'Underestimating Sonia could have a price, especially for the opposition'

On the Sonia Gandhi trail: Harinder Baweja, Sumit Mitra and Harish GuptaSonia Gandhi seems to have made a habit of surprising people. She baffled political pundits by deciding to campaign and then astounded them by the crowds she drew. It would have been enough if she left it at that.But her capacity to surprise is unending. In the past few weeks the sheer scale and style of her campaign has left the nation awestruck. The quiet Italian-Indian has stormed across the country. As our cover headline puts it, it's been nothing short of a blitzkrieg.Underestimating Sonia could have a price, especially for the opposition. Attending meeting after meeting - it will be 138 when she finishes - she constantly displayed a resolve, a stamina and a political savvy that was unexpected. Merely ascending a stage, waving to the crowds and saying a few banal lines in the local language did not satisfy her. Instead, she virtually hijacked the Congress party. In this election, she is the party, she is the campaign. It is as if the AICC headquarters has shifted address from 24 Akbar Road to 10 Janpath. And she runs the campaign her way. She never travels with party leaders, rarely endorses a local candidate, and speaks continuously about the Gandhi legacy..preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}The only thing not surprising was that reporting the Sonia show remains a harrowing experience. Information on her is still hard to come by, as Senior Editor Sumit Mitra and Associate Editors Harinder Baweja and Harish Gupta were reminded while reporting the story. Yet, if friends of the Gandhis once faced a social death warrant for speaking to the press, today they are a trifle more forthcoming. At least they have an idea of what Sonia is up to; Congress officials have little. As an AICC spokesman told Gupta, "When she expressed regret for Operation Bluestar in Chandigarh, it took all of us in the party by surprise." Question is, what surprises does the electorate hold for her?Published By: AtMigration Published On: Mar 2, 1998--- ENDS ---

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'Underestimating Sonia could have a price, especially for the opposition'

Sonia Gandhi seems to have made a habit of surprising people. She baffled political pundits by deciding to campaign and then astounded them by the crowds she drew. It would have been enough if she left it at that.

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