Cong surprise for Kalyan b’day: Invite

After 12 days of avoiding Kalyan Singh and 4 days of hearing him openly complain about it, guess who Mulayam Singh Yadav found when he final...

After 12 days of avoiding Kalyan Singh and 4 days of hearing him openly complain about it, guess who Mulayam Singh Yadav found when he finally dropped in at the house of his Rashtriya Kranti Party partner to wish him on his birthday today? A beaming Congress delegation—which had come to Kalyan carrying a bouquet and an invitation from Sonia Gandhi to join the coalition that the party is trying to rustle up.

In fact, even Kalyan couldn’t have known he would be the star of such a party. The well-wishers at his door included his other wooers, BJP leaders, and late in the evening, Union Minister Swami Chinmayanand. The Congress banners at 2, Mall Avenue, jostled for attention with slogans of Jai Shri Ram raised by them.

But it was the Congress that was the surprise birthday gift and Kalyan was gracious in his acceptance. ‘‘It’s not fare to term Soniaji a foreigner. Woh multah ek Bharatiya nari hain aur yahan ki bahu hain. Ise chunavi mudda banana theek nahin hai (She is basically an Indian woman and our daughter-in-law. It is not right to make her origin an election issue),’’ Kalyan told Congress leader Subodh Kant Sahay.

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Over the 40 minutes that the Congress team was closeted with him, he conveyed his ‘‘best wishes’’ to Sonia in forming a coalition. The Congress delegation included UP Congress Committee chief Jagdambika Pal.

In contrast, Mulayam’s visit to Kalyan, along with MP son Akhilesh and SP general secretary Amar Singh, was short and swift. He dropped in for 15 minutes and told newspersons that his first meeting with Kalyan since the December 24 tea party where the RKP leader talked of returning to the BJP was ‘‘a courtesy call’’. ‘‘May he live for 100 years so that he can serve the people,’’ Mulayam added.

The SP leader then drove straight to Gunnaur from where he is seeking election to enter the Assembly. Kalyan, who had earlier made sarcastic remarks about the CM’s busy schedule being the reason behind the long silence between them, wished him ‘‘victory with a thumping majority’’.

The BJP, however, told everyone that the meetings at Kalyan’s residence didn’t mean anything, and that the RKP leader’s future was with them. ‘‘The PM is abroad, which delayed the merger of the RKP with the BJP. Talks are at the final stages and an announcement will be made either during the party’s national executive in Hyderabad from January 12 or before that,’’ said BJP leader Ram Prakash Tripathi.

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Later, Swami Chinmayanand dropped in to wish Kalyan and stated that his return to the BJP would help the party in the state. ‘‘The RKP and BJP have no ideological differences. When the PM can handle heads of nations at the Saarc summit, why can’t he handle Kalyan? Ab dil ki duriyan door ho gayee hain,’’ he said. ‘‘The ball is in the court of Kalyan.’’

However, the RKP leader is not closing his doors on anyone yet. ‘‘Main bahut chhota party worker hoon, kya comment kar sakta hoon Chinmayanand ke bayan par (I am a small worker, what can I comment on the statement of Chinmayanand),’’ was all Kalyan said.

But if the carving of the RKP remained a matter of dispute, there was one pie everyone got a share of today: the 71-kg ladoo that Kalyan (all of 70 years) cut to mark his birthday.