DUCK AND COVER

The Uttar Pradesh polls starting on February 11 are looking too close to call. The alliance between the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress, a fast fading force in the state as it appears to be in much of the country, has given the BJP pause. The lack of a chief ministerial face is a worry for the latter, still the marginal favourites according to most calculations. The SP now looks firmly in the grip of the younger Yadav, CM Akhilesh, who is said to get along with both Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi. Here the SP boss is seen with Rahul during a roadshow in Lucknow city. As is obvious, there are still obstacles to duck.