Most Indians have a somewhat love-hate relationship with the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. First, there are those who intensely love to hate the dynasty but still think that the Congress is without an identity unless there is someone from the family in charge of its affairs. Then there are intellectuals like Ramachandra Guha or pop writers like Chetan Bhagat who say that the Congress must be made “Dynasty-Mukt” for it to become a genuine opposition party.
It is widely believed that the Congress rout is a reflection of the total rejection of the dynasty regime and the entitlement it has enjoyed. Quite a few second- or third-rung Congress leaders believe so as well. The Congress’ identity and its negative “dynasty” dimension was not so pronounced when Narendra Modi captured the imagination of the national populace through a blitzkrieg in the media, which led a campaign of its own to run down Rahul Gandhi.
Indeed, the media enjoyed “lynching” him in TV studio debates or in newspaper columns. Rahul Gandhi had no friends in the media, and none among the intellectuals — neither in the Khan Market nor in the Lutyens’ Delhi. But somehow, the Congress’ fortunes have always been linked with the family. And so, despite the hostile press and non-acceptance among India’s elites, Rahul Gandhi went ahead with his tireless campaigns. A relative win in Gujarat, followed by victories in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan changed his media profile, albeit only so slightly. His credibility as “PM material” and the ability to lead the Congress party was still judged as unconvincing.
What the Congress party and its leadership under Rahul Gandhi did not fully comprehend was that Modi had led a political, historical and ideological attack. The Modi blitzkrieg had singled out the “dynasty” for its strikes. The BJP was not averse to Congress leaders — it was welcoming and embracing anyone who cared to toe the Sangh’s ideology. The BJP’s target was the ‘dynasty’ — the family — and not the party. And that is perhaps because the BJP still believes that the Congress party will die with the political demise of the family.
Also read: Rahul can resign as Congress president, but Nehru-Gandhi dynasty never retires nor gives up
This belief should explain Modi’s no holds barred attack not only on Sonia and Rahul, but also on Jawaharlal Nehru. After his third victory in Gujarat, when Modi decided to run for prime ministership, he systematically began to break the hold of the Nehru-Gandhi image in the country. It was part of the grand strategy to finish the Congress at its ideological and political core. To a great extent, this strategy has been a success. Today, those in the age group of 18 to 35 have no understanding of the post-Independence Nehruvian era. The arrival of the social media, almost aligned to Modi’s strategised campaign, served as a great bonanza.
In response, the Congress has had no media strategy worth the name. It did not recognise the power of this new medium. The BJP, under Modi and his global corporate planners, set up hundreds of IT cells to generate social media messages — of misinformation and disinformation. The birth of so-called “troll armies” was not spontaneous. Huge money was pumped to create them. By the time Congress leaders found the spread out tentacles of the social media, it was too late. Even now, the party is far behind in the game.
The Congress had forgotten its own past, achievements and its ring leaders. The party never conducted study circles, never educated the cadre about the leadership of Nehru and Indira Gandhi or about the difficult circumstances they had to work in. Neither the party history, nor the country’s turbulent past was ever explained to them. Even the leaders, at the national or state level, were ignorant.
In that political vacuum, Narendra Modi and his campaign handlers netted aggressively. Initially, in the Modi driven campaign, Nehru had made “mistakes”. As the campaign gained foothold, Nehru became the ultimate villain. Now, he is readily described as the one responsible for everything — from secularism to planning, Partition to Kashmir, Arunachal to defeat in the Sino-Indian war.
Also read: Not Gandhi dynasty, but a Narasimha Rao-like figure can save the Congress now
During the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Nehru was neither considered an unmitigated villain nor the Congress was regarded as the party that ruled and ruined the country for nearly 70 years. But Modi chose to attack the “root” of the dynasty image and “soul” of the Congress party.
The campaign was helped by the Congress culture of complacence, convenience and comfort, the culture that had now been shaken to the core. But it would seem that the Congress has still not understood what has hit them.
Ahead of the results of the 2019 Look Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi, in an interview to NDTV, had said that the party was organisationally weak. Perhaps, he was comparing the party’s organisational strength to that of the RSS. Priyanka Gandhi, after the results, castigated the party workers for not doing enough for the candidates. She even accused them of having actually worked against the party. She not only admonished them but also warned them of consequences.
