Transformed Sonia at ease with probing questions

Transformed Sonia at ease with probing questions
HARISH GUPTA

NEW DELHI, FEB 17: The venue, the host, the guest and the crowd were pretty much the same, but it was a different Sonia Gandhi facing mediapersons this time round. Six months ago, she had been uncomfortable with the questions, ducking them often. Yesterday night at AICC media cell member Vishwa Bandhu Gupta's residence, Sonia took on the questions like a seasoned pro till the journalists ran out of steam.

She was forthright and gave the bite-hungry TV journalists delightful little quotes. Never once was she caught off guard and unlike last time when she didn't eat anything, this time, Sonia had her fill and mingled freely with the guests at the informal dinner.

Sonia talked easily about the coming Parliament session, promising that it would a stormy one, with the main focus being on the discrimination in relief given to two states -- Gujarat and Orissa -- by the Centre.

``There is a glaring gap between what was given to Gujarat and to Orissa.They gave a blank cheque in Gujarat immediately after the disaster. But nothing of the sort happened in Orissa.'' She even raised her voice a bit: ``I am told that they (BJP-RSS workers) took away tents from Orissa to Gujarat. We will ask them in Parliament.''

What shocked her most, she said, was the BJP's discrimination in providing relief to various categories of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and minorities. When a journalist asked her if she was saying all this on the basis of information given to her or she had checked it out herself, Sonia minced no words: ``I do not go by hearsay. I have actually met families who have not received anything by way of relief.''

She said had met people from the minority sections on the outskirts of Bhuj and they had complained that they were made to raise ``certain slogans before they were provided relief''. Another family told her that the relief had not reached them because they belonged to a particular community.

Sonia further declared that the earthquake in Gujarat would be on ``top of our agenda'' during the Budget session.

As for Kashmir, she disclosed that the Vajpayee Government was unwilling to give any details of their policy.``They did not tell us anything. They did not take her party into confidence on the ceasefire policy. We had to ask the Government for a dialogue on this issue and Natwar Singhji told them. We were called only after we made our position clear,'' she said.

On extending the ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir, she said the government should look into the situation and come out with something positive.

Regarding the Allahabad High Court order setting aside the notification for the trial of eight accused, including Home Minister L.K. Advani, in the Babri Masjid demolition case, she said the Uttar Pradesh government should issue a fresh notification in this regard.

Asked about the Shiv Sena's staunch opposition to Valentine's Day celebrations, she said it reflected the party's ``mindset and mentality''.

She did, however, give the NDA Government some leeway -- she has no plans to convene a meeting of Opposition leaders on the eve of the Budget session.