Ajay Singh: A dimming of the reflected glory

BACKSTAGE

Khatris are neither a formidable vote bank in Uttar Pradesh (UP) nor a numerically small but powerful caste. Most are families that migrated to UP after Partition, while a small number may have made UP their home several hundred years ago. But whatever their origin, many have managed to climb to positions of power and have stayed there tenaciously. One example is Lalji Tandon.

Tandon's source of power stems from two attributes. One, that his ancestral home is located in Lucknow's Chowk, an area in the heart of the city that has a culture all its own. And two, that Tandon has been a friend of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for decades.

The Chowk area is the seat of the old elite of Lucknow "" families that typically would have litchi orchards in Dehra Dun and mango orchards in Banaras, that are close to the city's most important people (the district magistrate and the CM, for instance) and that have, in mimicking the old aristocracy of Lucknow, made a laid-back, "what me worry" style of life a trademark of Lucknow.

Tandon belongs to a generation that viewed food as a way of life. Kebabs, biryanis and the Hindu-Muslim food of Lucknow spelt out this class's outlook on politics and life. For a Hindu nationalist like Tandon, for instance, moderation of views would come naturally "" if there were no Muslim cooks to prepare galawat for the kebabs, whatever would happen to India?

When he was much younger, Vajpayee used to be a frequent biryani eater in Lucknow. The relationship "" it would be an exaggeration to call it a friendship "" between the two men dates back several decades.

Tandon's political ascendancy started when Kalyan Singh became chief minister of UP. Tandon was made a minister and as is his wont, he introduced many of his friends "" builders, traders and so on "" to the state's power circuit.

Although earlier he was better known as a good host and for his chain of stores selling chikan "" Lucknow's renowned embroidery "" Tandon developed a taste for politics along with business.

Then, Vajpayee decided to make Lucknow his constituency and went on to become prime minister. Tandon's ratings soared. He did not have to go through anyone to speak to the PM. His access was unimpeded, something that a lot of people resented, including Singh himself. Perhaps Tandon's role in the misunderstanding between Vajpayee and Singh bears deeper scrutiny.

Tandon capitalised on his proximity to the seat of power to the hilt. As UP's urban affairs minister, just after Singh was removed, senior leaders in Delhi were amused to see the Ghaziabad Development Authority take out expensive full-page ads in Delhi newspapers describing Tandon as a "dynamic leader" under whose leadership urban development schemes had marched ahead.

Clearly, Tandon was offering himself as replacement to Singh. When the BJP-Mayawati pact came into being, Tandon rushed to ensure his position was not disturbed. Tellingly, Mayawati tied a rakhi to just two BJP leaders "" Tandon and Murli Manohar Joshi.

If you are aspiring to be a politician but don't have a base, image-building is crucial. On his 68th birthday, Tandon launched a "Gomti Safaai Abhiyan". He was instrumental in getting the Gomti river cleaned of plastic and other pollutants.

No one remembers now who got the contract for that job. Tandon is insisting he had nothing to do with the sari-distribution fiasco which resulted in a stampede that killed 22 women on April 12. That was done by Krishna Murari Yadav, a friend. But it would be interesting to investigate just what are Yadav's connections with Tandon.

For a number of UP politicians, it is never quite clear where business stops and politics begins. Tandon is one of them.