Manmohan finds no place on Cong campaign wagon

Sanjiv Sinha

New Delhi, April 30: STRANGE as it may seem, senior Congress leader and the party’s most non-controversial face, Manmohan Singh, doesn’t find a mention in the list of leaders selected by the party for campaigning in the coming Assembly elections in five states.

Although Singh’s non-inclusion is being officially attributed to his ‘‘non-availability due to personal reasons’’, his absence from the list of party campaigners, especially for Assam from where he is a Rajya Sabha MP, has sent party circles into a tizzy. One of the reasons is that the veteran leader’s Rajya Sabha term ends in June this year and there is enough speculation in the party circles over whether he will be renominated for another stint.

At present, Singh is the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha but it is no secret that his rivals are already positioning themselves to take on the mantle from him when his term expires.

Apart from party chief Sonia Gandhi, who was in Assam today to kick off her campaign, others chosen to campaign for the party are Congress Working Committee members Ahmed Patel and Mohsina Kidwai, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, former Union minister K.C. Lenka and Bihar Lok Sabha MP Rajo Singh.

However, at a time when the Congress shall make corruption in the NDA Government one of its main election planks — especially in Assam, where it is directly pitted against the BJP-AGP combine — Singh’s absence is quite inexplicable as he happens to be the one with the cleanest image and track record.

That Singh too is unhappy and has been sulking for sometime is also no secret, more so after the economic policies initiated by him as finance minister have come under a sharp attack from a section of party leadership who feel that because of his liberalisation, party’s pro-poor image took a severe beating.

He has been keeping a low profile in the party for quite a while now although Sonia is still said to personally ‘‘value’’ his views on economic matters. With barely a month to go before Singh’s Rajya Sabha term expires, speculation is rife that the senior leader may himself express his unwillingness to continue and opt for an economic assignment abroad — a job he would be most comfortable with.
In case this happens, it could pave way for veteran leader Arjun Singh to take on the job of the party’s leader in the Upper house — in the absence of Pranab Mukherjee, who is away in West Bengal as the PCC chief.

Interestingly, Arjun Singh issued a strong signature statement, attacking Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee for his double-speak. ‘‘The mask is off and we are witnessing an unscrupulous politician doing the rounds to somehow prevent his fall from power...if the word of the Prime Minister (on a Joint Parliamentary Committee into Tehelka expose) cannot be trusted, does he deserve to remain in that position for a single moment?’’ Singh asked.

Another CWC member, Oscar Fernandes, stating that the Congress will not be cowed down by any threats, said the Prime Minister in his concluding speech in the Lok Sabha should have spoken as a statesman and acted with dignity and wisdom instead of taunting the Congress and its leadership.