Rival party heads get contrary welcome at Pink City

JAIPUR, DEC 12: Party circles are often heard claiming that Bangaru Laxman neither has the role, nor the clout in the BJP as Sonia Gandhi ...

JAIPUR, DEC 12: Party circles are often heard claiming that Bangaru Laxman neither has the role, nor the clout in the BJP as Sonia Gandhi does in the Congress. Though they both head the country’s two major national political parties, their positions in their respective parties are poles apart.

The difference became apparent recently when the visit of the BJP president to the Pink City last week passed off as a damp squib, while that of his Congress counterpart Sonia Gandhi, scheduled for December 16, is being planned on a large scale and will most likely be a grand show.

When Bangaru came visiting on Dec 6, only 100-odd BJP members, two of them holding party flags, were present at Jaipur railway station to welcome the party chief, who was to address a “big” rally organised by the All Rajasthan SC, ST, OBC Officers and Employees’ Joint Federation. Bangaru was accompanied by the party general secretary Sahib Singh Verma, in charge of Rajasthan, and SC cell convener Ram Nath Kovid. Though state president Bhanwar Lal Sharma, former presidents Lalit Kishore Chaturvedi and Gulab Chand Kataria and several other leaders were also present, there was hardly any mobilisation of grass-root workers to welcome Laxman. This, despite the fact that it was his first visit to Jaipur after being elected party president. Numbers apart, even the normal enthusiasm among party members — in much evidence on such occasions — was missing. A couple of members who tried shouting “Bharat Mata ki Jai”, the familiar battle cry of the BJP, gave it up after failing to find an echo.

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Former chief minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, former deputy chief ministerHari Shankar Bhabhra, several MLAs and members of Jaipur Municipal Corporation were also conspicuous by their absence. Shekhawat, in fact,did not meet Laxman at all.

And if all this was not bad enough, the organisers of the “Maha Rally” had to make do with just 300 people to begin a pro-reservation march from thehistoric Ram Niwas Garden to Ambedkar Circle, the venue of the publicmeeting, that too after a delay of over an hour and a half.

The situation did not look any better there either and just a little over 1,000 people gathered to hear the national president of the BJP when the organisers had boasted that one lakh would turn up.

Contrary to this, the entire Rajasthan Government and the state Congress aregearing up for Sonia’s visit. She is due to inaugurate the convention of members of panchayati raj and local bodies on December 16. This will also be her first visit to Jaipur after she was elected Congress president recently. State party president Girija Vyas and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot reviewed the arrangements at a joint meeting of ministers, senior leaders and office-bearers at the party office on Sunday. They have constituted several committees to oversee arrangements and have decided to set up a control room from December 13 to ensure proper co-ordination between them and the state and central offices of the party.

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Gehlot has also called for a mobilisation of party members from Jaipur, Tonk, Sikar, Dausa, Alwar and Bharatpur districts for the party chief’s visit. The local units have been directed to deck up the routes through which Sonia Gandhi’s procession is scheduled to pass. Seva Dal convenor Babu Lal Nagar has even planned a “guard of honour” for Sonia Gandhi.