Congress not amused by NCP's Rahul Bajaj election show
SANJAY JOG
Posted online: Monday, June 19, 2006 at 0000 hours IST

MUMBAI: The alliance between the ruling Congress and Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP) in Maharashtra is certainly on a sticky wicket.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar's decision to checkmate the Congress party by
extending his party's support to industrialist Rahul Bajaj, has
raised serious questions about the former's credentials as a secular
leader. Especially since, he enjoyed support from the saffron Shiv
Sena-BJP combine for the Rajya Sabha seat

In fact, Mr Pawar's detractors in the state and a section of the
Congress party have been quite vocal in declaring that Mr Pawar's
teaming up with the saffron alliance would not be short-lived. It
will take concrete shape in the days to come, they say.

s it time for Mr Pawar to severe links with the Congress and team up
with the "communal" Shiv Sena-BJP ahead of ensuing elections to the
local self-government and, more importantly, for the Mumbai
municipal corporation? This question is being raised by not only the
members of Mr Pawar's own party but the Congress, too. However, the
answer would be known only after observing Mr Pawar's future
political moves.

The NCP's claim that it has no plans to break the coalition in the
state as also in the Centre, has few takers.

The Congress party has been quick to criticise the Maratha strongman
as an "opportunist" for joining hands with the saffron alliance in
the Thursday's elections to the Rajya Sabha, in which Mr Bajaj won
quite comfortably, defeating the Congress nominee by over 105 votes.

Mr Pawar, who is yet to forget the humiliation which he and his
party faced after the Congress attained number one position in the
state assembly polls after attracting rebel Shiv Sena leader Narayan
Rane, seems to have decided not to leave any opportunity to
embarrass the Congress party. At least, till he decides to part
ways. However, the Congress is in no mood to accept NCP's diktats
and is concentrating on consolidating its position as a "secular"
party in the state.

Although state Congress chief, Prabha Rau, has targeted Mr Pawar for
ditching the Congress, chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has been
singing a different tune. Mr Deshmukh said his party had lost a
crucial Rajya Sabha seat by winning an additional seat in the state
legislative council which recently witnessed heavy horse trading.
Ironically, the party's state leadership is too weak to take any
decision pertaining to severing ties with NCP and convince the high
command to dissolve the Assembly.

The state Congress has received the much-needed strength from Mr
Rane. However, organisationally, the Congress is still weak at the
grassroots level compared with the NCP, which has systematically
concentrated on consolidating its position through out the state.