The Congress appeared to have fallen in the trap. Instead of confronting the BJP politically and ideologically, the party has gone on the defensive. It has lost the 135-year-old historical script. It had never advocated the idea of secularism as inclusive politics. Many in the party succumbed to the BJP propaganda that the Congress was a pro-Muslim party.
Also read: Why the Congress party should stop apologising about dynasty
The entire glorious past of their national and patriotic leaders, their sacrifice in the freedom struggle was reduced to “pro-Muslimism” and “pro-Pakistan”. In that atmosphere, it was easy for the Hindutva brigades to convert Godse into a hero. This is an ideological attack, which the party could not fight back.
Rahul Gandhi will have to follow, in letter and spirit, the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. If he gives up the encumbrances of the party presidentship, he would be free to start his “long march” from Kanyakumari to Kashmir and from Kutch to Kolkata.
Rahul Gandhi does not have to give his family an image makeover. He has to sow afresh the seeds that turn the Congress into a truly liberal, secular, compassionate party with global vision. The idea of India is indeed the idea of the Congress.
If the Congress does not recover from its shock and awe, and stop the Modi-Shah juggernaut from moving ahead with its not-so-hidden agenda of creating a Hindu Rashtra, then sooner rather than later we will have Godse on currency notes and Savarkar declared as the Father of the Nation.
The author is a former editor and Congress member of Rajya Sabha. Views are personal.
Neither organization nor strategies got BJP the votes. The author has not understood that intelligent Indians simply cannot believe even 50% of what Rahul spouts. For example his campaign that Modi gave Rs 30000 cr to Ambani is utter trash and simply has not a shred of evidence. It only encouraged Mr Modi to spout his own version of trash that Rajiv Gandhi died a confirmed corrupt man . A few more statements like this, and Rahul had lost all credibility with voters.
Instead Rahul could have focused on the real issues facing people and campaigned for 2 years instead of for 2 months. The NYAY scheme should have come out a year ago when BJP was facing all the heat on farmers distress. Every decision Rahul made was simply too late to have any effect. And, even with a more sensible campaign, the Cong could at best have got 75 seats , but with some respect restored.
He has to focus now on the coming state elections in a much more rational manner.
1. Who can save the Congress party at this juncture? Not someone who has never enrolled a single new member for his party. 2. If someone wishes to revive Congress party and rebuild it, he must find out why it has been reduced to status of a regional party. He must not go by wrong notions about party’s inner strengths which have simply vanished long back. 3. Is it not true that the Congress party has miserably failed to attract new voters, perhaps a majority of whom are in their twenties and early thirties? Who can find out how to get in touch with this class of citizen-voters? 4. Fact is that there are now fewer and fewer takers for Congress party with its so-called secular agenda and vague economic agenda. 4. It was clear that Congress party’s promise of minimum income (of Rs 72,000/-, per year) was an empty promise. But how many Congressmen were ready to face the truth? Citizen-voters were wise enough to realise that such a promise of minimum income was made without any serious calculation of resources required to pay that kind of money to crores of poor citizens; hence they have rejected all such empty promises. 5. My guess is that not all from new generation of citizen-voters are voters of BJP but almost all of them think that it is PM Narendra Modi who can be relied upon to deliver. This is the truth; it is another matter that author of this article has no courage to accept this truth. 6. As rightly suggested by the author, Congress party must be ready to fight with BJP ideology with help of principled politics of Mahatma Gandhi but then how many Congressmen know that?
Author of this article is good-for-nothing greedy fellow….
Rahul can do one of three things: 1. he can go on as is – may be try harder – that is what BJP expects and nothing will come out of it; 2. make a last stand rallying all anti-BJP forces and waging a new struggle for Azadi – if he is willing to make huge sacrifices – give up the dream of being PM but be ready to lead a people’s struggle, the part of the nation that is disenchanted with BJP or was never with hidutva any way, may come to follow him; or 3. simply walk-off leaving the congress, the opposition and the country to their respective fate. He owns us nothing and is free to take the third option. Congress will certainly collapse – we have seen the face of congress mukt bharat in Bihar and UP – and it is not pretty. Personally, I hope he takes the second option – he is, at least for now, the best hope to beat the ideology of hate.
