Ramdev tries to hush BJP nominee talking funds, microphone gives him away

ALWAR/JAIPUR: The scene was right out of a comic strip, except the bumbling sidekick was BJP’s Alwar candidate Mahant Chandnath and yoga guru Ramdev the exasperated boss.
In footage that immediately went viral, Chandnath was caught urgently whispering to Ramdev that he was finding it hard to raise cash. “Kisi se bhi paise len-den mein dikkat pesh aati hai (I am finding it hard to raise money),” he said.
The plaintive plea left Ramdev dumbstruck for a moment as the yoga guru — believed to have prevailed upon BJP to give Chandnath the Alwar ticket — was due to address a press conference with a cluster of live microphones before him.
Mumbling through his beard, Ramdev admonished Chandnath, telling him “Ye baat yaha mat kijiye, mike lage hue hai (Don’t speak of this here, there are microphones).”
Ramdev’s caution only added to the drama with the video footage only highlighting the farcical element of two saffron-clad figures surreptitiously discussing election funds.
Asked about the conversation, Ramdev feigned ignorance, denying any such talk with Chandnath.
But the slip gave former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot the opportunity to claim that the conversation exposes Ramdev, who doesn’t tire of demanding that black money stashed in foreign banks be brought back.
“If no mischief was involved, why didn’t they talk properly. Why they were hiding the conversation and now in a denial mode?” asked Gehlot.
Congress promptly shot off a complaint to the Election Commission saying that the two had been caught discussing distribution of money and that this was a serious offence. The EC almost certainly will send Chandnath a notice.
The entire conversation was recorded before the start of a press conference at Alwar town on Wednesday. Caught on wrong foot, both denied the conversation. “There was no discussion about money,” said Ramdev. Chandnath flatly said that it was media creation.
Congress candidate from Alwar and union minister Bhanwar Jitendra Singh said the Election Commission should take cognizance of the conversation and initiate action against the BJP candidate. “They have shown their true colour,” said Singh.