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Pawar and Co will launch Swadeshi Congress

George Iype in New Delhi

The expelled Congress rebel leaders -- Sharad Pawar, P A Sangma and Tariq Anwar -- will float a new national party to attract those Congressmen disgruntled over Sonia Gandhi's leadership and her Italian origin and to provide an anti-Sonia platform to the Third Front and regional groups.

The new party headed by Pawar will either be probably christened the Swadeshi Congress or the Indian Nationalist Congress. The modalities, name and proposed alliances of the breakaway Congress group will be chalked out when the three leaders sit together on Saturday in Delhi.

Pawar's supporters in Delhi disclosed that the axed trio are now prepared for a long-drawn out battle with Sonia that will expose her and force the Congress to take a beating in the general election.

While Anwar and Sangma were closeted for hours on Friday morning working out their future plans, Pawar was in constant touch with them over the telephone.

Sources said the ousted rebels' first priority is to mobilise the silent dissenters in the apex Congress Working Committee and state Congress units and compel them to join hands with them.

They believe those party leaders unhappy with Sonia's leadership and style of functioning and those sidelined by her coterie would be tempted to party company and join the new outfit.

The Pawar camp is also happy that while the CWC was forced to expel the trioka for questioning Sonia's credibility to become the prime minister of India, the turmoil in the Congress is far from over as she still sticks to her resignation.

"We are going to make sure that Sonia's foreigner issue will damage the Congress's election prospects," a Pawar supporter told Rediff On The NeT.

But he added that before the new party headed by Pawar unleashes its campaign against Sonia, the Maharasthra leader will ensure that the growing confusion in the Congress strengthens his hands.

"Our sentiments and opposition to Sonia becoming the prime minister are being shared by many in the Congress. They are just feigning allegiance to her for the time being," the Pawar loyalist added.

The Pawar group's calculations are based on their expectations that an adverse political atmosphere against Sonia's foreign origin would have an effect on the Congress, and force many to come out of their shell.

Those senior Congress leaders who may join hands with the ousted rebels in the coming weeks could include CWC members Rajesh Pilot, Jitendra Prasada, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Meira Kumar. Former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao and former party president Sitaram Kesri are also expected to back the new Congress propelled by Pawar.

Sources said Pawar will not get many immediate supporters from within the Congress as senior leaders are waiting to see the shape and size of the new party he floats.

As per the calculations being worked out by the Pawar camp, some 10 members of Parliament from Maharashtra and nearly 50 MLAs from the state assembly will break away from the Congress to join him.

Already, Chhagan Bhujbal, leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly, has come out in support of Pawar, stating that the expulsion will certainly split the party in the state.

Sangma has considerable influence and say in the North-East which elects 25 MPs. The former Lok Sabha speaker played a key role in the merger of the Arunachal Congress (Meithi) faction with the Congress.

The new party will not be confined to Maharasthra alone as both Anwar and Sangma are expected to considerably damage the Congress's chances and win a few seats from Bihar and the North-East respectively.

Pawar loyalists also foresee a new grand alignment of political parties at the national level on the lines of the People's Democratic Front of the late 1970s when the Maharashtra leader revolted against Indira Gandhi and formed the Congress-S.

With Pawar as the central figure, political analysts expect a new-look Third Front to emerge if his parleys with the Left, the Samajwadi Party, the Trinamul Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal succeed in the coming days.

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