Doors open for rebel Congress men, says Sheila Dixit

When asked whether the Congress would be able to provide a stable government, she replied that the people of the country have experienced and understood the drawbacks of a coalition government. The people would prefer to vote for the party which can provide a stable government and which has the experience of running a government, she added.

While her attention was drawn to the recent appointment of Suresh Kalmadi as State publicity chief for the forthcoming elections despite the fact that he contested against a Congress candidate in the previous election, Dixit clarified that Kalmadi had always supported Congress philosophy despite having quit the party. He never entered the BJP or Shiv Sena, she added.

The Nationalist Congress Party will have a presence only in Maharashtra and will not get support outside the State, she said. Despite NCP’s presence in the State, Congress will perform very well in the ensuing elections, she claimed, however, refusing to predict on the number of seats the party may win.

She alleged that the BJP was the first party to draw political mileage from the Kargil episode and described the Indian soldiers’ triumph in Kargil as a victory for late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. It is during the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s tenure that the Bofors guns were inducted, Dixit added. Although the Bofors gun had drawn much flak during its induction, the gun has proved its mettle in the Kargil conflict, Dixit pointed out.

The triumph in Kargil, therefore, was as much a victory for Gandhi as well, the Delhi Chief Minister stated.