Tea Party politics

The chai pe charcha campaign launched by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi has become a hot topic in political circles in Chhattisgarh. In state capital Raipur, the Congress candidate for the Lok Sabha polls Chaya Verma staged a protest outside the residence of former Union Minister Ramesh Bais who is set to be the BJP's candidate from the constituency. Undaunted, Bais invited the agitators for a cup of tea. After one sip, the Congress activists jokingly asked: is this Modi tea? The former minister was quick to respond in kind. No, it is Ramesh Bais tea, he quipped. But within two days of this harmless bonhomie, Verma had to pay a big price. The Congress changed its candidate from Raipur, fielding former state minister Satyanarayan Sharma instead. Clearly, for Congress activists, tea can be injurious to their political health, whether it is offered by Modi or Bais.