Lokpal war: Sonia's first salvo at Anna

When the Anna Hazare anti-grafted movement had unfolded in Delhi and reached its peak, the Congress was leaderless with its chief Sonia Gandhi undergoing treatment in the US. Rahul Gandhi too maintained silence during that time. At times it had appeared that the government would fall under the pressure of Team Anna. But nothing like this happened.

However, things didn't stop there. Sonia returned back from the US and her fans were waiting for her to say something about the Team Anna. But she too was silent for days, only to break it on November 9 when she was expected to attend an election rally in Uttarakhand in preparation for the election.

Though she skipped the rally due to fever, she attacked not only Team Anna but the opposition BJP too. Giving full credit to the Congress-led UPA government for introducing the RTI, she said: "Corruption cannot end by pointing fingers at others. Everyone should introspect. It cannot end if some think their corruption is better than others. This is what is happening these days. I want to ask these people who gave the RTI? Who brought transparency in public life? We did. The NAC was set up by the Prime Minister and I am in it. The Lokpal Bill was first formulated here. The Prime Minister and the Government are committed to the Lokpal, so what's the noise about?"

Also, she threw some light on inflation issue by saying that it was a cause of concern. She assured people that the government would do something on the burning issue. However, she didn't give any time frame about when the government will be able to tame the inflation that has made things difficult for ordinary Indians.

Her important comment on Lokpal has come at a time when Team Anna and BJP have been relentlessly attacking the Congress. With the UP election just round the corner, the Congress has become extremely careful and doesn't want to hand over any ammo to the opposition to attack it. Keeping all these things in mind, Sonia Gandhi has taken right step in putting party's foes on the back foot. It would be interesting to see how things unfold.

Experts predict a bitter fight in the coming days as BJP would try to take the credit of the Lokpal that may be passed in the Winter Session.