Mr Sharma, are they not also Italians by birth?
S Gurumurthy
Mr Anand Sharma, the spokesman of the Congress Party, first declared that Rahul and Priyanka were virtually members of the Congress by "birth". This was on Wednesday, the 21st January. Within 24 hours, realising he had invited charges of dynastic succession, he modified the declaration. He said that "Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi are an integral part of the Congress and they are its primary members."
"But, Mr Sharma, when and where did they become members," asked a mischievous journalist. Sharma could not elaborate. Then he fumbled, "I will give you all information later as to when they joined and where." It is of course not difficult to construct records of primary membership of a party that has a history of large bogus membership. Sharma finally eulogised Rahul and Priyanaka as the fifth generation in Nehru-Gandhi family to serve the organisation and the country.
Note the appropriation of 'Gandhi' along with 'Nehru'. The suffix 'Nehru' itself is a misappropriation. Arun Nehru who is sitting in his farm house in Outer Delhi and writing columns in assorted newspapers is a more legitimate Nehru than Antonia Maino, the mother of Rahul and Priyanka. Will he ever be allowed to serve the party like Sonia or her siblings? He lost out more because he was a Nehru, a competitor for the brand Nehru. Rahul is to be married to a foreigner girl, not an Italian, but Columbian. Priyanka is already married to Robert Vadra. Where does 'Nehru' get pasted over all this?
How about that saint, 'Gandhi', the Mahatma? If pasting Nehru's name is deception, Gandhi's is fraudulently perverted. Where is the true Gandhi family? Where is Rajmohan Gandhi, the direct grandson and the direct heir of not only the Mahatma but also of another great man Rajaji? It is a double fraud, against both Gandhi and Nehru, to designate Antonia Maino and her siblings as Gandhi-Nehru family. There is of course a law against misuse of names. But the framers of that law never visualised fraudulent misappropriation of names. Hence did not provide for that.
Now let us come to the inheritance of Rahul and Priyanka by birth. What did they really inherit by birth? The primary membership of the Congress party? No. That is an inheritance granted by Mr Sharma. The real inheritance is something different. When Antonia Maino gave birth to them she was an Italian national in the Indian Prime Minister's household. She had not decided on becoming an Indian citizen. She was weighing her options for 15 long years on whether to live in India or to leave for Italy. She made that choice ultimately in 1983, after she enjoyed stately patronage in the Prime Minister's household for 15 years. Till then Sonia was a loyal Italian. Rahul and Priyanka, the newly discovered primary members of the Congress by birth, were born to an Italian mother, Sonia. Being the children of an Italian national they are born citizens of Italy. The Italian Constitution says that the Italian nationality inheres in them. A few months back I read a book on Sonia Gandhi by Rashid Kidwai, a journalist. Referring to my article in these columns (May 17, 1999) Kidwai writes in his book, ''The Congress and 10 Janpath have not contradicted Gurumurthy's contentions.'' That is they have not denied that Rahul and Priyanka were born citizens of Italy. Actually it is worse. Says Rashid Kidwai, ''Senior party leaders said Gurumurthy's formulations were academic, even if true, and had no relevance.'' Almost an admission!
Yes, Rahul and Priyanka are Italian citizens by birth. Then Mr Sharma, if they are Congress members by birth, are they not also Italians by birth?
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