The Ghost Is Back

AS a private aircraft taxied to a halt at Pune airport an hour before Congress president Sonia Gandhi was due to arrive on a two-day tour of Maharashtra last week, Congress leaders from different camps were dismayed to see an ailing Sharad Pawar limping off the plane. Pawar sympathisers were saddened that the Maratha strongman was reduced to having to underscore his loyalty to 10, Janpath by seeking an early discharge from a hospital in Kerala where he was to undergo treatment until January 28. When Sonia landed in Pune an hour later, she too was surprised.

Pawar had scored yet another coup against his detractors in the Maharashtra Congress who would have it that he was offering a deliberate snub to Sonia by wilfully staying away from her rallies in the state. In particular focus was her last engagement in Srirampur, where she addressed a rally of INTUC workers and where Pawar was clearly unwelcome. The impressive turnout was being touted by new-found 10 Janpath loyalists as proof of the fact that they too were as good as Pawar at organising rallies. Ironically, these loyalists were without exception those leaders who were with Pawar in 1978: the Adik brothers, Govindrao and Ramrao, S.B. Chavan, Prataprao Bhosale - all members of Pawar's Progressive Democratic Front which split from Indira Gandhi after the Emergency.

But if they were now touting their loyalty to Sonia, it is because loyalty in Maharashtra has come to be equated with anti-Pawar stands. One party MP laments that everyone who opposes Pawar today in the state is a loyalist, no matter what the term originally meant. The problem lies entirely with Pawar, says a political observer. He is a party within a party. And that is his major drawback which prevents him from surging ahead like other Congress leaders who do not find it difficult professing their loyalties to the high command.

And following Sonia's visit, factions seem to have re-emerged, opening up a chasm within the state Congress which many are afraid might end up with the party shooting itself in the foot with polls round the corner. Maharashtra Congress chief Prataprao Bhosale blames it on the media: You will not succeed in driving a wedge between us and Sharad Pawar. When we do not wish to break our relationship, others can do their worst and we will still stay united.

The words rang hollow when he was heckled during his address by Pawar supporters. Rattled, Bhosale promised to deal with the hecklers later. The voices grew even more strident, to be calmed only when Sonia spoke. Factionalism is something which will never cease in the Congress, rues MPCC general secretary Kripa Shankar Singh. But were not worried because we have the example of Madhya Pradesh where we won despite all odds.

Much of the Congress confidence stems from the fact that the party has been cashing in on the misgovernance of the bjp-Sena combine. The party, along with its ally, the Republican Party of India, has been winning a majority of the zilla parishad and panchayat samiti seats. Not surprisingly, the first casualty of this tie-up has been the party's alliance with the Samajwadi Party. We do not need the likes of Mulayam, says Bhosale. MP, Rajasthan and Delhi have proved the Muslims are with us now without our having to seek such props.

Clearly, the Congress believes that it can afford not to bow down to allies. But it is still not in a position to dictate terms. The architect of the alliance with the rpi and with the Samajwadi Party in the Lok Sabha polls, Pawar is so far silent on this score. But it is learnt that he is not happy with the MPCC chiefs line. Meanwhile, senior state leaders are snubbing each other, much to the glee of rivals.

Nothing illustrates this better than the fact that Srirampur mla Bhanudas Murkute was kept away from Sonia at a rally in his stronghold by rival Govindrao Adik, who lost to him as a rebel in the last polls. Murkute, who says Adik is a landgrabber in cahoots with Shiv Sainiks in my constituency, publicly shot back with half-page ads in the papers on the day of Sonia's visit. Murkute also wrote to Sonia charging Adik with falsely implicating him in a riot case.

The divide in the party is indeed cause for concern. Rues MP Gurudas Kamat: We must realise that 60 per cent of our success is owing to Sonia. And if we fight over the remaining 40 per cent, the people will lynch us thoroughly. They are in no mood to allow petty faction wars to destroy their chance of changing the present government. We must pull up our socks. Unity is the key to success in the polls, but the party is caught up in mindless factionalism.