By Tridib Raman
Just recently, during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with a lot of fanfare, Congress—armed with Rahul’s new intentions—made a comeback in Maharashtra, emerging as the largest party in the state. Congress won 13 Lok Sabha seats, and since then, there have been speculations that it would perform excellently in the upcoming assembly elections as well. However, Congress’s own local leaders are undermining the party’s victory ambitions. The first blow to Congress came when, under the alliance, it got only 103 seats. In the 2019 elections, Congress fielded candidates in 147 seats. Now, Congress may face another setback due to the imbalanced distribution of tickets. It’s said that even Rahul Gandhi has expressed displeasure over the ticket distribution in Maharashtra. Moreover, Congress leadership feels that both its alliance partners, Uddhav and Sharad Pawar, might be quietly sabotaging Congress’s path. Let’s turn now to the central issue: Vijay Wadettiwar, who still holds the position of Leader of the Opposition in Maharashtra, and how he is ruining Congress’s hopes. Sources reveal that Wadettiwar had the strongest influence over ticket distribution this time. Known as the closest confidant of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, his individual decisions received unreserved approval from Team Kharge. Before entering politics, Vijay Wadettiwar was a folk artist, a skilled actor in the ‘Swang’ style, performing across Vidarbha. He met Narayan Rane, who brought him into politics. Vijay knew that politics was just another form of acting, so he quickly climbed the political ladder, changed loyalties, changed parties and became one of the important faces of Congress politics in Maharashtra. He sidelined leaders like Sushil Shinde, Ashok Chavan, and Prithviraj Chavan. Even Nana Patole couldn’t challenge him. As a result, this time around, other major leaders had little say in candidate selection. Whatever decision Vijay made, Kharge endorsed without hesitation, leaving senior figures like Mukul Wasnik with no choice but to step back. Political messages and motives rarely take written form, but if the Congress party fails to read these clear signs, it stands at the threshold of replicating its Haryana debacle in Maharashtra.
Giriraj Singh’s Controversial Stance on Hindutva
By Tridib Raman
In saffron politics, Union Textile Minister Giriraj Singh stands out as a strong voice for fervent Hindutva.He has always maintained his political stance, even amidst confusion from the political background. Giriraj, who fearlessly voices Hindu-Muslim politics, is currently leading a ‘Hindu Swabhiman’ Yatra in Bihar. When his Yatra reached the Seemanchal region of Bihar, his ‘Hinduism’ became more prominent. In the minister’s words, “If a Muslim slaps you once, then all of you together slap him a hundred times.” With assembly elections in Bihar next year, saffron colour is being applied to political intentions for this very purpose. Recently, on the occasion of Deepawali, the International Wing of IIT Kanpur prepared an invitation card primarily for students from African and Western Asian countries. The organisers named this event ‘Jashn-e-Roshani’. The invitation card was so attractive that it went viral on social media, catching the minister’s attention. The minister got angry and accused the festival of Sanatan of Islamization, posting from his ‘ex’ handle, “It is Deepotsav, it will remain Deepotsav only.” Following the minister’s strong objection, the invitation card was hastily removed. However, the flame of the lamps was not going to dim just by calling Deepotsav ‘Jashn-e-Roshani’. A new revelation has come to light about Giriraj: he is getting his old disease treated by a Muslim Unani doctor from Kerala. Five generations of this doctor’s family have been associated with this profession. It is believed that this Muslim doctor has magic in his hands, easily curing many incurable diseases. I wish he could find a cure for this feeling of Hindu-Muslim separation.
