Akhilesh wins Rahul-Vishwas turf war

Sunita Kori’s plight came to light after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi visited her home in his Lok Sabha constituency Amethi in 2008 and assured her of all help. Gandhi also spent a night at the Dalit woman’s home.

Kori, a resident of Amethi’s Sangrampur village, had to pay a penalty for becoming famous. Some fellow villagers set her house on fire and her subsequent pleas to Gandhi for help did not elicit a response. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kumar Vishwas, who has been aggressively campaigning in Amethi, had criticised Gandhi for visiting the houses of the Dalits, but doing nothing for them.

 AAP workers jumped into the fray and even repaired the poor woman’s house. They also visited Kori on Republic Day and offered her sweets.

The AAP has been highlighting Kori’s case to buttress their contention that Gandhi had no “real sympathy” for the Dalits.

If Vishwas thought that he had trumped Gandhi, the AAP leader was grossly mistaken as there emerged a “third winner” in the fight between the two.

On Monday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had a cheque of Rs 1.85 lakh delivered to Kori for getting her house built.

Uttar Pradesh minister and MLA from the Amethi Assembly constituency Gayatri Prajapati visited Kori and presented her the cheque.

The minister said he had come on directions of the chief minister. Though the Samajwadi Party has not yet declared its nominee from the Amethi Lok Sabha seat, Prajapati will be a strong contender in case the party decides to field a candidate against Gandhi.

The state government’s help surprised AAP leaders, who quickly called it an attempt to gain political mileage.