Heat and dust: How leaders deal with tough campaign conditions

The support system: Helpers appointed for intermittent BP checks and physio sessions, and personal chefs to monitor diets and ensure sustained hydration

MUMBAI : On April 25, veteran BJP leader Nitin Gadkari was addressing an election rally at Pusad in Yavatmal when he suddenly collapsed. Concerned party members rushed to revive him and escorted him off the stage for medical assistance. The minister later tweeted to say that it was the heat, which soars above 40 degrees in the region, that had caused him to faint.

Gadkari’s health issues are not new—he reportedly suffers from a heart rhythm disorder and has fainted on more than one occasion while addressing a gathering. The last time was on April 27, 2019, during an election rally in Shirdi, when he collapsed while walking to his seat after his speech.

Campaign rallies under the blazing sun and long road shows in rural areas are inevitable for all leaders, but the extreme heat this year has only added to the challenges. While the Election Commission of India has instructed officers to help voters cope with the scorching heat, politicians refrain from using any kind of headgear, perhaps to present themselves as common citizens who also come bareheaded to rallies.

The lack of headgear aside, all leaders have a regime to deal with the soaring mercury. Like Gadkari, some are neither young nor in the best of health, particularly the 83-year-old Sharad Pawar, a cancer survivor, and the 63-year-old Uddhav Thackeray who has a host of health problems.

A senior BJP leader and practising doctor said that Gadkari’s heart rhythm disorder began after he underwent bariatric or weight-loss surgery in 2011. The minister also suffers from diabetic nephropathy and Type 2 diabetes which can cause heart disease, blindness and nerve and kidney damage. Post-surgery care—regular exercise, a balanced diet and a strict medicine regime—is vital, but while Gadkari’s staff and family take utmost care to ensure this after the Shirdi incident, the minister’s routine gets disturbed while on tour, said a close associate.

Interestingly, a number of Maharashtra politicians have undergone bariatric surgery, many of them from the BJP like Vinod Tawde and Devendra Fadnavis. Senior Congress leader Nitin Raut too has undergone the weight-loss surgery. As these politicians reportedly work for over 15 hours, and even more during the election period, extra care is called for. “A PA of Fadnavis accompanies him on tours to ensure that he takes his medicines, ample water and food on time,” said a staffer.

Uddhav Thackeray, on his part, has to ensure that he takes the necessary precautions for his spine problem, for which he underwent a major surgery in 2021. Post-surgery, he was diagnosed with quadriparesis or muscle weakness affecting the limbs and torso. Thackeray had to undergo intense 12-to-13-hour physiotherapy sessions for almost six months, after which a reduced physio regimen was chalked out for him. But that has now been thrown out of gear by the election campaigning, said a senior Shiv Sena (UBT) member.

“Just before the campaigning began, the doctors set a protocol for him,” said the party member. This includes Thackeray wearing a neckand-back support belt while travelling to minimise the strain on his body. An assistant ensures that the protocol is adhered to and also monitors Thackeray’s blood pressure thrice a day—if it is high or his feet have swelled, the assistant gets back to the party, which consults a cardiologist. The assistant also makes sure that Thackeray sticks to his diet and stays hydrated with lime juice and water.

The Sena (UBT) chief is very health-conscious, eating light and working out for around an hour every morning. Despite all his health setbacks, he has emerged as the leader who addressed the most rallies across Maharashtra in the last three months. Through this, he has chalked up another achievement: to end the doubts cast on his health and physical ability to lead the party.

For NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, quite apart from the soaring mercury, this election is extrachallenging, given the defection from within his own family. But the patriarch is giving it his all. On Friday, he launched a manifesto in the morning, left for Rahuri thereafter in a chopper, visited Osmanabad by the afternoon, and returned to Pune at 4 pm. The places he visited touched around 40 degrees during the day. But Pawar, after returning, even gave interviews. “This is his daily schedule; ‘stress’ is not in his dictionary,” said his close aide.

An early riser, the NCP supremo has a healthy breakfast followed by lunch strictly between 1 and 2 pm even during a busy schedule. His lunch is semi-liquid with three kinds of soups, chapati, dal or gravy, a diet that was put in place during his cancer treatment, said Vittal Maniyar, Pawar’s close friend. To stay hydrated, coconut water is Pawar’s permanent favourite—and to keep lethargy at bay, he never eats a full meal at noon.

Pawar sleeps for six to seven hours every night, and has the ability to fall into a deep sleep within minutes. During busy periods like the elections, even a four-hour sleep is enough for him to recoup his energy. “His great willpower enables him to achieve whatever he desires,” said Maniyar.

Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule too is campaigning hard in the searing heat. On April 25, she held a padayatra in Jejuri village in Baramati where she is locked in a battle against her sisterin-law Sunetra Pawar. “There is no break and rest in the campaign. Neither there is a fixed time for meals,” Sule told HT last week.

Sule has no fixed bedtime, but her day starts at around 6 am. An officer-bearer said her regular exercise and yoga had helped her stay fit, but currently she had no time for this. “She tries to eat on time but her huge workload makes it difficult,” she said. “Her diet is simple, mostly bhakri, vegetables and dal twice a day. To stay hydrated, she drinks water and carries watermelon slices with her.”

NCP (AP) chief Ajit Pawar’s normal work day too begins around 6 am. Not a breakfast-eater, his meals include fruit juice twice a day and tea on rare occasions. Ajit drinks water, lemon juice and his favourite amla juice to keep hydrated. His meals are mostly vegetarian and even in hot weather, he drinks warm water to keep his throat in shape. “In the election period, it is difficult to follow a timetable,” said NCP (AP) functionary Pradeep Deshmukh. “So Ajit Pawar has no fixed sleep hours though he begins his work at 6 am every day.”

Eknath Shinde, 60, too is known to sleep for just four to five hours. The chief minister has taken at least two small unscheduled breaks owing to health issues, and after these, a team of doctors and paramedics accompanies him on tour for regular check-ups, said a close aide. “He does not have major health issues, but the untimely meals and inadequate sleep have taken a toll,” he said. “The doctors have advised him to sleep longer but to no avail: he is an early riser and spends at least one hour in puja, meditation and exercise.”

While on the campaign trail in blazing Marathwada and Vidarbha, the CM’S team ensures that he drinks adequate water and limits exposure to the sun. But Shinde is not very amenable. “He refused to cover his head or wear sunglasses in a bike rally in Ramtek recently,” said another CMO official. “During campaign rallies, we ensure that the vehicle is covered. But he decides impromptu to ride, bike or walk among the workers, making it difficult for us.”

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole, 60, is one leader who has no health issues and no diet restrictions. He does not believe in formal exercise and maintains that his padayatras are a good substitute. “Being from Vidarbha, he is familiar with scorching summers,” said a close aide. “Many years ago, we used to depend on gamchas (cotton towels) to protect his head and face and onions to maintain body temperature. But with air-conditioned cars, management has become easier. However, we ensure that his padayatras are held early in the morning, afternoon meetings are held in closed halls and rallies are in the evening.”