His masters voice

In January 2009 itself,the party had announced his removal as spokesman for attacking the then Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh. Purportedly removed twice as spokesman,Chaturvedi continues to be a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee and in charge of different departments and cells.

If past trends are any indication,the latest episode could only enhance his stature in the organisation. Hailing from an influential political family from Chhatarpur district of Bundelkhand region in Madhya Pradesh,Chaturvedi has always been very selective in picking his adversaries. The bigger the political stature of adversaries,the better.

His mother Vidyawati Chaturvedi,a four-term MP,was close to the late Indira Gandhi and his father Baboo Ramji Chaturvedi was a minister in the P C Sethi government in Madhya Pradesh. Since early 1980s,when he made his maiden entry into the Assembly and went on to become a deputy minister in the Arjun Singh government,he has carried the image of a strongman. Vinod as Satyavrat is known among his friends had to resign as minister after his alleged involvement in a murder case. He was acquitted later. He was also reported to have huge stakes in mining sector.

Satyavrat expected to be inducted as minister when Digvijay Singh became chief minister in 1993,but was ignored. Though a ruling party legislator,he offered to resign. Usually,the ruling party would have tried to pacify its legislator,but in this case the chief minister reportedly rang up Chaturvedis wife to inform that his resignation was being accepted. Peeved,Chaturvedi resigned from the party as well,only to return to it after a few years and contest the 1999 Lok Sabha election on the Congress ticket from Khajuraho Lok Sabha seat. His return to the party did not change his equation with Digvijay Singh though.

Chaturvedis detractors often raised questions about his equation with Uma Bharti. The Khajuraho seat was represented in Parliament by his mother Vidyawati Chaturvedi who won the seat in 1980 and 1984. The Chaturvedi family wielded considerable clout,especially among the Brahmin community. What led to questions was the fact that Uma managed to win Khajuraho seat in 1989 and also subsequent elections with a combination of Lodh and Brahmin voters. In 1999,she shifted to Bhopal. Satyavrat contested from Khajuraho and won. That was the last election he won.

Chaturvedi fielded his son from an Assembly seat in his parliamentary constituency in 2003 election,but could not ensure his victory. The father himself lost the 2004 parliamentary election.

For the first two decades of his political career,Satyavrat was confined to state politics. Thanks to Madhavrao Scindia,he managed to enter the hallowed precincts of the AICC in New Delhi some time around 2000 and was soon seen briefing the press. Yet,when he was appointed general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh in 2004,it came as a surprise to many.

He was soon engaged in a tug-of-war with UP PCC chief Salman Khursheed. After a prolonged duel between the two,Chaturvedi was taken off UP,but was soon rewarded with Rajya Sabha nomination from Uttarakhand.

Recently,AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi went over to Chaturvedis house to seek his advice over breakfast on how to turn things around in Uttar Pradesh. Chaturvedi was later invited to 12,Tughlaq Lane,to elaborate on his suggestions.

One of his main recommendations was to field Priyanka Vadra at about half a dozen big public rallies at selected places in UP,according to party insiders. It was not known how seriously Rahul had taken his advice,but his meetings with Chaturvedi did have rumour mills working overtime.

The Chhatarpur strongman used to be quiet and avoided publicity when he was AICC general secretary in charge of UP. He apparently shifted gears after the last AICC reshuffle in September 2007. While he remained a permanent invitee to the CWC,Chaturvedi was not given charge of any state. He has,however,managed to make his presence felt,what with his vitriolic attacks on Amar Singh and Sharad Pawar after sensing the mood in the party.