CALLl it poetic justice or political irony but Third Eye is seeing it happen along with the millions of Indi-ans who have mandated the National Democratic Alliance out, despite a wise leader it had in Atal Behari Vajpayee. India Shining has now turned into Sonia Shining and is bound to turns into Sonia’s India Shining. Yeh Kab Hua, Kya Hua, Kaise Hua? As the popular song runs. It means that a surprised nation is humming the tune - How did it all happen? When did it happen? But this can be stated that Sonia Gandhi outshone all others because she became the first political figure in the history of free and democratic India to refuse to put on the mandated crown of prime ministership. From Nehru to Vajpayee, since India became free, no other winning leader had shown such courage of conviction. Her critics of yesterday in the media were quick to sing a new Sonia song. The tune was: She is the tallest, she is the most shining. The tune is no doubt haunting and pleasant for the common-folk of India who feel she cares more for them than the throne of New Delhi. The BJP’s shine, which had blinded the nation with its media multipied brilliance during the pre-election and post-poll days seems to be fading. The alliance led by the BJP is comeplled to review its own perspectives and poll performance and indulge in serious self-searching with primary question:Where the shine has gone?

Between the shifting shine, from the NDA to the UPA, there are some interesting shadows and spooks, running for cover and safe havens. The young Turks of the BJP like Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Pramod Mahajan and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who ironically despite being young were all appointees to the Rajya Sabha, the House of Elders, and flew into the Lok Sabha frequently as ministers to have the best of two Houses, will now be missed in the Lok Sabha. They cannot take their propaganda skills to the Lok Sabha, where Atal Behari Vajpayee would preside no more. Their wings have been clipped and they will have to confine themselves to the Rajya Sabha, where Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would remain the House Leader, as the Rajya Sabha member from Assam.

The Third Eye could hear new voices and see new faces of the outshone India shining in the voices and faces of Bollywood heroes like Dharmendra and the master of the cricket pitch, Sidhu. The joke is already making the round of the political circles in Delhi that even dogs are deserting Delhi. They are frightened of the expected threat by Dharmendra in the new political language mixed with Bollywood Bhasha, declaring Kutto Mein Tumhara Khoon Pee Jaoonga. The Third Eye can also see the grand old man of the BJP, the best and most human face of the party, strained with frownful worry. He was unhappy with the premature Sonia-baiting campaign of Sushma, Uma, Govindacharya trio. Some counsellors of the great Vajpayee have been telling him and he seemed to agree that if these loud mouths had kept their mouths shut and Sonia had been crowned as the Prime Minister, as mandated by the people of India, within three months the UPA Government could have been toppled.

Samajwadi Supremo and once chief secular politician of Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s face is also not shining. He has also taken note of the fact that his own political empire in UP is shaking and next step might be Maya seeking help from the Congress to topple him. The Allahabad High Court verdict, reversing Mulayam’s decision to reverse Maya’s creation of nine new districts in UP was also a big setback. Mulayam, in all wisdom and self-defence measure, is retaining his Mainouri seat to ensure that if the powerful trio of three secular parties led by Salman Khurshid of Congress, Mayawati of the BSP and Ajit Singh, decide to topple his kingdom in Lucknow, he can at least take his woes and walls to the Parliament in New Delhi, where at least some might listen to him.