Gandhi, widow of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, led Congress to victory in last years regional elections, which were fought over such bread-and-butter issues as the countrys onion shortage. By projecting Sonia as a Christian and implying that theres a threat to Hindus from conversions, theyre trying to create an issue with which to beat Congress, says Rahman. Still, thats unlikely to impress voters unless theres an onion in every pot.
India's Christians Under Fire
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NEW DELHI: Throwing a few Christians to the lions may be a government reelection strategy in India. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Sunday visited the southern state of Gujarat, which has seen a wave of attacks on Christians -- but instead of simply calling for the attacks to stop, Vajpayee issued a call for a national debate over religious conversion. Indias constitution guarantees the right to propagate ones religion, says TIME New Delhi correspondent Maseeh Rahman. The reason Vajpayee is raising the conversion issue is to put the opposition Congress party on the defensive, because its leader, Sonia Gandhi, is an Italian-born Catholic.