EVER since the gruesome death last July in Tihar jail of her biscuit tycoon husbandRajan Pillai, Nina Pillai has been threatening to get her back on "friendly"politicians who "deserted" her in her husband’s time of need. So it did notcome as a surprise when she filed her nomination as an independent candidate for the LokSabha from her husband’s hometown of Kollam, 70 km from Thiruvananthapuram.
Though she does not admit it, Nina’s immediate mission seems to benot to win herself but to ensure the defeat of Congress candidate and Union Minister ofState S. Krishna Kumar. "Krishna Kumar was supposed to be our friend," she says."But he refused to even come on the phone when Rajan was dying." However, she isquick to add that it is not Krishna Kumar she is fighting. "I am fighting hisboss."
The 39-year-old former air hostess is also using her political status toembarrass the Congress. Her revelation at a press conference in Thiruvan-anthapuram onApril 17 that her husband had been cheated by a political nexus, with the controversialgodman Chandraswami at its core, will not help the Congress. She has alleged that about $2million was paid to the godman between November ’94 and February ’95 by herhusband. Chandraswami had promised to sort things out for Rajan Pillai but finally failedhim. Points out Nina: "The money was paid to him because even senior Union ministerswe approached told us that Chandraswami was the man who could move things at the PrimeMinister’s level".
She also sees sinister machinations in the troubles she has been facing inclaiming her shareholdings in various companies owned by her late husband. She suspectsthe hand of a rival business group which she alleges is acting with the blessings ofChandraswami. Says Nina: "Rajan is gone. Now this friend of the Prime Minister wantsto torture a helpless widow." She says her husband fell out of favour with a sectionof Congressmen after the ’91 elections. It was then that her husband, she claims, onthe request of a senior Congress leader from Maharashtra, approached K. Karunakaran andSatish Sharma, asking them not to support Narasimha Rao as the candidate for primeminister-ship. "Ever since this came to the notice of Chandraswami, we have been introuble," she says.
Though Nina Pillai is not likely to emerge even as a marginal leader,local Congress leaders did their best to persuade her not to contest. Among them: ChiefMinister A.K. Antony, Union Industries Minister K. Karunakaran and PCC President VylarRavi. The Pillais are influential in Kerala and traditional Congress supporters.
The only cause for comfort in the Congress camp is that Nina is anovice in politics and as an independent she lacks the backing of any politicalorganisation. The BJP has come forward to support her but the party’s infrastructureis not fully committed to campaign for her, perhaps because Nina has made it clear thatshe will not join any party. Says she: "Don’t think I am part of the BJP. I amnot. They (BJP) came forward to help and I said fine. I want to be an independent".
Her campaign involves meeting people directly rather than holding meetings. However,Nina says she is trying to rope in Arjun Singh, Kiran Bedi and friends in the filmindustry in Bombay to attend a rally in Kollam. But despite such plans, her campaigning ispatchy. She is the first to admit that she is a reluctant politician. "I never dreamtof getting into politics. I have literally been forced to fight this election. I amfight-ing it for my survival and the survival of my children".
Though her husband’s family was opposed to her entering politicsthey have now come around and her in-laws who command much respect in Kollam have extendedsupport. Early estimates put it that Nina will corner enough votes to ensure KrishnaKumar’s defeat. That, in a sense, will be victory for her.
