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| Newsmaker: Sushma Swaraj | | Gumption and roses |
| Aditi Phadnis / New Delhi Dec 25, 2009, 00:03 IST |
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 Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj, or the chairman of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Parliamentary Party, LK Advani? This is the choice that BJP leaders have been grappling with in private, especially after party leader S S Ahluwalia called on the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) managers with what they call an astounding proposal that the chairpersons of the ruling (and opposition) parliamentary parties be given the rank of cabinet ministers.
In that case Advani, having amended the BJP constitution to ensure a position of power and influence as chairman of the parliamentary party after quitting as Leader of the Opposition will still be able to tower over his successor, Swaraj, even if only in terms of protocol.
Swaraj has become leader of Opposition at a time when BJP is struggling to define its identity and is reviewing internal hierarchies. She was already convenor of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and in that capacity was required to interact with other opposition parties. She is considered a hard but fair bargainer, and was a highly popular minister for parliamentary affairs, eliciting kudos from bitter ideological rival, CPI(M)’s Somnath Chatterjee, who called her the best parliamentary affairs minister India has had, much to the irritation of his party.
Swaraj is considered temperamental — a person of strong likes and dislikes who will go to any extent to secure the interests of a person she likes. But you cannot sway her easily, as the Reddy brothers from Bellary found when they raised the banner of revolt and came to Delhi intent on replacing Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa. They finally dropped their demand of changing the chief minister, provided two of the three brothers were made ministers. “Not possible,” Swaraj told them determinedly and stuck to her stand. Eventually, they backed down.
Swaraj has shown exemplary loyalty to her constituency. When she represented South Delhi in Lok Sabha, she issued identity cards to all her workers and told them she would stand up and salute them when they came to see her. Bellary was considered a pocket borough of the Congress. Today it is the most fertile district for BJP with the highest success rate. She goes to her current constituency, Vidisha, every month (she would go there on 28 December “for my last visit this year”).
Swaraj’s supporters know that she will never be the large tree under which nothing grows. Ambitious young BJP leaders — whether Nishikant Dube, Anuraag Mathur or Varun Gandhi — have all spoken in key debates, becoming opening speakers in the House. There was a time Vijay Kumar Malhotra used to be the opening speaker for every debate.
Swaraj has carefully cultivated the image of a dutiful Hindu daughter and wife through the judicious use of symbols — the sindoor , the karva chauth brouhaha, etc. But she was one of the most trenchant critics of Sri Ram Sene, which tried to impose a dress and behaviour code on women in Mangalore. Her only child, a daughter, has got the best possible education — in boarding school and later abroad. And Swaraj is one of the strongest votaries of the Women’s Reservation Bill.
She tries to be flexible but gets caught in the image trap sometimes. She did want Advani to retire but felt that the decision should be voiced by him — that it would not be appropriate if she were to make the suggestion, because no daughter could ever ask her father to make way for her.
But she is determined and ambitious in the best sense of the word. Few know that, influenced by the Socialist movement (though she started out as an activist of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the BJP’s youth wing), Swaraj in her younger days decided she must start a campaign against Indira Gandhi. Gandhi had lost the election in Rae Bareli in 1977 and contested a by-election in Chikmagalur, Karnataka, in 1978. Swaraj took a posse of workers and reached there. But she didn’t know the language and did not have the wherewithal to organise meetings. So she thought up an audacious scheme.
Gandhi, after addressing her meetings, would quickly drive away to the next and there was always a time lag before the crowd dispersed. After “Indiramma” had driven away, “Sushmamma” would confidently walk up to the podium, ask the crowd to stay and tell them why they should not vote for Gandhi. She did this throughout Gandhi’s campaign tour that day and finally reached the station to catch the same train that Gandhi was taking back to Delhi.
Gandhi’s supporters had already narrated Swaraj’s exploits to her. When Swaraj realised Gandhi was on the same train, she tried to get into her compartment to raise slogans against her. Gandhi called her and asked her if she had indeed “used” the Congress meetings to attack the Congress. Swaraj nodded proudly. Gandhi thought for a moment and asked her to stay in her compartment — so Swaraj travelled with her arch political enemy.
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