Sonia goes on the offensive, challenges Mayawati

TAKING ON MAYA: Sonia Gandhi declared Rae Bareli as her karmabhoomi (work place).

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New Delhi: Congress President Sonia Gandhi had an eventful trip to her constituency Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday.

Sonia wasn't allowed direct entry into her constituency on Chief Minister Maywati's orders and her route was diverted, which is unprecedented as the route of an Special Protection Group (SPG) protectee is not decided by local authorities but by the SPG itself.

The Congress President had gone to Rae Bareli to address a rally and make political capital out of Mayawati's decision to withdraw land meant for the construction of a rail coach factory.

However, with Mayawati on the offensive, the Congress will now have to do some serious thinking to hit back at the Bahujan Samaj Party supremo.

Sonia also said that Rae Bareli and Amethi belonged to the Gandhis and nobody could stop them form coming there.

"I am willing to go to jail," Sonia declared.

But in a state where the Congress has practically ceased to exist, perhaps she is acting on the old logic 'when in trouble, attack could be the best form of defence'.

But her opponent Mayawati has her eyes fixed on wresting power in New Delhi.

That's why the six km detour taking by Sonia from Fursatganj to Rae Bareli is snowballing into such big crisis.

Mayawati's decision of not allowing Sonia's cavalcade a direct entry in Rae Bareli is being viewed as a direct threat to the federal structure of India by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil.

"If state government's do such things, it will be a setback for our federal structure," Patil said.

So does that mean that the Congress President will not be able to go to areas which are riot hit or have seen some other calamity?

She is an SPG protectee, with the highest security grading and that is why an attack on Sonia is being considered a deliberate strategy by those close to Mayawati who believe hitting at the top leadership of the Congress will result in rest of the structure crumbling.

But the Congress is now an ally of Samajwadi Party in UP and their common enemy is Mayawati.

"Sonia Gandhi should not be treated like this," Samajwadi Party general Secretary Amar Singh said.

In her entire political career, it is the first such experience for the Congress President and that too on her home turf of Rae Bareli.

Now she will have to think fast to neutralise the threat that Mayawati is so openly posing.