Both Prashant Kishor and Navjot Singh Sidhu are at a crossroads. While PK, as the election strategist is fondly called, has his path and future strategy chalked out for him, Sidhu faces uncertain times after being confronted with disciplinary action from the Congress and a possibility of being suspended.
Not just this, the once blue-eyed boy of the Gandhis finds it difficult to even catch their eye amid the party revamp in the state. While his multiple phone calls to the Gandhis are never returned, his attempt to speak out against the AAP government and raise people’s issues is seen as dissent and another attempt to carve out a role from himself.
Amid the political ambiguity, some pictures and tweets have stood out over the last few days. The day the Congress-PK deal fell through, the strategist was seen in Chandigarh with Sidhu where the Congress leader showered praise on him. Soon after, when Kishor announced his Jan Suraj in Patna, Sidhu was among those who congratulated him.
As Kishor sets out on his political yatra as well as a 3000-km one on Gandhi Jayanti from Champaran, he knows he needs to grab attention.
While the master strategist certainly knows how to do it, it now seems both PK and Sidhu can come together and be more than just friends. Though the Sikh population in Bihar is minimal, the value of Sidhu for Kishor would be to have someone who raises people’s issues and can ensure crowds and support.
Sidhu himself could do with some help. Those close to him say he is mulling either floating his own party or setting up a platform. For now, he is all ready to give support to causes, including those raised by PK.
Sources close to PK, however, say nothing has been firmed up yet and it is too early to predict or foresee any kind of tie-up.
Kishor has already been dismissed by Bihar politicians like Lalu Prasad Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav, who terms him a “failure” in the state’s politics. If one remembers, Kishor’s earlier attempt to take along chief minister Nitish Kumar and other Bihar politicians through ‘Baat Bihar Ki’ failed to take off.
Amid strained ties with the Trinamool Congress and Kishor’s decision to cut his umbilical cord with I-PAC, the strategist has taken on his most challenging assignment yet. He needs to be in the news where the attention span is limited. He needs to have the support of the youth and aspirational Biharis — a field where many feel that Sidhu, with his cricketing legacy and connect with the youth, could come in handy. For Sidhu, this could help him bat better with some advice from PK on how to make and retain friends.
Sources say not just Sidhu, but many other high-profile netas could also hitch a ride on the PK bus.
Read all the Latest Politics News here
Comments
0 comment