The other side of politics: Congress, Rahul Gandhi .... perhaps the same old "Uneasy Inheritance" of India’s Political Dynasty

Rahul Gandhi presided over two 'most devastating defeats' in the history of the Congress party -- 2014 and 2019.

The Congress governed India for much of the past seven decades and of course since 2014; it is the Modi decade -- a period of Hindu consolidation. And it is no longer simply dismissive as 'communal'; it is the rise of a modern India, a new Bharat.

Are Congress leaders unable to read people's pulse? Or it is the same old Congress arrogance -- we will do whatever we think, whatever we want to do in favour of the 'dynasty' irrespective whether people vote for the Congress or not?

Analysts who have watched Rahul Gandhi struggle against a vast political tide as well as his own seeming ambivalence find themselves in a predicament. Should they say, enough of Rahul Gandhi's brand of politics. A senior Naga politician said, the Congress party has been wasting time on Rahul. According to BJP leader Swapan Dasgupta, "the belief that Hindus must necessarily understate their faith and their civilisation wasn’t created by the post-Independence Congress. But it was made into a State ideology by Jawaharlal Nehru".

So, if Congress is seen as an anti-Hindu outfit -- something admitted by A K Antony; it may not be fair to blame the present leadership of Sonia-Rahul duo only. 

Now look at his new Bharat Yatra.  There's still big claims that the march is not linked to elections. It is being linked to ideology. That sounds pretty ambitious and misleading. Because none can deny that the sole purpose of the Yatra has been to project Rahul and his 'ambivalent' style as a national alternative. Moreover, to invest time and money just two-three months before general/national elections and say it is not linked to polls is only childish. 

The 'ideological' reference gets defeated as the manifesto consultation is  part of  a mega exercise of the Yatra.

The Congress wants to know from different sections of society about what to put in the manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections. Is it not coming late in the day? 

There are other issues.

Prior to 2014 polls, it was given out that Rahul Gandhi 'appeared reluctant' to embrace political life. He refused to call himself a candidate for prime minister (2014) and it was reported in 'New York Times' that when pressed he suggested that the reason was the assassinations of his father Rajiv Gandhi and grandmother Indira Gandhi.

“In my life I have seen my grandmother die, I have seen my father die, I have seen my grandmother go to jail, and I have actually been through a tremendous amount of pain as a child,” he said in a televised interview. Perhaps those nuanced stances no longer stand out. After 2019 polls, he resigned as Congress president but for more than 2 years, no alternative arrangement was made. 

Sonia became interim president but all powers continued with Rahul. Eve now, hardly anything has changed. The last word in Congress party is not president Mallikarjun Kharge, an aging 86 plus leader. It is still Rahul and his coterie -- most of them being Rajya Sabha products and beneficiaries like Jairam Ramesh.

The resignation of Milind Deora in Mumbai exposes multiple fault lines in the Congress. Firstly, it happened on the day, Rahul relaunched his Yatra from Manipur capital Imphal.

Look at the 'Yatra' again on the same backdrop of Milin Deora's exit. When Rahul into states such as West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, the focus will less on his personal image building then on the Congress’s ability to handle its INDI alliance allies, especially regarding the sharing of seats. 

Milind Deora, one of the members of team Rahul, has moved to the Shiv Sena (Shinde) chiefly because Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) faction wants to retain the seat and would not allow Congress to contest in Mumbai South, a constituency Deora represented twice.

Arvind Sawant is the sitting MP there and the Congress leadership in both the state and at the Centre could not help Deora much as he has lost twice from the seat.

Of course, there is a minor Deora faction in the Mumbai Congress and hence the damage could be understood.

Much importantly, Milind Deora, like his father Murli, has been a fundraiser for the Congress because of his excellent relations with industry barons in Mumbai and elsewhere. After his exit, Deora said one of his grudges against the party has been that it has started attacking industrialists mostly for no reason or rhyme. 

On the other hand, Janata Dal (United), a partner in the INDI bloc, led by ambitious Nitish Kumar had already said that it would have been better for the Congress to plan joint alliance programmes rather than launch the Yatra in isolation. so close to the elections.

Moreover, the yatra has come in for some introspection within the Congress―it is felt that it is not proving to be as impactful as the first one. To begin with, there is no novelty factor of Rahul on a yatra. 

Among the alliance partners, Trinamool Congress is annoyed the manner has been handling the seat adjustments talks and so Mamata Banerjee has indicated that her party may like to contest all 42 seats in West Bengal. 

Well in one perspective, one can say, it may not be wise for 'outsiders' to lecture Congress on politics.

For Rahul and his family that includes mom Sonia and sister Priyanka and her husband Robert Vadra, Politics is the family’s business. Yet he is a struggling youth of 53-plus now.

The clan has produced three prime ministers, including India’s first, Jawaharlal Nehru. Rahul's grand mom Indira Gandhi and dad Rajiv. Sonia also gave him enough opportunities and time of last two decades since 2004. Rahul has been long groomed for high office, but die hard Congress leaders say he seems to have inherited not many political skills for which his forebears were renowned.

“Can you teach a fish to swim?” a question was raised in 2014 in Congress-friendly 'New York Times'.

This question is yet to be answered honestly.

Moreover, the question has come back and is being repeatedly asked again with increasing urgency among members of his part and also the Congress friendly ecosystem.

The Congress party is again staring down (what recent polls have predicted) will be a landslide win for Modi. So much has changed meanwhile in the BJP camp. Unlike 2014, Narendra Modi is no longer one of the most controversial political figures in Indian history. Namo is a doer.  

Karan Thapar is a renowned Modi-bashing TV commentator. He puts in rather acidly: 'Let me end with a message for the Congress. Modi and the BJP cannot be defeated easily. Bringing them below 272 (MPs in Lok Sabha for a simple majority) should be the target for 2024. The Congress should work for a majority of its own only in 2029".  

ends