Is a scramble to appropriate the legacy of one of India's greatest icons a clever political gambit or a sorry commentary on its lack of great leaders?
For the past fortnight, Indians have been treated to what many say is an unseemly tussle between the two main political parties - the ruling Congress and the main opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under the energetic leadership of prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi - to seize the legacy of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the republic's greatest leaders.
Mr Modi, who is also the chief minister of Gujarat, recently caused a stir when he said Mr Patel would have been a much better choice than Jawaharlal Nehru as India's first prime minister.
Mr Modi also ordered work to begin on a massive statue - and billed to be the 'world's tallest' - of Patel in Gujarat which, at 182m (597ft), would be twice as high as the New York's Statue of Liberty and cost tax payers 20.63bn- rupee ($336m; £210m). A statue which, in the words of journalist Tunku Varadarajan, is vast, tall and giant, in a land of political pygmies".
Most Indians know of Patel as a staunch nationalist, who also came to be known as the Iron Man. The son of a farmer, Patel was a prominent Independence hero, a tough-talking administrator and a canny strategist who coaxed and arm-twisted the rulers of more than 550 princely states to merge with India after Independence.
He went on to become India's interior minister and deputy prime minister under Jawaharlal Nehru.
'Fierce patriots'
But his very own Congress party, critics say, has not exactly covered itself with glory while trying to "reclaim" Patel's legacy.
Senior minister Jairam Ramesh said Mr Modi's moves were an "insult" to Patel, as BJP's controversial prime ministerial nominee had been "brought up in ideologies that inspired the assassination of Gandhi". (Gandhi was assassinated by a fellow Hindu, Nathuram Godse, who felt that he had betrayed the Hindu cause) Read More Original Post
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