MP in search of a reason

Manvendra Singh

As he mulled over a choice of restaurant for Lunch with BS, Manvendra Singh asked me more than once whether my expense account could stand a lunch at The Garden Restaurant at Lodhi Gardens.

Before I could take any offence in the matter, he quickly assured me that having been a journalist himself for a good many years, it was a "realistic question".

"In my time I would have thought this is expensive," he said. Singh, BJP's mint-new Member of Parliament from Barmer, is also the son of former Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, apart from being the new deputy spokesperson for the party. As an MP, so far he's known to make news for his attire rather than his political skills. His appointment to the spokesperson's post, however, shows that his career has come out of the swirling sands of Barmer.

After being assured that an outing at his choice of restaurant would not end up with my taking the place of the dishwasher, nothing further was said on the matter. Instead, we discussed what has become the hottest, non-political topic in the BJP: his famous "two piece dhoti" or what is referred to as the adaita. "Actually this a traditional dhoti made with two pieces of cloth stitched together, and is worn in Barmer, Jodhpur and parts of Pakistan adjoining Rajasthan," he said.

Singh confessed that the fuss over his clothes can sometimes be embarrassing. "You have to get used to other men concentrating on your legs trying to figure out your particular drape," he said with a laugh. The only "modern" clothes he misses are his Levi's 501s and a special kind of dungaree that army mechanics wear (Singh was in the territorial army). "But the dhoti kurta is so comfortable that I wouldn't trade it in for anything else," he said. With a start like that, it seemed almost a pity to go back to talking food or politics.

Singh was just recovering from a bout of typhoid, so he preferred to stick to a vegetarian brochette or grilled vegetables on a bed of rice, while I ordered a vegetarian mezze platter. I asked him whether he had turned vegetarian because of his illness. "Well, when I shifted to Barmer, I went native including following the Rajasthani food code, which essentially says that one should avoid meat and alcohol in summer and cold stuff in winter. Gradually I started avoiding meat, and now I've been vegetarian for three years," he said.

We sat outside on the balcony with a table fan sending a gentle breeze our way to break the stultifying heat of the afternoon. As fresh pineapple juice was brought to the table, I asked him about that "gotcha" moment that made Singh give up his career as a defence correspondent for The Indian Express and head off to Barmer to contest the 1999 Lok Sabha elections.

Was it because his father Jaswant Singh was in the BJP? "Actually, I come from a family that has traditionally been anti-Congress, so that was the latent factor; the immediate catalyst was an event during a regular edit meeting in the Express office," he said.

It was the live telecast of Sonia Gandhi in front of Rashtrapati Bhavan saying "we have 272" that "set off alarm bells" in his head. "I couldn't imagine a foreigner as the PM," he said. With just 15 days to go for the polls, Singh set off for Barmer.

"My wife Chitra was expecting our second child at the time, and she did not like the fact that I wanted to give up my job as a journalist and set off for an uncertain future," he added. "I did my best, but didn't win. But, despite the defeat, I couldn't walk away from it," Singh remarked. "Winning the Barmer seat became my personal Everest."

In fact, the number 272 has become a fixation with Singh. "My margin of victory is approximately 2.72 lakh votes, yet I can never say it; it's always 2,71,88-something," he said with a laugh.

A minor distraction of an ant mistaking my pineapple juice for a giant swimming pool steered the conversation to other things, of life in small-town India and his relationship with his very intimidating father "" Jaswant Singh. "I am a small-town person, I had my schooling in Jodhpur and yes, I was intimidated by my father when I was younger. But that's because, where I come from in Rajasthan, sons are expected to leave the room as soon as their father enters it," he said.

Things, though, have changed a bit now. "My father and I had a similar relationship, now we are much closer. In fact, after I won this time he called me up and said, 'The bad result of the party has eclipsed your electoral triumph','' Singh said.

Singh had actually given himself three elections in which to prove himself. "I'm a very unifocal person, I remember I gave up smoking to woo my wife, but took it up soon after I got married, so she feels cheated."

For fun, he reads travel books, not surprising for a man who drives jeeps, first an Armada and now a spanking new Scorpio, a treat to himself after his victory. Author William Dalrymple is a close friend; and Dalrymple's book In Xanadu is a personal treasure. "The funniest congratulatory message was actually sent to me by William. The message read: 'Best result possible, Vajpayee out, you're in'."

As soon as he said it, though, Singh realised he had made a faux pas and we joked that this wouldn't do now that he is deputy spokesperson for the party. About his first "solo" briefing, Singh said he was surprised by the hostility of the press. "Unfortunately, by the time I started enjoying the hostility, the briefing was over," he added.

He paused for a moment, only to ask me whether ordering cigarettes at the restaurant was allowed by the BS expense rules. I said I didn't know but asked him to go ahead. Fortunately or unfortunately, the restaurant did not stock cigarettes, and Singh fished out a Rs 100 note, asking for Classic Milds. "If I'd known you'd prefer to sit in the balcony I would have got my pack from home," he said apologetically.

As we settled to an after-lunch smoke, Singh wondered if he could risk a coffee. We decided against it and ordered green tea instead. Replete with food, I almost desultorily asked him whether he had met my mother's favourite filmstar, Dharmendra?

"Can you believe it?" he said, "Dharmendra's constituency had the largest-ever voting by women in Rajasthan?" Almost a heartbeat later, he added that his constituency got the second highest thumbs-up from women.

The future for Singh holds more constituency work and acquainting himself with the BJP organisation, and most importantly, going to England and watch Liverpool play for the last time on their original grounds.

"When the election dates were announced, my first thought was that I wouldn't be able to watch Liverpool play their last match in the old stadium, but fortunately, the match was postponed to August, so I get to win and watch the match too."

In the middle of it all, he hopes to find the answer to a question his four-year-old daughter asked him. "She said: Why did you become an MP? In fact, my father was also interested in the answer. I haven't given her an answer yet, but I hope to find a reason soon," he said.