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felt in UP which is at the core of the Hindi heartland. to reach out to each of the 40 constituencies within
The prevailing disillusionment of upper caste the limited span of three months.
Brahmins with the BJP could come in handy for the While the Congress cadres might have just woken
Congress, which would also be preferred by a large up from their long slumber, what is needed now is
section of Muslims who would prefer the Congress to immense legwork. The local leaders too have got
BSP. Politically unpredictable Mayawati’s past align- rusted in the absence of activity. Priyanka would be
ments with the BJP continues to haunt in the minds required to ensure oiling of the entire machinery and
of Muslims who still look at her with suspicion. to make it operational. Unless local leaders fan out
Further, the manner in which Mayawati has been in their designated areas and reach out to the target
blasting Congress is likely to be even more putting off constituents the revival effort may go in vain. After
for such Muslims. On the other hand, Akhilesh Yadav all the Congress has a mountain to climb and Priyan-
has been quite discreet in maintaining silence about ka is going to be not only head of the expedition but is
the Congress. also expected to be the Sherpa.
It is also being speculated that there could be an
unwritten understanding between Akhilesh Yadav
and Rahul Gandhi to avoid the division of the crucial Even though Congress
Muslim vote, which is bound to come the Congress
way too now that it is seen as a player on ground. No had been down for
doubt that would really be a tight ropewalk for both
Rahul and Akhilesh but perhaps it would be inevita- years, the recent victory
ble to strike a deal somewhere because any division
of the Muslim vote could benefit the BJP.
A good chunk of the upper caste Brahmin vote of the party in three
could also fall in the Congress lap for the simple rea-
son that there is much disillusionment among them states of the Hindi
with the BJP. Moreover, it is widely believed that
Brahmins would avoid going with SP or BSP. heartland has made it
Bearing in mind, the recent trends that became
visible in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan evident that it is now
and Chhattisgarh, where Congress did manage to
get a section of the Dalit vote, it would be a predeter-
mined conclusion that a similar trend would follow on the revival path
in Uttar Pradesh. Evidently, therefore, it would not be
far-fetched to assume that Priyanka’s target would
be to bring back to the Congress, its traditional vote.
Much speculation was also being made on the With the larger task of running across the length
million dollar question — whether Priyanka would and breadth of the country naturally becoming
contest herself or not; and whether she would Rahul’s priority and responsibility, his sister would
replace her mother Sonia in Raebareli or take on be carrying the overall responsibility of UP on her
prime minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi? For shoulders. Right from taking the call on candidates,
obvious reasons, the BJP leadership would want the allocation of constituencies to star campaigners and
narrative to be written as Modi versus Priyanka for ultimately lead the campaign, it would be Priyanka
the simple reason – she could be kept engaged for all the way.
most of the time in just Varanasi. But one thing is for Jyotiraditya Scindia might have given a parallel
sure that she would not like to get bogged down with position as general secretary in-charge of West UP
any single place as that would hamper her presence but he surely does not enjoy the clout of Priyanka. In
in the 40 East UP constituencies which have been any case, he is new to the politics of UP. But his prox-
specifically entrusted to her. imity to Rahul Gandhi may help him to hold sway
Interestingly, some senior BJP leaders have been over various factions of the party in the state. Thus,
trying to undermine Priyanka by asking why she has local ‘satraps’ will easily sink their personal differ-
been reduced to leader of just half of UP. Well, time ences and rise to the occasion in the larger interest
is running out. With less than 100 days left for the of the party’s mission to take on the challenges from
final battle, it was quite pragmatic on the part of Modi-Shah duo.
Rahul Gandhi to have made his sister is in-charge of UP Congress chief Raj Babbar may not have been
just half the state. It will be no mean task for anyone instrumental so far in giving the party any new

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