‘Ma’am’s Busy’: The Hour-Long Wait When Najma Heptulla Tried to Reach Sonia Gandhi

New Delhi: Former Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla in her autobiography, In Pursuit of Democracy: Beyond Party Lines has recalled waiting for an hour to speak with then-Congress President Sonia Gandhi, but she never came on the line, while then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee answered immediately.

In 1999, Heptulla was elected President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), a global organization of national parliaments. Excited by this achievement, she called both then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and then-Congress President Sonia Gandhi from Berlin.  

She recalls that Vajpayee answered her call right away. "He was delighted and proud, not only because it was an honor for India, but also because it was given to an Indian Muslim woman," she wrote.  
However, her experience with Sonia Gandhi was very different. When she called, a staff member told her that Sonia was busy. "Even when I mentioned it was an international call from Berlin, they just said, 'Please hold the line.' I waited for a full hour, but Sonia never came to the phone," Heptulla shared. "I was truly disappointed and didn’t speak to her about it after that."  

Heptulla also mentioned that after Sonia Gandhi became Congress President in 1998, it became harder for regular party members to reach her directly. "Too many layers of people came between the leader and the rest of the party," she added.  

In her book, Heptulla thanked BJP leader Vasundhara Raje for organizing a celebration for her election as IPU President at the Parliament Annex.