Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal is once again getting ready to enact his by-now-familiar drama, with the announcement of a rally in Varanasi to gauge people’s support (March 17) in his battle against Narendra Modi. After the Delhi election — where, he must remember, the people did not give him a full mandate — he chose to carry out an exercise under the name of a referendum to justify his becoming the Chief Minister; this on the strength of an alliance with the Congress, with whom he had promised never to ally. And in less than a couple of months he chose to escape from his responsibilities of governing Delhi, but did so without bothering to seek a referendum! I am sure that the enlightened people of Varanasi can decide for themselves whether or not to support a three-time successful Chief Minister of Gujarat with a proven record of development, or an ex-Chief Minister who only popularised the terms “activism and anarchism.”
S.N. Srinivasan,Bangalore
As a prospective prime minister and a national leader, Mr. Modi has every right to choose the constituency of his choice. Those who venture forth to Varanasi in the hope of challenging him and trying to ensure his defeat only seem to be more worried about the prospect of him winning from there. Did anyone criticise Indira Gandhi or Sonia Gandhi when they chose to fight the elections from Karnataka? Contesting in two constituencies is not yet barred. Though the argument involving avoidable expenditure is valid, when it comes to Mr. Modi there seems to be much protest and debate. Many seem to be reading too much into his decision to fight the election from there.
G. Ramachandran,Thiruvananthapuram
The decision of the BJP leadership to let its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi contest from Varanasi is nothing but a deliberate ploy to shore up its electoral prospects in the key State of Uttar Pradesh. The fear that the AAP could derail things is obvious.
M. Jeyaram,
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu
