Rahul’s elevation is a mere formality as every direction he has been giving to the party for almost two years now is in keeping with the office of the party president.
New Delhi: After years of intense speculation, Rahul Gandhi is set to be elevated as Congress chief.
The hour has finally been chosen and it coincides ironically just around election results in two states where the bets are largely against the grand old party.
Why would Rahul choose to be named Congress president after the Gujarat elections rather than before? But then, does it really matter or is this only a change of nomenclature?
For Rahul may be the vice-president of the Congress but every direction he has been giving to the party for almost two years now is in keeping with the office of the party president.
There are enough examples to show that Rahul has not shied away from taking tough decisions. The most prominent one seems to be the move to partner with Parshant Kishor — the political strategist who is credited with helping Modi’s 2014 victory — ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, even at the cost of antagonising many seniors.
Gandhi threw himself into the thick of the election campaign with the Prashant Kishor-style ‘Khaat Sabhas’ in UP. The ‘PK-Congress’ did not seem to work with the Congress winning a mere seven seats in the face of a BJP onslaught and learning some hard lessons.
In the same round of assembly elections, Capt. Amarinder Singh — perceived as a strong leader in his state — was given a free run and led the party to victory in Punjab.
If there was a ‘Mahagathbabdhan’ to celebrate in Bihar with Rahul playing a key role in helping keep the opposition flock together, he was also helming affairs when a former Congress leader, Himanta Biswa Sarma, turned the tables in Assam and the Kalikho Pul episode took place in Arunachal Pradesh, paving the way for the BJP demolishing the Congress fortress in the Northeast.
All three examples, however, also show that Rahul weighs in favour of the old, tried and ‘trusted’ — whether it may be the Gogois in Assam or a Lalu Prasad Yadav in Bihar.
The old and the new
But it was in UP that Rahul Gandhi made a choice. A PK partnership for 2019 Lok Sabha polls would probably require ushering in a new order, which would also entail the undermining of the old Congress structure of the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC). Rahul chose the latter, returning to the old Congress formula and leaning towards the old guard where necessary.
In Karnataka, he has stood by CM Siddaramaiah but has also been insistent that the state PCC be respected and G. Parameshwara, who is the state chief and is said to have his own ambitions, is not undermined either.
The Congress lost both Goa and Manipur and many would hold the very senior Congressman, Digvijaya Singh, responsible. The Congress vice-president did and didn’t.
Singh was kept off another crucial poll-bound state in 2018 — Karnataka. But a veteran Congressman was not replaced with one from his own coterie. It was another senior, K.C. Venugopal, who was brought in to steer Karnataka.
In Himachal Pradesh, fighting anti-incumbency, the party has still gone with 83-year-old Virbhadra Singh. Rahul continues his balancing act with the party old guard, bringing in Ashok Gehlot to take charge of the crucial Gujarat elections and even as he allows Sachin Pilot a freer hand to deepen the Congress’ outreach in BJP-ruled Rajasthan.
The Madhya Pradesh cauldron continues to stir but there is a new element to the mix. While Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kamal Nath were seen as the two probable faces the Congress would project for the state elections, now there is the seasoned Digvijaya Singh causing a political churn with his ‘Narmada Yatra’, a campaign to strengthen the party in Madhya Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the party structure has also seen a rejig under its vice-president. Wings like the All India Professional Congress and a new media team have been formed despite reservations expressed by many.
Change of heart (and art)
From the Rahul Gandhi who infamously shredded a copy of his own government’s ordinance, the president-to-be is building bridges where necessary to work with and around the party old guard.
He is admitting in public gatherings that the Congress made mistakes and that he is no great orator like PM Modi. From being an “angry young man”, he is now seen as mature, humble and accessible. That he is able to take it light on social media, tones down the element of aloofness associated with him.
Rahul also has an ally behind the scenes and it is his sister Priyanka Gandhi. It was a well-known secret that she did all the backroom work for the UP elections even as her brother took to campaigning. She didn’t quite finish even after an abysmal election result — she had it pulled apart to demand a full-fledged report on what went wrong.
While there have been many in the party who have pitched for Priyanka rather than her brother, this family is quite clear on the roles to choose. A proposal is under discussion in the Congress headquarters to have Priyanka lead the party’s ‘organisation’ wing. The occasion and time may have arrived for that as well.
The Gandhi family has served India well especially the poor and the downtroden; they have sacrificed a lot for this nation even with their lives; they stood for equality and social peace; they are pro poor unlike BJP which only supports the rich and the upper middle class. Even after 25 years rule in Gujarat, what have they acheived? All the South States are far better in socio economic factors especially health and education; there is much more peace there because BJP is not string there so they cannot soread communal hatred. I hope RG replaces Modi – Jai Hind.