CONGRESS PARTY: CLINTON DINNER IN BAD TASTE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 006844

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2015
TAGS: PGOV PTER OVIP OTRA EAID PREL ASEC IN
SUBJECT: CONGRESS PARTY: CLINTON DINNER IN BAD TASTE

Classified By: A/DCM Geoff Pyatt for Reasons 1.4 (B, D)


1. (C) Summary: Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma told the
press on September 5 that a lavish September 7 dinner planned
by Congress adversary Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam
Singh Yadav in honor of former President Clinton in the midst
of an fatal outbreak in U.P. of Japanese Encephalitis shows a
lack of sensitivity. Sharma suggested that the Clinton trip
be postponed. Some of our interlocutors suggest the Congress
is concerned that presence at the dinner of a former U.S.
president may embolden UPA opposition and bless their efforts
to unseat Congress, increasing the risk that a "Third Front"
could challenge the government. It is clear President
Clinton's planned Lucknow visit on September 7 has riled
Congress political sensitivities, illustrating the continued
centrality of U.P. in India's domestic political scene. End
Summary.

Congress Up In Arms Over Clinton Visit
--------------


2. (C) FPOTUS Clinton's planned September 7th visit to
Lucknow, sponsored by Congress opponent and UP Chief Minister
Mulayam Singh Yadav (along with movie star Amitabh Bachchan
and business tycoon Amar Singh through the Uttar Pradesh
Development Council) has the Congress leadership concerned.
The Asian Age reported on September 6 that Sonia Gandhi, who
has strained relations with all three U.P. personalities,
turned down a dinner invitation in Clinton's honor being
hosted by Mulayam. Former PM Vajpayee was also invited but
has yet to decide on attending the event. Congress spokesman
Anand Sharma stated, "Any sensitive government would have
taken the situation seriously and postponed such a lavish
party in the backdrop of the fast-spreading Japanese
Encephalitis disease in which one child (in U.P.) is dying
every hour."


3. (SBU) Congress Official Rajesh Dixit reiterated to us on
September 6 that the lavish dinner on September 7 in Lucknow
for FPOTUS Bill Clinton would be in bad taste in light of the
fatal outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis in the state. He
indicated that Clinton should postpone his trip to Lucknow in
light of the situation. Congress Members of Parliament Rajiv
Sharma and Salam Kurshid also told A/DCM on September 5 that
they were alarmed by Clinton's acceptance of the invitation
from such outspoken opponents of the UPA government and
warned that the visit would be used by the opposition for
political gain. A/DCM responded by explaining that former
President Clinton is traveling as a private citizen, and
aside from security, the U.S. Government is not involved with
the trip.

The Story Behind The Scenes
--------------


4. (C) The official host of the dinner, the Uttar Pradesh
Development Council, was formed in late 2003 at the behest of
Mulayam and Amar Singh to propel the industrial development
of the state. Many in Congress and elsewhere consider
Mulayam a thug who uses threats and violence to ensure he
gets votes. Our interlocutors also assert that Mulayam is
the dirtiest of Indian politicians and a rampant bribe-taker.
Recently, the state took out local and national newspaper
ads stating that Uttar Pradesh is undergoing "unparalleled
progress" under the leadership of businessman Amar Singh.
However, detractors argue that the UPDC has failed to bring
any major investment into the state and its industrialist
members, Subroto Roy, Adi Godrej, Anil Ambani, Amitabh
Bachchan and others used it as a tool to solidify control
over the state's economy and consolidate their own fortunes.

The Dreaded "Third Front"
--------------


5. (C) Delhi continues to buzz with rumors that Mulayam and
Amar Singh are working with CPI-M leaders and big businessmen
such as Subroto Roy to try to develop the dreaded "third
front" to challenge the UPA government's hold on power. Our
interlocutors suggest that by cobbling together the Left and
enough opportunistic regional parties they could garner
sufficient votes in parliament to challenge the UPA's thin
plurality. They argue that the publicity created by a visit
to the U.P. triumvirate by former President Clinton could
boost their prospects for this third front, a concern echoed
to us by senior Congress interlocutors.

Comment: Swimming in Murky Waters
--------------


6. (C) Whether the rumors that FPOTUS Clinton's visit will
be used by some in an effort to precipitate the downfall of
the UPA government are true or not, the fact is that the
former President is stepping into a U.P. politicized scene
that remains highly volatile. U.P. is the traditional
Congress Party heartland, and the Gandhi family's strategy
for consolidation depends on recovering that bastion. This
is particularly the case for Rahul Gandhi, who is under
criticism for failure to pay sufficient attention to the
Gandhi/Amethi U.P. constituency. The Congress leadership's
sensitivity about President Clinton's visit suggests how
vulnerable they remain to challenges from Mulayam and his
ilk.


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(http//www.state.sgov/p/sa/newdelhi)
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