Two empty chairs for their husbands, Sunita Kejriwal & Kalpana Soren take centre stage

With two empty chairs reserved for former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal – leaders of their parties, they are currently behind bars in cases registered by the Enforcement Directorate – wives Kalpana Soren and Sunita Kejriwal took centre stage in more ways than one at the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi Sunday.

Seated in the middle of the dais at Ramlila Maidan, where they were joined by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi later, Kalpana said she was representing the voice of half of the country’s female and nine per cent tribal populations.

Sunita, in her first appearance on a public platform since the arrest of her husband by the ED on March 21, delivered Kejriwal’s message to the nation from ED custody. It consisted of six guarantees to the country, on behalf of the INDIA bloc, aimed at creating “a new India”.

While Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena (UBT) called Sunita and Kalpana his sisters, TMC’s Derek O’Brien said he was choosing to acknowledge the two persons for whom chairs had been left vacant on the stage: “We have two empty chairs on the stage. Mr Kejriwal and Mr Soren, you are with us in spirit,” he said.

The stage, on which leaders from across Opposition parties were present, was the subject of some confusion during the event: as leaders began arriving at the venue, a hoarding depicting the AAP convenor behind bars was placed above the INDIA bloc logo near the central podium from which public addresses were to be delivered.

Amid loud pro-Congress, Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi slogans from a section at the venue where NSUI and Congress flags were concentrated, Kejriwal’s hoarding was removed a few minutes later; this was followed by the arrival on stage of Rahul Gandhi,