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Sonia's 11-year-old star campaigner

By Subashish Mittra in Rae Bareli
May 07, 2006 16:57 IST

Eleven-year-old Sadhana Bharati is not only breathing fire at opponents of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, but is probably her star campaigner in Rae Bareli as well, thanks to her gift of the gab!

At an age when children play hopscotch, this girl has been holding large audiences spellbound at Sonia's election meetings.

Her polished oratory at election meetings addressed by Sonia Gandhi's poll manager Rahul Gandhi left the crowds wondering whether she was the Congress's Uma Bharati in the making.

The girl, who started reciting the Gayatri Mantra when she was 36 months old, has attracted the attention of Sonia, Rahul and other senior Congress leaders by delivering fiery speeches against the Bharatiya Janata Party, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

However, she has no desire to join politics.

"Let me make it clear, I do not want to join politics. I want to become a doctor and serve the people," she told PTI when asked what she wanted to become when she grew up.

Escorted by her father Rajesh Rajput who is a Congress worker and a garment trader, at all the public meetings, the class 8 Kendriya Vidyalaya student maintained she has no personal animosity against Sonia's rivals.

"I just like Congress ideology. After I had the first brush with the party in 2003, I came in contact with Sonia Gandhi in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls," she said fielding questions with ease in the midst of hectic campaigning.

Taunting the BJP with "Bhaago, Janata Peetegi" and "Loktantra under BJP-NDA was Loot Tantra", she had been telling people that the saffron party's "feel good" was "deal good" apparently referring to scams during the NDA regime.

Her speeches are punctuated with various shlokas and the child prodigy is preparing to give a discourse on world peace in Mumbai later this month.

The unstoppable small wonder from Etah district of Uttar Pradesh gives a whole lecture on secularism at the Congress meetings - extempore and flawless - making a big splash among Congress-loyalists and locals alike.

Subashish Mittra in Rae Bareli

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