The only step taken by the party has been to file a privilege notice against the PM. But so far neither has the tweet been deleted which quoted Sonia Gandhi as having said the “sovereignty of the state would be protected”, nor has any clarification come on this.
Sources in the party feel that a response or engagement with the BJP on this topic would fuel the issue further and give a handle to the ruling outfit. Hence, even as there was outrage over the tweet, Rahul Gandhi’s press conference was cancelled and a video was released, of him speaking about the 5 guarantees which would be fulfilled at the first cabinet meeting should the Congress come to power. Not just this, he also made a hurried visit to a café in Bengaluru and rode a bus with a few women to make the point that they would be given free tickets if the Congress takes the reins.
Unlike in most state polls, the Congress began its campaign in Karnataka well before time and it was also well-planned. It focused on local issues, adopting some of the winning proposals of the Himachal Pradesh elections, like putting money into the bank accounts of women, Old Pension Scheme, etc. But the turning point came when the Congress included a ban on the Bajrang Dal in its manifesto. The contradictory responses from the Congress – first saying it wouldn’t be possible to implement by the state government, then denying any such plan, to the promise of building Hanuman temples – gave the BJP its first big catch in the polls.
The icing was the sovereignty tweet. Precedence has shown that the BJP has had an upper hand on issues of national security and nationalism. For the Congress, staying away from this is the only way out. Only May 13 will reveal whether it worked.
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