP has two options, alliance with Om Pra¬kash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal or with expelled Congress MP Kuldip Bishnoi’s Haryana Janhit Congress. The BJP Parliamenta¬ry board, which met in New Delhi on Sept. 26, deferred a decision on poll alliances to some future date.



In Delhi, the BJP has decided to project Vijay Kumar Malho¬tra as its chief-ministerial candidate.