03-29-2009, 12:16 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Believe it or not Varun outshines Rahul</b>
pioneer.com
Tavishi Srivastava | Lucknow
A fourth-generation scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, firebrand 29-year-old Varun Gandhi, has virtually taken Uttar Pradeshâs poll scene by storm. The raging slogan raised in his Pilibhit parliamentary constituency â<b> âVarun nahi aandhi hai, doosra Sanjay Gandhi haiâ</b> â aptly sums up the mood of his voters. They are standing solidly by his side, the heated debate over his âhate speechâ notwithstanding. <b>Apparently there is a distinct note of optimism in the saffron ranks over the sudden shift in the focus from Rahul to this âGandhi with a difference</b>â.
The BJP has distanced itself from Varunâs speech, but the party leaders know that the entire episode is bound to help them if rival parties try to polarise the Muslim voters. âThose who are accusing us of cashing in on Varunâs speech are perhaps forgetting that our main agenda happens to be the failures of the UPA Government at the Centre and Chief Minister Mayawati Governmentâs handling of law and order in the State.<b> It is a different matter that Varunâs popularity has shot up instantly and there is a growing demand for him to address party meetings,â </b>said BJPâs UP election in-charge Kalraj Mishra.
The latest poster boy of Hindutva may be in the eye of a storm, but his first step on the ladder of electoral politics has surely taught him a lesson or two. A section of<b> BJP leaders has already started discussing how this Gandhi has given a new lease of life to the party, which had been floundering in UP. The CDs of his speech are selling like hot cakes throughout the State, especially in the Rohilkhand region. The neighbouring constituencies of Pilibhit, mainly Aonla, Bareilly and Budaun are now looking up to Varun. Initially, more than 15,000 CDs had been ordered, but the stock ran out in no time.</b>
Five-time MP from Pilibhit Maneka Gandhi vacated her seat for son Varun, while she shifted to Aonla. The seat has a sizeable number of minority members, nearly 30 per cent. The Samajwadi Party, BSP and Congress are stepping up their poll campaigns describing Varun as âcommunalâ and have their eyes set on communal polarisation. From Bareilly, also a traditional BJP seat, incumbent Santosh Gangwar is again in the fray. <b>Senior BJP leader Vijay Pathak was of the view that âVarunâs impact would not only be restricted to the neighbouring seats of Pilibhit but would further spread to Lakhimpur Kheri as well. He felt that BJP rivals were purposely trying to give a communal colour to Varunâs speech since a large section of the minorities were supporting him.</b>
<b>BJP supporters were of the view that Varun has established himself as a mass leader, which Rahul could never achieve despite his gimmicks like staying overnight in Dalitsâ houses</b>. Those, who had forgotten Varun after the last parliamentary election, are now keenly watching him.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
pioneer.com
Tavishi Srivastava | Lucknow
A fourth-generation scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, firebrand 29-year-old Varun Gandhi, has virtually taken Uttar Pradeshâs poll scene by storm. The raging slogan raised in his Pilibhit parliamentary constituency â<b> âVarun nahi aandhi hai, doosra Sanjay Gandhi haiâ</b> â aptly sums up the mood of his voters. They are standing solidly by his side, the heated debate over his âhate speechâ notwithstanding. <b>Apparently there is a distinct note of optimism in the saffron ranks over the sudden shift in the focus from Rahul to this âGandhi with a difference</b>â.
The BJP has distanced itself from Varunâs speech, but the party leaders know that the entire episode is bound to help them if rival parties try to polarise the Muslim voters. âThose who are accusing us of cashing in on Varunâs speech are perhaps forgetting that our main agenda happens to be the failures of the UPA Government at the Centre and Chief Minister Mayawati Governmentâs handling of law and order in the State.<b> It is a different matter that Varunâs popularity has shot up instantly and there is a growing demand for him to address party meetings,â </b>said BJPâs UP election in-charge Kalraj Mishra.
The latest poster boy of Hindutva may be in the eye of a storm, but his first step on the ladder of electoral politics has surely taught him a lesson or two. A section of<b> BJP leaders has already started discussing how this Gandhi has given a new lease of life to the party, which had been floundering in UP. The CDs of his speech are selling like hot cakes throughout the State, especially in the Rohilkhand region. The neighbouring constituencies of Pilibhit, mainly Aonla, Bareilly and Budaun are now looking up to Varun. Initially, more than 15,000 CDs had been ordered, but the stock ran out in no time.</b>
Five-time MP from Pilibhit Maneka Gandhi vacated her seat for son Varun, while she shifted to Aonla. The seat has a sizeable number of minority members, nearly 30 per cent. The Samajwadi Party, BSP and Congress are stepping up their poll campaigns describing Varun as âcommunalâ and have their eyes set on communal polarisation. From Bareilly, also a traditional BJP seat, incumbent Santosh Gangwar is again in the fray. <b>Senior BJP leader Vijay Pathak was of the view that âVarunâs impact would not only be restricted to the neighbouring seats of Pilibhit but would further spread to Lakhimpur Kheri as well. He felt that BJP rivals were purposely trying to give a communal colour to Varunâs speech since a large section of the minorities were supporting him.</b>
<b>BJP supporters were of the view that Varun has established himself as a mass leader, which Rahul could never achieve despite his gimmicks like staying overnight in Dalitsâ houses</b>. Those, who had forgotten Varun after the last parliamentary election, are now keenly watching him.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->