JOIN USOnly after finishing the daily quota of electioneering in her own Krishna Nagar constituency, does BJP’s chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi step out of the area to join roadshows in other constituencies.
Though Krishna Nagar is known as a BJP stronghold, Bedi and party workers are not taking any chances.
The east Delhi constituency is BJP leader Harsh Vardhan pocket borough. Only once has the five-time MLA won less than 50 per cent of the votes in the constituency. But party cadres are making door-to-door visits and have pressed into service autorickshaws and cycle-rickshaws that blare out messages announcing Bedi’s candidature from that seat this time.
Party workers know they cannot afford to relax. Since joining the Bharatiya Janata Party and then almost immediately being projected as its CM candidate, Bedi has had to fight off some issues regarding her image.
Rivals called her an “opportunist”, reminding that she and Kejriwal were once both part of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption campaign. And then there was a controversy of sorts on whether she deserved the Crane Bedi-tag she acquired when she was the traffic boss in Delhi Police.
Bedi, meanwhile, has been at work to come across as a soft and likeable person, unlike the popular perception of a tough former cop that exists in the public memory.
“She might sound rude because of the kind of department she has served in. But I can tell you from my personal interaction with her that she has been making conscious efforts to change that perception,” says Sushil Chopra, vice-president of BJP’s Geeta Colony unit.
The effort shows in her interaction with people while campaigning. “She turned out to be warm, unlike the tough policewoman image that has been created of her,” Jahnvi Sharma says after shaking hand with Bedi in Timarpur. While on the campaign trail, Bedi has been smiling a lot – and even blowing the odd kiss at the crowd.
But when it comes to promises of getting work done, she projects her tough administrator image. “I am not an office girl. I believe in going out into the field and working,” says Bedi. “My work as the chief minister will begin early in the day and no files will be left pending,” she adds.
She has not cleared her stand on several issues, including full statehood for Delhi and bringing party funding under the ambit of RTI. She says she will begin work with whatever resources are at her disposal, if and when she takes up the mantle.
Bedi has been highlighting that women’s safety is on her priority list. Her roadshows have had a good representation of women, and party workers in her constituency insist that the victory margin for BJP will be higher than ever.
“Being the first woman IPS matters. No politician ever before has talked about women’s safety the way she has. There is a special excitement among women voters. You can see the large number of women voters at this party office,” says Kalpana Devi Jain, municipal councillor from East Delhi.
The newly set up party’s constituency office in Krishna Nagar has been a place of much activity over the last few days, but the constituency’s voters still swear by Harsh Vardhan.
Locals are found to be aware of directions to Vardhan’s home in the area but not to the party office that is at a more prominent location only a few houses away. Those who know the address cite Vardhan’s house as the landmark.
Jain and others claim that they have the wholehearted backing of the supporter of Vardhan, who was the CM candidate during the last elections but is currently a minister in the Central government. Vardhan himself had been accompanying Bedi on her tours.
But a recent comment – “Doctor sahib has been taking care of Krishna Nagar, now I will also be your doctor” – by her during a rally has led to reports of Vardhan being miffed. A roadshow led by Kiran Bedi in Krishna Nagar on Tuesday was conspicuous by his absence.
But opposition to Bedi being “parachuted” into the party as its CM candidate is contained.
Manoj Tiwari, an MP from Delhi who had tried to resist her entry, calling her a “thanedaar instead of a leader”, had immediately downplayed his statement due to pressure from the top. He has been trying to warm up to Bedi ever since.
Jagdish Mukhi, a senior party leader who was assumed to be the natural choice for CM candidate even by the AAP, has not spoken a word against Bedi. Any questions about him being sidelined are met with answers which sound rehearsed.
He begins listing how Bedi as the first woman IPS officer maintained a “blotless career” throughout, and has undertaken several projects for the betterment of orphans, widows and the poor. His standard reply to questions about any possible heartburn is that he is a foot soldier of the party and will follow whatever decision is taken.
Game changer?
With just a few days left now for the polls, it appears that ushering in Bedi into the party might have worked as a game changer. At least some argue that. “Bedi’s record is better than Arvind Kejriwal’s on every count.
Party-wise BJP is better than AAP and intelligence-wise Bedi beats Kejriwal,” says Abul Faiz Khan, a party worker.
But then, some opinion polls and smaller than expected crowds at rallies has made BJP pull out all the stops. Bringing in senior leaders to campaign in Delhi suggests that the party is not depending solely on Bedi’s charisma.