Gautam Gambhir does not wilt under the blazing sun, for he has stood his ground as a cricket player in adverse conditions. Probably, that is what keeps Gambhir, the BJP’s candidate for East Delhi, in good stead as he campaigns in intense heat in Delhi.
Gambhir, unmindful of the near-45 degrees Celsius of afternoon Delhi, hits the streets by 3 pm. Party workers and residents too are enthused by the vigour he brings in. Young men and children run up to him, some with cricket bats, for an autograph in Kalyan Puri, on the UP-Delhi border.
Gambhir was the BJP’s surprise pick. Gambhir had initially stated that development would be his singular election plank. He had to but go back on his words soon after. His speeches are rife with criticism of opponents, something that he had vowed not to do. Gambhir says politics was in his mind for a while. This could be true as Gambhir was stinging in his criticism of the AAP government on twitter even earlier. He told Manorama that he had two options – to withdraw completely from twitter or to join active politics and reach out to people.
But the going is not easy for Gambhir. AAP candidate Atishi Marlena filed a case in court saying Gambhir had two electoral identity cards. The Chief Electoral Officer directed the police to file a case against Gambhir for holding a roadshow without permission. Atishi took a jibe at Gambhir saying ‘he was a player who didn’t know the rules.’
The constituency is one which has a high number of migrant voters. The Congress is banking on Muslim-dominated places like Okhla. Former minster Arvinder Singh Lovely is the Congress candidate.
AAP is also hopeful of winning the seat as Atishi Marlena too is a formidable candidate. The BJP got a tad bit too communal by portraying Atishi Marlena as a Christian. The Congress ‘found’ that she is a Jew.
Aatishi’s parents are Left sympathisers. Both of them were professors at Delhi University. The name Marlena is a portmanteau of Marx and Lenin. Aatishi completed her education from St Stephen’s College and Oxford and led the educational reforms of the AAP government.
