August 30, 1999

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Elections 99

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A bizarre cat-and-mouse game precedes Sonia Gandhi's electoral debut in what could prove to be the most riveting contest of the elections.

By Saba Naqvi Bhaumik and Javed M Ansari

It is the battle royal in an otherwise dull election campaign. The BJP's behenji versus the Gandhi bahuji. When Sushma Swaraj flew into Bellary in Karnataka draped in the BJP's colours -- a green blouse and a bright orange sari -- loudly proclaiming that she represented the swadeshi brand against the "videshi" Sonia, she certainly added a splash of colour to poll '99.

The battle for Bellary will be fought in a dry, rocky region whose only remarkable feature is that it is home to the magnificent ruins of the Vijayanagar kingdom at Hampi. The political profile of the constituency is as unchanging as the landscape -- Bellary has always returned a Congress candidate to the Lok Sabha and Indira Gandhi is still worshipped like a goddess by the electorate. The Gandhi name still spells magic in Bellary. Undoubtedly a safe seat for Sonia.

Which is why the Congress' cat and mouse game to mislead the opposition about Sonia's constituency appears all the more astonishing. The Congress' paranoia was rooted in an exaggerated idea of the BJP's game plan. It was also another instance of Sonia's advisers misleading her. Of the Congress president once again gullibly accepting poor advice.

Sonia was apparently keen to stand only from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. She claimed to be confident of winning the seat from where her husband had always been victorious. Yet her advisers persisted in pressing a case for another constituency.

The various arguments trotted out: the BJP would go to any length to make sure that Sonia did not enter Parliament; to do so the party would go to the extent of putting up an ailing dummy candidate whose death would lead to the election being countermanded; Sanjay Singh, the sitting BJP MP from Amethi, would resort to large-scale violence to get the polls nullified; and finally, if she stood from one seat the BJP would try to pin her down to that constituency.

Sonia obviously bought these arguments and gave the go-ahead to a puerile plan to throw the opposition off her track. The evening before the last date for filing nominations, Sonia took off for Hyderabad in a commercial flight, accompanied by secretary Vincent George, party General Secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad and her security entourage. Azad made it a point to deliberately mislead the media into believing that Sonia was headed for Cudappah in Andhra Pradesh. When asked about Sonia's eventual destination, he retorted: "If we were going to Bellary, why would we be in Andhra Pradesh?"

As part of this elaborate charade a small seven-seater aircraft and a helicopter were parked at Hyderabad airport. The flight plan given to the crew was that Sonia would take the chopper to Cudappah and Azad would fly to Bellary. Eventually the lady drove to the airport, her entire entourage climbed on to the aircraft and took off for Bellary, presumably smug in the belief that the BJP had been fooled.

Not quite. While the Congress played hide and seek, conveying an impression that Sonia was afraid of a contest, the BJP came up with a stunning counter move. The party was aware that the Congress was doing its utmost to mislead the opposition about Sonia's eventual destination in the south. Besides Bellary and Cudappah, the Congress was also sending out rumours that Madam may eventually contest from Medak. The Congress had conducted private polls in all three constituencies.

The BJP high command was first tipped off on the morning of August 17, just a day before the final date for filing nominations for all these constituencies. Civil aviation authorities informed the ruling party that Sonia was booked for Hyderabad -- from where she could proceed to Cudappah or Bellary. By the afternoon the BJP learnt that Andhra Pradesh Congress chief Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy had proceeded to his Cudappah constituency instead of waiting on Sonia. By evening the party was alerted that the SPG was making security arrangements in Bellary.

BJP General Secretary M. Venkaiah Naidu was parked in Bangalore working out the vexed details of seat distribution with the newly constituted Janata Dal (U). As news of Sonia's movements began to filter in, he choreographed the BJP's game plan to take on the Congress president.

First he telephoned Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu in Hyderabad. The two discussed the pros and cons of a candidate who could give a fight to Sonia in Cudappah. Should it be a strong local leader or a glamourous outsider? Why not a film star suggested Chandrababu, who had piggybacked to political prominence as the son-in-law of the charismatic cinema idol N.T. Rama Rao.

Over the next few hours there were four telephone conversations between the two Naidus. The chief minister suggested the names of two popular heroines -- Jayaprada, a TDP Rajya Sabha member, and Vijayashanti, described as the female Amitabh Bachchan of Telugu films who had joined the BJP last year. Eventually both felt that Vijayashanti, with her mass appeal would be a good choice for a backward rural constituency like Cudappah. The task now was to get the lady's consent.

