Image via Indiatoday.com
Outwardly, the BJP leadership may be sniggering over the decision by Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi to not campaign for the upcoming UP by polls but inwardly they are a very worried lot. “This is a huge setback, man,” a very agitated BJP president, Amit Shah, told The UnReal Times. “An even bigger setback then, say, Mayawati and Mulayam teaming up for the so-called secular alliance to take on the BJP. I was actually planning a vacation during the by poll campaigning phase, confident that Rahul would do his thing and net BJP more votes. But now we have our work really cut out,” he bemoaned. The situation is so grave that even Modi may have to cut short his Japan visit and campaign for the by-polls.
Amit Shah conceded that in hindsight the BJP may have overdone the Rahul bashing. “We overdid the Pappu and Shahzade jokes, so much so that the poor guy seems completely bereft of confidence. I had warned our boys to keep it within bounds but they shot back saying it’s too much fun to cut back. Now see what has happened!!!” Shah said.
“Going forward, we need to praise him from time to time lest he do something drastic like quitting as Congress Vice President as well and calling for meritocratic selection at the top. For a start, I have asked BJP cadre to emulate Congress workers in showering lavish praise on the Nehru-Gandhi scion. The political reality is BJP needs the Nehru-Gandhis more than the Congress,” Shah added.
The sombre mood in the BJP contrasts with the optimism radiating out of the Congress headquarters. Enthusiastic Congress workers and leaders celebrated in front of 10, Janpath, enthused by Rahul’s decision to lead by not leading. “Rahul bhaiyya has given us the best possible present in the build up to the by-polls. We are now determined more than even to increase our vote share by a few percentage points and credit him for the victory,” one worker raved, as he lovingly fed a ladoo to a Rahul poster.
It was left to pre-eminent Gandhi family loyalist, Mani Shankar Aiyar, to have the last word. “This shows more than ever why the party needs the Nehru-Gandhis more than the Nehru-Gandhis need the party. Whenever the party has been in the doldrums, it has looked up to the first family for succour. In our hour of need, Rahul has once again lived up to the glorious tradition of his forebears,” Aiyar wrote for NDTV, which in turn, passed it on to The UnReal Times.
AK Antony too heaved a sigh of relief over Rahul’s decision to stay aloof. “For once, just for once, my forthcoming clean chit report will have a ring of credibility to it,” he observed.