Click to play videoCongress President and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Monday filed her nomination for Lok Sabha lections from Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh.
Even though Sonia Gandhi is one of the most powerful political leaders in the country today, she is not in the race for prime ministership. She had in 2004 declared that she does not want to become the prime minister of the country even though the Congress emerged as the single largest party and the UPA formed the government.
Sonia, who is an Italian by birth, has been targeted by many political parties over her foreign origin.
Senior leaders like Sharad Pawar. PA Sangma and Tariq Anwar broke away from the party and formed the Nationalist Congress Party in 1999 over Sonia's foreign origin issue.
The Opposition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, too, has been very shrill in its campaign against Sonia over the foreign origin issue. During the 2004 election, the only issue that the Opposition could use against Sonia was her being an Italian by birth.
The campaign pitched her against Atal Bihari Vajpayee. It wasn't just the BJP that targeted her foreign origin. All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) chief J Jayalalithaa in 2002, hit out at Sonia saying that she (Sonia Gandhi) become the prime minister, it would be a disaster for all right-thinking and patriotic Indians.
Sonia was targeted on the foreign origin issue even after the UPA came to power.
Her inability to read and speak Hindi was repeatedly pointed out. But now in 2009 Sonia is completely off the BJP radar.
Even Pawar, the man who left the Congress on the foreign origin issue, is part of UPA Government.
With elections round the corner Face the Elections debated: Sonia Gandhi files nomination: Is the foreign origin issue dead? The panellists included BJP leader and journalist Seshadri Chari, NCP General Secretary and spokesperson Devi Prasad Tripathi, and Congress leader Satyavrat Chaturvedi.
None of the major Opposition parties have raised Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin issue during the 2009 Lok Sabha election campaign. So is the issue no longer on the agenda.
BJP's Sheshadri Chari disagreed claiming that the issue was very much alive.
"Not at all. The issue still remains, it is not dead. Congress fought the 2004 elections on aam aadmi issue. There was no referendum whether Sonia Gandhi has to become the prime minister or not. Our contention was that she should not hold a constitutional position which we still hold. If the Constitution allows her to contest elections she can contest and win. Our contention is only against her holding constitutional positions. It is not only a question of what the BJP says. It is also a question of what the Congress and its allies say. Sharad Pawar left the party on this issue and he became a Cabinet Minister in the UPA government only because it was led by Manmohan Singh," said Chari.
Did the Congress bow to the pressure and fear of losing allies in 2004 when Sonia decided against becoming the prime minister?
Satyavrat Chaturvedi countered Chari saying the issue has been decided in Sonia's favour with the electorate giving the Congress-led UPA a majority in 2004 elections.
"This kind of an idea was the brainchild of a perverted political mind. The people of this country have been too large hearted and too open minded. In the last two parliamentary elections this issue was raised by the BJP and many other parties. But the people of this country did not listen to them. They voted for the Congress and brought it to power," said Chaturvedi.
Chaturvedi continued saying that the BJP was free to raise any issue but the final verdict is that of the voters.
"I am not challenging as far as their ability or right to raise an issue is concerned. In a democracy anyone can raise whatever issue they like. But the people of this country have rejected such narrow-minded thoughts. Has Annie Besant been untouchable for this country? Has Mother Teresa been untouchable for this country? When it comes to Sonia Gandhi can anyone say that she is in any way less Indian than any other Indian?” he asked.
Chari tried to claim that the real issue in 2009 elections are different from those that were raised five years ago.
"The issue today is unemployment, economic crisis, terrorism and there are other issues concerning the aam aadmi. As far as Sonia Gandhi is concerned the Congress can choose her as its president but is she is in the race for prime ministership, there will be opposition not only from the BJP but also from the people of this country," he said.
Chaturvedi quickly rebutted Chari saying that is no bar in the Constitution on Sonia Gandhi holding any constitutional post.
"As far as the balloon of Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin is concerned it has been totally punctured. What does the Constitution of which he (Chari) talks say? Is she chooses does the Constitution of this country prohibit her from doing this?” he argued.
NCP was formed in 1999 after Pawar, Sangma and Anwar broke away from the Congress on Sonia's foreign origin issue. So does not the NCP owe an apology to Sonia?
"We don't owe an apology to anyone. I don't understand why this question is being raised at this juncture because this question has been buried by Sonia Gandhi herself in 2004. In 1999 the foreign origin issue was the most important reason for the formation of NCP. At that time she had staked claim for prime ministership and said that she has the support of 272 MPs. It was only in that context that NCP leaders raised this question in the Congress Working Committee and they were expelled from the Congress. After the February 2002 Gujarat riots and the new kind of horrendous element introduced in Indian polity introduced by Narendra Modi, the question of foreign origin became secondary. The primary question was how to fight communalism," said NCP General Secretary and spokesperson Devi Prasad Tripathi.
It seems Sonia's acceptability has increased because she has opted out of the prime minister's race.
"Yes! By giving up the post of prime minister of India she became far more acceptable not only to us but also to the people of India," Tripathi agreed.
However, Chaturvedi countered Tripathi claiming Sonia never wanted to grab power.
"Let us put some correct facts. When Sonia Gandhi went to the president to form a government, she went for the Congress party and not for herself alone. Long before she decided not to become the prime minister the people of this country had given the mandate to the Congress and its allies. So the acceptance of Sonia Gandhi has been decided by the people of the country," he claimed.
He also rejected that Sonia has only contested from safe seats like Amethi and not really gone out to other places to prove her acceptability.
"She has gone out to canvass at other places for Congress candidates. Congress came as the single largest party in 2004 elections," he pointed out.
But Chari did not give up blaming the Congress of always looking upto the Gandhi family.
"They are mixing up the issue. Who and how the Congress party is managed is its internal matter. Congress cannot survive without a member of the Gandhi family and that is fact. Congress has no moral or legal right to impose this member of the Gandhi family on the country in any manner whatsoever especially is that member turns out to be of foreign origin. Acceptance of Indira Gandhi was a different issue and any other member from the family would probably be a different issue. Opposition to Sonia Gandhi was strictly on the foreign origin issue," he said.
The discussion ended with both Chaturvedi and Chari indulging in a war of words.
Final Web/SMS Poll: Sonia Gandhi files nomination: Is the foreign origin issue dead?
Yes: 57 per cent
No: 43 per cent
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