NEW DELHI: Sonia Gandhi will be back in the Capital on Thursday Sept.12. The “Sonia mania” which has been at low ebb during her absence will begin with renewed vigor again this week with the return of Rajiv Gandhi’s widow from her one month holiday abroad. The stage has already been set for the “shouting-brigade” to begin its clam our and protestations of loyalty. The introduction of a bill by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanding a constitutional bar on holding offices of the prime minister and president among other important posts by persons not born in India is obviously directed at keeping Sonia out.
The coterie has already orchestrated a protest in Parliament and is heading for another showdown once “Madam” returns.
It is not just the politicians who are eager to display theu loyalty. Members of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation have also been hard at work The sub-committee on finances headed by R.P.Goenka has drawn up a list of over 300 companies from where resources for the Trust can be drawn. This list is to be shown to Sonia for approval before the fund collection drive begins. The committee is scheduled to meet Sonia at 10. Janpath on Sept 16 and thrash out the other possibilities of drumming up their target of Rs 100 crore.
The subcommittee on finances is also expected to meet industrialist Rattan Tata in Bombay to have further discussions on the targets to be set for the companies. Once the companies are approved by Sonia individual letters to their chairman and managing directors will be written informing them of the decision and requesting them to donate generously to the Foundations
Article extracted from this publication >> September 13, 1991
