Why Sapna Choudhary should have joined the Congress and challenged Hema Malini
We don't know what the truth is. But the rumour, and the response to it, proved that Sapna Choudhary certainly has all it takes to contest from Mathura and take on Hema Malini.
All of a sudden, the Mathura Lok Sabha Constituency sprang to the news unexpectedly.
There were two reasons:
- Actress Hema Malini is again contesting from the constituency, despite much speculation that Mathura was actually not too happy with her and the BJP was even mulling shifting her to Fatehpur Sikri
- It was reported that singer-dancer Sapna Choudhary would be fielded against Hema Malini, on a Congress ticket.
We get the fact that Sapna Choudhary is very popular. But her popularity also doesn’t come anywhere near Hema Malini's, who has one foot in politics and the other in Bollywood for several years now. Still, the ‘report’ irked BJP MLA Surendra Singh so much that he apparently said the country will not accept Sapna Choudhary and that Congress president Rahul Gandhi should marry her.
Attacking women for what they wear, how they laugh or what they do has become so mainstream in Indian politics now that we are, in fact, tired of being 'surprised' at such misogyny's vicious displays.
#WATCH Haryanavi singer & dancer Sapna Chaudhary says, "I have not joined the Congress party. The photograph with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is old." #LokSabhaElections2019 pic.twitter.com/brcvaKOAIQ
— ANI (@ANI) March 24, 2019
Meanwhile, Sapna herself took to Twitter and clarified that she hasn’t joined any political party — yet. Her photo with Priyanka Gandhi, which triggered the speculation and stoked veteran politicians' heat, was apparently an old one.
Curtains down.
Not exactly.
Picture of Congress Membership Form with Sapna Chaudhary's name and signature on it and fee receipt from yesterday. Today, Haryanavi singer and dancer Sapna Chaudhary has claimed that her pictures are old and she is not a part of any political party. pic.twitter.com/6kCUGlWvE3
— ANI (@ANI) March 24, 2019
Narendra Rathi (in pic 1 from yesterday with Sapna Chaudhary), UP Congress Secretary: Sapna Chaudhary came and filled the membership form herself, her signature is on it. Her sister also joined the party yesterday, we have both of their forms. pic.twitter.com/tKIh0eWLxU
— ANI (@ANI) March 24, 2019
In fact, the episode strongly underlines why Sapna should have actually joined the Congress — and challenged the incumbent Hema Malini.
In 2016, when over 24 people died in a clash between the police and encroachers in Mathura, Hema Malini had reportedly tweeted a photo of her movie shooting. Yes, nothing stops her from discharging her other responsibilities, but what about her responsibilities as Mathura’s MP? She was not in Mathura then, but could she please not tweet happy photos from her shooting location while Mathura was burning?
This was what Mathura was thinking at the time. The MP, too, possibly realised this later and deleted those tweets.
But each time her commitment to her constituency was questioned, she visibly fretted. She asked people to wait and see her work on the ground. Alongside, she made statements that we'd very hesitatingly call faux pas — like when she reportedly said that Vrindavan couldn't accommodate more widows pouring in from Bengal and Bihar and widows from those states should not crowd Vrindavan. Later, she said what she'd apparently actually meant.
Yet, a lot of missteps and gaffes later though, the BJP has no other option but to repeat Hema Malini as she was their winning candidate against the RLD’s Jayant Choudhary.
मैं कांग्रेस में शामिल नहीं हुई हूं।प्रियंका गांधी के साथ मेरी फ़ोटो पुरानी है,मैं किसी राजनीतिक दल के लिए प्रचार करने भी नहीं जा रही हूंःसपना चौधरी????????????पोपट हो गया चमचो और गुलामो का????????????#BhaagRahulBhaag#PappuMuktAmethi2019 #2019election
— Sapna Choudhary (@iSapnaChoudhary) March 24, 2019
The apparent rumour of Sapna Choudhary contesting against her now being lapped up by both political leaders and the media shows how strong Sapna could just have been.
Without confirming the reports, people started hurling foul misogynistic abuses on her. This proves Sapna, who clearly threatened a lot of folks, actually has all that it takes to be in the fray.
The SP-BSP-RLD alliance in UP may field Jayant Choudhary again — in that case, the Congress must look for a formidable contestant in Mathura. Had it been Sapna Choudhary, with her glam-girl-next-door image and her persona as a powerful, self-made woman in a world full of men, the fight would actually have been spectacular.
PS: Sapna has clarified that she harbours no political ambitions. But if she gets a good offer, she doesn't mind helping any party, being an artiste as she is. We hope the Congress is listening.
But this much is clear for now — Sapna is totally having fun on Twitter.