'Bade log hain': Prashant Kishor on Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'
Motihari (Bihar), Jan 7: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' on Saturday won grudging praise, couched in sarcasm, from political strategist-turned-activist Prashant Kishor.
The IPAC founder, who is on a padayatra in his home state Bihar, was asked by journalists in Motihari about parallels, if any, he saw between his own effort and the marathon march of Gandhi.
"Bade log hain (they are big people). Compared with them, I am a nobody," said Kishor whose 'Jan Suraaj' campaign in Bihar came after a lengthy round of failed negotiations with the top leadership of the Congress, which he had wanted to join and was confident of reviving using his professional skills.
"Rahul Gandhi is on a 3,500 km-long march. For me, kilometers do not matter. I have been walking non-stop since October. But I do not want to show it off as evidence of my physical fitness," Kishor remarked, with thinly veiled sarcasm.
Dubbed an "opportunist" by the political mainstream in Bihar, the former strategist insisted that he had infused his campaign with a "purity of intent".
"It is like the austerities of Chhath. One can have a sip of water. But true devotees do not make such a compromise and complete a gruelling 36 hour-long fast," he said, with a rhetorical flourish.
"Not for me breaks during the New Year or visits to my home. Nor do I agree to hitch short rides on my way to the next destination," said Kishor in an obvious dig at the Congress leader.
Notably, Kishor first came in limelight after handling Narendra Modi's spectacularly successful campaign in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. He called it a day as a professional strategist after the 2021 assembly polls in West Bengal where his client, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, registered her biggest-ever victory.
In the meantime, the IPAC founder had done business with political leaders as diverse as Nitish Kumar, Uddhav Thackeray, M K Stalin, Arvind Kejriwal, Amarinder Singh, Jagan Mohan Reddy and K Chandrashekar Rao.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
