Sheila's son to fight Rajiv's ex-bodyguard

NEW DELHI: Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit''s "close relations" with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and the family may come under strain once the candidate for the East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency is finalised.
With the decision on who gets to contest from East Delhi expected any day now, the tussle within the party is hotting up with two distinct camps - Shiela Dikshit and those against her within the party - slugging it out till the last moment.
If one of the candidates vying for the ticket is Dikshit''s son Sandeep, the other is Anil Bhardwaj, a strong contender, who is supposed to have the support of Priyanka Vadra, and hence, has the "family" rallying behind him, says the grapevine.
Bhardwaj and Sandeep are the forerunners for the hot seat, leaving A K Walia and Anil Shastri, the other significant aspirants, way back in the race.
Despite being a political greenhorn, Sandeep, who runs a Bhopal-based NGO Sanket, is believed to have the support of 15 of the 20 MLAs from the East Delhi constituency.
Bhardwaj was one of Rajiv Gandhi''s unofficial bodyguards, provided by H K L Bhagat, in the days when he had no SPG cover from the government.
Bhardwaj, however, has moved out to Bangalore now, where he runs a bottling plant in partnership. He also owns a restaurant at Pragati Maidan and a Coke vending stall at IGI airport.
With strong credentials as a loyalist, he naturally has, sources say, the support of the family - a factor which threatens to cancel out Dikshit''s edge.