Family ties run deep in the Congress. If the ticket allotment for Maharashtra has only reinforced this, the party should brace itself for a new set of dynasties that is waiting to emerge, with many top guns grooming their kin to inherit their political legacy. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s son Vaibhav, for instance, is showing a keen interest in politics and was in consideration for the Sawai Madhopur Lok Sabha seat in the last general elections. Gehlot’s counterpart in Maharashtra Ashok Chavan’s wife Amita was a ticket aspirant this time and had given four options in Nanded district. Although her claims were ignored this time, it’s certainly not the end of her political aspirations. Union Minister Kamal Nath’s son Nakul has been making appearances at his father’s public meetings in Chhindwara. However, Union Minister Kumari Selja recently did not view her cousins’ attempts for a ticket from Sirsa very kindly. “First check if

they are in the Congress in the first place,” she was learnt to have told party leaders.

Dangers of ticket distribution

TICKET distribution may lend the leader at the helm a distinct aura of importance, but the job comes with its share of hazards. Ask Maharashtra Congress president Manikrao Thakre. An hour after the party released its list of candidates for the state Assembly polls on Wednesday evening, a disappointed woman aspirant from Nagpur accosted Thakre at the AICC headquarters, grabbing him by the collar. It was with some difficulty that Thakre was able to shake her off and disappear. As the news about the incident spread, party old-timers expressed surprise at Thakre’s “naivety”. According to them, experienced leaders know a basic thumb-rule: get out of sight before a list of candidates is made public!

... contd.