Anita Katyal | Will Modi Join Sun Worship? Rahul Absence Proves Costly

All speculation about a possible meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump at the Asean summit was put to rest once it was known that the PM would not be travelling to Kuala Lumpur for the multilateral meet. The obvious conclusion was that Mr Modi did not wish to meet the US President against the backdrop of Mr Trump’s public declarations that he intervened to end the war between India and Pakistan and that India had told him it would cut back its oil supplies from Russia. The ongoing campaign for next month’s Bihar election came in handy for Mr Modi to skip the summit. But, a far more compelling reason was cited for the PM’s absence at the Asean summit. Bharatiya Janata Party insiders maintained it was imperative for the PM to be present in India as the dates for the Asean summit (October 26-28) coincided with Chhath puja, Bihar’s biggest festival. It was pointed out that it would have not gone down well in poll-bound Bihar if the PM was abroad on October 27, the most auspicious day for performing the necessary rituals. It will not be surprising if Mr Modi joins the devotees in propitiating the Sun God with an eye on the coming election.

Where is Congress leader Rahul Gandhi? This question surfaces often in view of his propensity to disappear when a crisis in the party needs his urgent attention. This is exactly what happened when the Congress was battling the Rashtriya Janata Dal and other allies in Bihar during the tense seat-sharing negotiations. It was expected that Rahul Gandhi, who led an energetic yatra through Bihar over a month ago on “vote chori”, would be involved in the preparations for the election. Instead, he left it all to his favourite office bearer Krishna Allavaru who proved to be too inexperienced to negotiate with RJD leaders Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi Yadav. Last week’s joint press conference declaring Tejashwi as the Opposition’s chief ministerial candidate was intended to put a lid on their internal squabbles but it is a proverbial case of too little, too late. The situation in the Congress is particularly dire as it is facing a two-front battle: an internal revolt against Mr Allavaru and a tense relationship with its allies.

The open battle in the Opposition’s Grand Alliance (Mahagathbandhan) over distribution of tickets for the Bihar election dominated the news cycle for over a week but little is known about the prevailing tension in the ruling National Democratic Alliance. Though the differences in the NDA have been largely contained, Bihar chief minister and Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar as well as smaller allies Hindustani Awam Morcha leader Jitin Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha are upset that Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party managed to inveigle as many as 29 seats. Angry that Mr Paswan’s share included seats where the JD(U) is the leading force, Nitish Kumar is learnt to have said that he will not campaign in the constituencies allocated to Mr Paswan. Nor will he share a stage with Mr Paswan at any planned joint NDA rally. In fact, he is also said to have told home minister Amit Shah that he will only join Mr Modi’s election meetings but not those addressed by other senior BJP leaders.

M.L. Khattar, former Haryana chief minister and the current housing and urban development minister at the Centre, is often described as “Super CM” in political circles since he continues to retain a hold over the administration in his home state. Political observers said this was confirmed recently when the state government faced a serious controversy after IPS officer Y. Puran Kumar left behind a suicide note naming state director general of police Shatrujeet Kapur and another senior officer Narendra Brijrania. A standoff followed as Mr Kumar’s family refused to cremate his body until action was taken against the concerned officers. It was only after seven days that Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini sent the officers on leave. The grapevine attributed this delay to the fact that Mr Khattar was abroad and the two senior police officers were his appointees. Mr Saini is himself a Khattar camp follower but his supporters believe this is an ideal opportunity for him to assert his independence.

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi does not step out too often but last week she made it a point to attend the funeral of senior party leader Ambika Soni’s husband Uday Soni. Flanked by Congress MPs Selja and Ranjeeta, Sonia Gandhi stayed till all the rites were completed. It was a clear signal that Ambika Soni continues to enjoy Sonia Gandhi’s confidence though lately there has been some talk that she has been sidelined. Once word went around that Sonia Gandhi had attended the funeral, Congress leaders, including Anand Sharma and Sachin Pilot, made a beeline for the prayer meeting. Given Ambika Soni’s long association with Punjab, several state leaders were also spotted. These included former Congress leaders like Neeraj Basoya and Rana Sodhi, who are now with the BJP. Even veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who had a bitter falling out with the Congress, attended the funeral. He said he had a long and old association with Ambika Soni and even called her didi.