Using Sonia enigma to keep hawks at bay

NEW DELHI, Nov 26: Will she or won't she? The sphinx-like silence of the enigmatic lady at 10, Janpath on her political debut is proving to...

NEW DELHI, Nov 26: Will she or won’t she? The sphinx-like silence of the enigmatic lady at 10, Janpath on her political debut is proving to be Sitaram Kesri’s biggest asset in containing the hawks within the Congress party.

As Kesri triumphed again tonight to help the Gujral Government to live another day, dispirited Congressmen admitted that with Sonia Gandhi refusing to commit herself one way or another, the move to dislodge the United Front from office is losing momentum. According to them, Sonia has not given any indication that she will indeed campaign for the party should a mid-term poll become inevitable. The hype of the past fortnight, the posters, the songs, the so-called “signals” were the handiwork of a few of her loyalists fighting their own personal battle for supremacy in the Congress hierarchy, they said.

In an effort to set the record straight with Kesri, Sonia dispatched her trusted aide, V George, to the Congress president’s house yesterday morning with an ambiguous message to do whatever was in the interest of the party and the country.

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This was followed by a telephonic conversation between the two last night, giving Kesri the necessary confidence to push ahead with his agenda at this evening’s CWC meeting.

Sonia’s reluctance to take the plunge was evident on November 19 when she was scheduled to address a small party worker’s gathering at the Congress headquarters on Akbar Road. The swelling numbers of eager workers, who turned up in the expectation that Sonia would announce her arrival on the political scene, frightened her SPG guards and her. Ultimately, she decided to remain in her heavily protected fortress. The smokescreen cleverly erected by her band of loyalists is now dissolving. A crucial factor in their strategy has been the lack of access to 10, Janpath for most Congress leaders.

On the other hand, people like Arjun Singh, Fotehdar, Jitendra Prasada and Karunakaran have been frequenting her bungalow throughout the present crisis. Whether or not they were granted an audience — perhaps they simply cooled their heels in the anteroom — they were perceived as Sonia’s messengers by others in the Congress.

The confusion about her intentions was compounded by her monosyllabic replies to the “lesser loyalists” who have been calling on her. “She doesn’t say anything,” lamented one such person after a brief meeting.

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Congressmen across the board felt a public declaration by Sonia that she would campaign would have electrified the party and made it difficult for Kesri to have his way.

This was evident in the enthusiasm that swept the Congress when news first came that she had agreed to tour the country. It was this momentum which forced the Congress Parliamentary Party and then the CWC to adopt the strongly worded resolution demanding the DMK’s ouster from the Government.

Without Sonia, however, there is no momentum. And now, the hawks are finding themselves outnumbered in the CWC — three against the rest. But, tomorrow is another day.