A spat between Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh and BJP leader Uma Bharati during a TV debate over Bihar Assembly elections has spilled over to Madhya Pradesh, with both exchanging letters taking potshots at each other.Provoked by Bharati’s digs at him for his efforts to ‘‘please an Italian woman’’ (Congress president Sonia Gandhi), Singh dashed off a letter to her today pointing at her desperation to gain power despite being a ‘‘sanyasin’’.‘‘You should decide whether you want to live the life of a sanyasin or a politician’’, because ‘‘once a sanyasin starts mixing truth and lies due to the lure of power, it is natural the perception of the common man of a sanyasin’s profile takes a beating,’’ Singh said, offering ‘‘free consultancy’’ to Bharati for dislodging Babulal Gaur from the chief ministership of Madhya Pradesh.‘‘Sit quietly’’ for some time and ‘‘try to get commitments made to people fulfilled while highlighting wrongdoings of the the BJP government,’’ he suggested. The BJP, he told her, ‘‘would never make you the CM’’, given the antics of your family, ‘‘which are unparalleled’’. He recalled that senior leaders of her own party distributed a list, which stated that her family members or persons close to her had taken how much money to fix postings of district collectors and district police chiefs.The Congress general secretary said thanks to her behaviour, letters and statements, RSS, VHP and all state and central leaders of BJP have distanced themselves from her. ‘‘You may or may not accept it, but the more you indulge in politicking with MLAs, the more you would strengthen Gaur in his post.’’ The reason being, ‘‘no political party can change leadership under pressure, and if it does so, political instability would always continue’’. Making it clear that it was for her to choose her course because ‘‘as an elder brother, I can only suggest to you’’.Bharati wrote to Singh first on Monday last protesting against his use of ‘‘insulting language’’ for her when she charged him and Sonia with a feudal mindset because they wanted constitutional bodies like the Election Commission to work under them like slaves. ‘‘The way you reacted to my remark and called me shameless and a liar has caused me worry. I am now more determined to ensure that people like you do not get a place in Indian politics,’’ she added.Some of Bharati’s troubles can be traced to her inclination to write letters to anyone and everyone, like her letter to RSS chief K S Sudarshan against BJP general secretary Sanjay Joshi (a pracharak) and Sangh joint secretary Suresh Soni. While Bharati has sought to take on Singh for his psychophancy for Sonia, the Congress leader has chosen to show her the mirror. But Bharati being what she has to, Singh can look forward to another letter.
