Gujarat Polls: Shweta Bhatt is a Rahul's gamble

Ahmedabad, Dec 1: When the situation is hopeless one either withdraws quietly or makes lots of noise. The Congress in Gujarat seems to have opted to beat drums and make noise during the assembly elections.

's candidature against Chief Minister

is a case in point.

The Congress instead of building a credible opposition and party cadre, it is going for disruptive methods to hog publicity space which results in unpredictable gains, normally on a lesser scale.

Modi, while filing his nomination papers, directly hit out at Ahmed Patel, Sonia Gandhi's political secretary, for distribution of the Congress tickets for the elections. That may be the case in major selection of candidates but the process has not added any points to Ahmed Patel's CV. The ticket distribution has been secretive fraught with dissensions and withdrawals.

However, the candidature of Shweta Bhatt comes from a different power centre. Sonia Gandhi should be aware of it but Shweta's nomination is the direct result of Rahul Gandhi and his strategy group's intervention.

Rahul and his backroom group are fond of short-term and shock value gains. Their politics has been hit and run with no long term plans. Short term gains are okay if politicians have will to build on them for a bigger game and benefits. The shock value tactic works when there is no issue to hammer.

The Congress in Gujarat is so clueless that no shock can lift it even in the short term. And, Rahul Gandhi and his team have no appetite for long term game, even though age is on their side.

It appears that Shweta Bhatt, a trained dancer, is out of tune and dancing to someone else's beat. If she really wants to make a fight of her beliefs she should have contested the elections in any other urban areas, not necessarily against Modi.

Mere symbolism is a waste and it erodes the credibility of the issue, perceived and genuine.

OneIndia News