Ketkerji, Namaskar, very nice article. I wanted to ask you a question on a related subject. What yoga Asans do you do which give you the strength to prostrate so supplely and for such a long time. Please do enlighten us.
Ketkar JI is Sonia Syndicate’s Luca Brasi…we shouldn’t mess with him as he can be brutal with his pen.
Awesome
Brilliant question
Rahul appears to be willing to play only T 20s, and perhaps, an occasional ODI, which can accommodate his ‘pinch hitting and shoot and scoot, followed by a prolonged R & R’, style.. He has NO stomach for the 5 day grinding Tests, which presuppose Technical perfection , patience, good footwork and dedicated HARD WORK. He is like an IPL franchise owner who does not play Cricket himself but has ‘bought’ players from here and there, and expects them to beat everyone else. The result is there for all to see ( except for the Congress party)
Does Congress need a Gandhi
Haven’t they ruined enough
Will congress ever understand that the only way out for them is to get rid of Gandhis
Dear author, why could not you show all this amount of your anger against Modiji….And convince public.. in the last elections…Why spit the same anger and bias here..in this article. Why not you go do tutoring your prince about all your intellectual knowledge and wake him up to become a good leader
While the article could be somehow tolerated and doesn’t deserve any response, the last line of the article is highly objectionable. It means that according to the author, those who don’t support Congress and Rahul Gandhi are Godse worshippers. This is nothing but sheer perversity.
Then why don’t these non-congress non-Godse-worshippers speak up? ask BJP to eject Pragya Singh!
BJP should reject Sadhvi Pragya because self declared judges like you think she is criminal……….
The problem is that they are not in a quest for a president to lead the party but a Regent to take care of the empire for a limited time.
“Rahul Gandhi had no friends in the media, and none among the intellectuals”!. A strange statement from one of the admirers lying prostrate at the feet of the dynasty. The whole caboodle of the self-styled liberal establishment and “senior journalists” never tired of worshipping the corrupt relics of the dynasty and ridiculing Mr Modi. What the Congress needs, if anything , is a complete divorce from the dynasty, not RG walking allover the country and disturbing the peace.
Congress still doesn’t know what has hit it. Rahul will have to be the Gandhi India needs
Not India, but the author may be is in need of a Gandhi. What India needs is a really good opposition leader who does have an alternate model to challenge the government and is ready to work hard and diligently towards selling it to the citizens of India.
I am with Yogendra Yadav when he asked for Congress to die.
I am neither BJP nor Modi bhakt but in fact am a Congress sympathizer. MR Ketkar is so loyal to the first family (he has repeatedly justified emergency called by Ms. Indiraji) that he and his likes have ignored the arrogance & privileged attitude shown by both Rahul & Priyanka. Remember voters have rejected most of the dynasts across parties. Voters, especially young voters loath the show of entitlement so blatantly displayed by RG. He should have been visiting Amethi & holding meetings instead of cooling his heals in London.
Actually congress and the Gandhies should distant themselves from such sycophants & listen to their grass root leaders (Cpt Amrindar as an example)
Mr ManMohan Singh is the only intelectually dishonest man who can act as Bharat for RAGA, though he is elder to this kalyugi Ram of Congress.
>> sooner rather than later we will have Godse on currency notes and Savarkar declared as the Father of the Nation.
Completely biased and intolerant statement. And the author claims to be a (fake) liberal and (fake) secular.
@ Ketkar:
Your statement “Congress culture of complacency, convenience, and comfort.”; is the key to understanding the failure of the current version of Congress.
An active party-command and energized cadre can withstand any onslaught from the competition. The above-mentioned characteristics are causative and morph into various euphemisms “dynasty, family, corruption, regressive etc.”.
Hopefully, you are trying to change the party culture.
Author is a low life used to licking the boots and the behinds of Italians.
Only thing in danger is the patronage he and his ilk received as part of the greater establishment.
I will not be sad when this old joker will finally kick the bucker
Not India. YOUR CABAL NEEDS.