The problem was that it was past midnight and Vijayashanti was in Chennai. Venkaiah Naidu then got in touch with his contacts in the film industry. At 1.30 a.m. Vijayashanti received two visitors -- film director Chitty Babu, who happens to be a member of the BJP, and Devi Vara Prasad, well-known producer of films starring the late NTR and the current idol Chiranjeevi. Even as both men were trying to persuade Vijayashanti, Venkaiah Naidu contacted Home Minister L.K. Advani, then campaigning in Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu. The actress consented after Advani's daughter Pratibha spoke to her at 2 a.m.

The job now was to make sure that Vijayashanti reached Cudappah before the 3 p.m. deadline for nominations. One chopper was kept for her at Tirupati while Civil Aviation Minister Ananth Kumar ensured another helicopter was on standby at Chennai.

Meanwhile, a parallel operation was on. That same night the BJP leadership received an intelligence tip-off that security in Bellary was also being tightened. Commerce Minister Ramakrishna Hegde was in Bangalore hammering out the seat adjustment with Venkaiah Naidu. When asked about a possible candidate for Bellary it was Hegde who suggested Swaraj's name. The problem was that she had publicly announced she would not be contesting the forthcoming polls. Could she be persuaded to change her mind?

Hegde first telephoned Swaraj at around midnight and mooted the idea. Venkaiah Naidu called immediately afterwards. Swaraj agreed to pick up the gauntlet if the BJP leadership decreed.

Venkaiah Naidu now moved into fast forward. At 1.30 a.m. he called BJP President Kushabhau Thakre. A sleepy Thakre liked the idea in principle but asked him to clear it with Advani and Vajpayee. Advani was again contacted in Tamil Nadu. Excellent idea, said the home minister, but clear it with the prime minister too. Reluctant to wake up Vajpayee at that hour Venkaiah Naidu began to tie up all the loose ends. He worked through the night to make all the travel arrangements and clear the paper work for Swaraj to file her nominations. She was booked on an early morning commercial flight from Delhi to Bangalore. A helicopter was quietly arranged and discreetly parked at the Jakkur airfield near Bangalore. At 6.30 a.m. Venkaiah Naidu finally mustered the courage to call Vajpayee. The prime minister gave his consent after ascertaining that Sushma was ready to meet the challenge.

Soon after Swaraj, dressed as always like an exaggerated bharatiya nari, complete with bright bindi and sindoor, colourful bangles and mangalsutra, embarked on the most high-profile battle of her political life.

Beating the Congress at its own game, the BJP's version of the ideal Indian bahu caught the Italian bahu unawares. Bellary was alerted only at 11.30 a.m. that Swaraj would be arriving. At 12 she took off from Bangalore in a helicopter arriving at Bellary at 1.40 p.m. As a BJP candidate had just filed his nominations for the vidhan sabha polls, there was an impressive crowd of BJP supporters to greet her. Quick with words, Swaraj picked up a few Kannada phrases and used them to full effect.

"It is a battle for Indian self-respect," she declared. The BJP did not waste any time in making it clear that it would have a field day in pitting one of its most articulate leaders against the inexperienced Sonia. The bharatiya nari versus the videshi bahu. A woman who makes a public display of celebrating karvachauth versus a lady who has to go to great lengths to prove her Indianness. The BJP believes it cannot lose in Bellary even if Sonia wins. Though Swaraj has begun canvassing the party plans to formally kick off its campaign in Bellary with a rally by Advani and conclude with one by Vajpayee. As BJP spokesman Arun Jaitley puts it, "If earlier Sonia would have spent one day campaigning in Bellary, she'll now spend four days." Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan makes a different point: "Sushma's candidature would never have had such an electrifying effect if the Congress had not played such a silly game of hide and seek. Now it looks as if Sonia was scared of a contest."

To prove it was not so, the Congress hurriedly announced the next day that Sonia would also contest from Amethi. The early announcement this time was aimed at pre-empting the suggestion that she would stand from Amethi (where nominations close on September 14) only if the trend in Bellary was unfavourable.

But it was Swaraj herself who had the last word. When Hegde and Venkaiah Naidu first suggested the idea to her, she came up with a clever politician's response:"It would be like fighting the Kargil war. I'll either be a glorious martyr or a triumphant victor."

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