Sonia hogs the limelight at Kalmadi's rally

It was meant to be a gathering for Congress candidate Suresh Kalmadi, but party chief Sonia Gandhi was clearly the show-stopper at yesterday's rally here. Ranjitt Khomne captures the mood

It was meant to be a gathering for Congress candidate Suresh Kalmadi, but party chief Sonia Gandhi was clearly the show-stopper at yesterday's rally here. Ranjitt Khomne captures the mood

5 pm: Suresh Kalmadi arrives on stage,u00a0 looks around and wipes the sweat off his forehead. The ground is far from filled. The women and kids on the ground seem disinterested by his presence. They are clearly awaiting Sonia Gandhi, ironically, to a poll song based on the tune of the golden oldie Bekaraar Karke Hamein Yun Na Jaiye, Aapko Hamari Kasam...

show-stopper: Sonia Gandhi campaigned for Suresh Kalmadi at the SSPMS grounds yesterday. pic/anil naik

5.10 pm: State minister Harshwar-dhan Patil joins Kalmadi on stage. Both seem worried that the ground is not filled to capacity.

5.18 pm: A Congress worker kicks off the rally with an emphatic speech on the achievements of the UPA rule. But his enthusiasm is greeted with silence. The crowd seems to be stubbornly waiting for Sonia.

5.28 PM: Sonia arrives and is escorted on to the stage. The crowd is on its feet and cheers her.

5.34 pm: Kalmadi begins his speech, which is a listing of his achievements in three languages Marathi, Hindi and English. Sonia nods as he thanks her for gracing the event. He urges her to fund a metro rail network and a power project for the city. Sonia senses the mood and waves at the crowd.

5.43 pm: State Congress chief Manikrao Thakre and CM Ashok Chavan speak for seven minutes each.

5.57 pm: Sonia finally takes the stage and the crowd, which was listless, suddenly comes alive. People are up on their feet, trying to catch a glimpse and slogans of 'Sonia Gandhi zindabad!' rent the air. Her first line "Bhaiyon, behnon aur buzurgon, main is pavitra aur aitihasik bhumi aur uske saputon ko pranaam karti hun"u00a0throws the crowd into a frenzy of applause. Sonia mentions the Rs 65,000-cr farm loan waiver, growth rate, nuclear deal to meet future power crisis, measures for rural development, as her party's achievements. She also makes subtle criticisms of the Opposition.

She wraps up her speech as per the Congress tradition, with three Jai Hinds. As the crowd breaks into another wild round of applause, she rushes to the barricades to greet those in the front row.

After a minute of meet and greet, she returns to her car and waves at the crowd for the last time, leaving Kalmadi to take on BJP's Anil Shirole and BSP's D S Kulkarni on Thursday, when Pune votes.