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Deepak Gidwani. LUCKNOW Politics can certainly change equations. That’s precisely what is happening in Raebareli, the VIP borough represented by the Nehru-Gandhi family for decades. One-time friend RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav is now all set to take on the Congress — and by proxy, party chief Sonia Gand- hi who represents this seat in Lok Sabha — on its strongest home turf. Many in political circles here are surprised by the venue RJD has chosen to launch its “mis- sion 2012”. UP RJD chief Ashok Singh confirmed that his party would be launching its election cam- paign from Raebareli on April 27. “RJD would be contesting the 2012 assembly elections in UP in alliance with the Sama- jwadi Party,” he said, adding, “The Congress never spared a thought for RJD in Bihar dur- ing the Lok Sabha election. So, why shouldn’t we seize this op- portunity?” he said. RJD plans to use the platform provided by the Left-sponsored nationwide agitation against the UPA regime over rising prices on that day. The railway coach factory set up in Raebareli during Lalu’s tenure as railway minister is also likely to figure in the tussle. “We will tell people that Lalu- ji should get equal credit for es- tablishing the factory,” Singh said. With a Rs1,685-crore in- vestment and over 10,000 job op- portunities, the factory means a lot to locals, and promises to be a crucial issue. The RJD chief has already shown his proclivity to chastise the Congress at every available opportunity, be it the Women’s Reservation Bill, rising prices or the latest IPL row. Lalu has chosen Raebareli to start his campaign in UP as this region has been the bastion of the Nehru-Gandhi family since the very first election in 1951 when Feroze Gandhi won this seat. The neighbouring seats — Amethi (presently represented by Rahul Gandhi) and Sultan- pur — have been also held by members of the illustrious fam- ily or their nominees in most elections. But it’s not as if the Nehru- Gandhi family’s domination has remained unchallenged. In 1996, Ashok Singh lost the Raebareli seat by a slim margin to the BJP. Congress candidate Vikram Kaul, a Gandhi family nominee, lost his deposit. Of the 15 assembly seats in Raebareli, Amethi and Sultan- pur constituencies, the Congress has only eight. Even these eight MLAs are hoppers from differ- ent parties. In fact, in Sultanpur, represented by Congress leader Sanjay Singh, the party’s tally is nil as BSP holds three seats, while the SP has two. Still, any talk of a challenge to the Gandhi family in this area only evokes amusement in Con- gress circles. UP Congress spokesman Dwijendra Tripathi said RJD is tilting at windmills. “All the opposition parties put to- gether can’t even dream of chal- lenging Soniaji or Rahulji… not because of their name or lega- cy, but because of what they have done for the people,” he said. Lalu mounts challenge in Sonia’s backyard D Ram Raj. CHENNAI A group of lawyers showed black flags to Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi at the premises of the Madras high court on Sunday. The chief min- ister had come to attend a func- tion for the unveiling of Dalit icon BR Ambedkar’s statue. Trouble began when a section of the crowd reportedly belong- ing to DMK cadres started at- tacking the protesters, TV cam- eramen and reporters covering the event. The situation was brought under control at the in- tervention of director general of police Letika Saran. The lawyers were protesting against Karunanidhi entering the high court premises as they held him responsible for not tak- ing action against senior police officers in the clash between pol- ciemen and lawyers in the court on February 19 last year. The Madras Union of Jour- nalists (MUJ) condemned the “outrageous” attack on journal- ists and damage caused to ex- pensive television cameras. “It is unfortunate that the attack on mediapersons took place at a venue where the Tamil Nadu chief minister, the Chief Justice of India, the chief justice of Madras high court and the state law minister were present,” the MUJ press release said. Lawyers show Karuna black flags in court www.dnaindia.com epaper.dnaindia.com 10 Mumbai, Monday, April 26, 2010