Nadda Ignites the World with Light
By Tridib Raman
This Diwali may have been celebrated in the most polluted conditions ever. In many other metros across the country, including the capital, Delhi, the ‘AQI’ reached a record level of 362. However, our Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda seems unconcerned about these issues, if one glances at his social media account. In October alone, Nadda posted 256 updates on his “X” handle, but interestingly, not a single one related to issues within the health ministry. While national and international media expressed grave concern over Delhi-NCR’s poor air quality during Diwali, he posted a video of himself setting off fireworks from his rooftop on Diwali night. If you look at Nadda’s tweets or posts, most of them reflect PM Modi’s speeches or programs. Additionally, his retweets are also found in bulk. Out of the 256 posts, 44 are good wishes, condolence messages, or tributes. Among these, 9 tweets are about religious programs, 1 tweet is related to the vaccine, and 1 tweet was for Home Minister Amit Shah.
Kirti Vardhan Against Brij Bhushan
By Tridib Raman
Has the central leadership of the BJP found a counter to Uttar Pradesh’s famous Bahubali leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh? After fully utilising this influential leader’s impact in the Haryana elections, does the party intend to put him on the back burner? To be honest, a section of the party made full use of Brij Bhushan Sharan to keep UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in check. Now, with RSS standing firmly behind Yogi like a strong rock, the BJP top brass does not want to risk provoking Yogi. So, the party leadership has started fueling the political ambitions of Gonda’s saffron MP and Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Kunwar Kirti Vardhan Singh. A senior party leader argues that “he is not a loudmouth like Brij Bhushan, he is calm, patient, and serious, he is a wealthy man from a noble family, educated abroad, and a leader with a mass base among Kshatriyas.” Brij Bhushan’s supporters are hurt and surprised by the party’s changed attitude, quietly murmuring, “Once the purpose is served, they don’t recognize us.”
BJP Distancing Itself from Ajit Pawar
By Tridib Raman
Just before the Maharashtra elections, a new round of statements against each other has started within the ruling coalition Mahayuti. It began with Ajit Pawar, who gave a ticket to Nawab Malik, a controversial figure, without considering the BJP’s wishes. Angered by this, the BJP had its leader Kirit Somaiya make a harsh statement, calling Nawab a terrorist and an agent of Dawood Ibrahim, and accusing the NCP of betraying the country by giving him a ticket. Despite this, Ajit Pawar remains adamant about fielding Nawab in the elections. In response, the BJP has removed Ajit Pawar’s picture from Mahayuti’s promotional materials. Now, only Modi, Shinde, and Fadnavis are featured in the alliance’s banners, posters, flags, and advertisements. Ajit Pawar, believing in a ground survey report that his vote bank has drifted away due to his alignment with Hindutva, has taken a big gamble on Nawab to attract Muslim voters.
Why Did Rahul Lose the UP Game?
By Tridib Raman
Learning from the unexpected defeat in Haryana, Rahul Gandhi decided not to field Congress candidates in the UP by-elections. The SP had left the Ghaziabad and Khair seat in Aligarh for Congress. Initially, it was said that “both these seats are weak from Congress’s perspective, making it unlikely for Congress candidates to win.” However, Congress’s own internal survey indicated better chances on both seats. But when Rahul came to know that, similar to Haryana, some big leaders of the party had collected a huge amount of money from people in the name of getting them tickets, and that an aspiring candidate from Ghaziabad had even given a huge advance of Rs. 7 crore to a policy-making general secretary of the party, he got furious. He immediately asked his leader to return the money and announced that “Congress will not contest the elections itself and will strengthen the prospects of SP to defeat BJP.”
Power Play of Akhilesh Prasad
Recently, Congress party organised an event at Patna’s Sadaqat Ashram to celebrate the 137th birth anniversary of Bihar’s first Chief Minister, Shri Krishna Singh. Amidst widespread speculation about the possible departure of Bihar Pradesh Congress Chief Akhilesh Prasad Singh, he went all out to organise this event to maintain his relevance. Notably, the two main guests invited from Delhi were Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Anand Sharma. Observers suggest that Akhilesh aimed to challenge the high command by bringing together two prominent faces of the G-23 group on one stage, signalling that he should not be taken lightly. Meanwhile, Bihar Congress leaders are remarking, “You could only find a Jat leader to invite, but there should be Jat voters in Bihar for that to matter.”
