Far from a Congress Mukt Bharat, the Bharatiya Janata Party is faced with an ascendant Congress as India moves towards the 2024 general elections. A party that did seem to be flailing, like a drowning entity in search of life support, has emerged from the deep waters with health and vigour on its side. And is becoming a presence in almost all elections, winning two successive Assemblies in a row and preparing visibly for the others.
There is a major difference in what can safely be described as Rahul Gandhi’s Congress today. And it reflects his personality, and perhaps what he has strived to achieve over the years when he was being derided not just by the BJP but by members from his own party as well. As written earlier in these columns the Bharat Jodo Yatra was not just important for the message of harmony and peace, but also because it helped launch the ‘new’ Rahul Gandhi on a national scale who even the embedded media could not really ignore.
A formal glimpse of the new Congress is visible in the hard political arena today. And it needs to be understood and recognised by all serious political observers as it will be part of a better phase of history for this party which had lost its moorings over the decades, and took almost ten years to get its resistance as an opposition together. To the point where it appeared leaderless, with members scattering on all sides, as it came under fire from the BJP and even the regional parties who were as, if not more, adrift.
The preparations for the Assembly elections, in particular Karnataka, demonstrated the rise of a new Congress where issues of leadership were not put under the carpet, but actually resolved through discussions and meetings. And an agenda of action set during the campaign, which two solid leaders of the party in the southern state are working to implement. But again this has been written about in these columns at some length.
The formation of I.N.D.I.A, (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) an alliance of 26 odd political parties is the first bugle call for the 2024 general elections. That this has not been an easy task goes without saying, given the giant ego’s and insecurities of all the regional parties/ The Congress had found it difficult to allay the suspicions, and it has taken some doing to convince the Mamata Banerjee’s and the Arvind Kejriwal’s that the new Congress is one, willing to respect their turf; two, to take up issues that concern them; three, to give them respect and not derision and scorn (as was the case often in the past); and four, that the larger party will not subsume them even as it takes the lead.
This has been on display inside this monsoon session of Parliament, with the Congress party supporting the Aam Aadmi Party without mincing words; and members of the alliance giving each other credit and respect. The rise in stature of Rahul Gandhi has helped, in that the regional leaders seem to accept him in the leaders post now. And this comes from an assurance that the Congress will not trifle with their turf in the states (one has to see whether this holds as the elections draw near) and will focus largely on those states where it has a direct battle with the BJP. The war of attribution also seems to have subsided with the alliance partners that include rivals like the Left and TMC refraining from attacking each other at the national level at least. The Congress under Rahul Gandhi is able to keep that modicum of behavioural restraint making it easier for the allies to follow.
The leadership issue seems to have been decided in favour of the Congress party for now, with the regional parties content on focusing on their states. Interestingly there is a bonhomie within that is refreshing, with the political parties supporting each other in Parliament and outside without a single discordant word so far for the embedded media to latch on to. Even exchanges with the BJP have not been totally without humour, with smiles and laughs during the few discussions that have taken place in this session.
The Congress party president Mallikarjun Kharge has been a major asset in bringing I.N.D.I.A together and is visibly liked by the other members. That Rahul Gandhi gives him the respect due is visible, and Kharge has been in the political lead throughout. The publicity team led by Jairam Ramesh has been doing a phenomenal job, cutting through the embedded media’s biased reportage with seeming ease. And interestingly leaders one had seen or heard from for a long while are now holding press conferences, and defending the party in turn on a daily basis — again a reflection of strength and not alleged extinction.
That the constituents of the alliance have held two major meetings without hiccups is a major achievement in itself. That one of these meetings produced the acronym I.N.D.I.A is another, and disturbed the BJP sufficiently to first link INDIA with extremist groups; and then attack the English in INDIA, and when this did not really work move to attach adjectives like ‘ghamandi’ etc to the acronym. A third meeting in Mumbai has already been announced for early September and clearly this alliance has found its own momentum and drive, moving with method and speed that are characteristics of Rahul Gandhi. He takes time to understand and decide, but once the way forward is clear, he moves fast without wasting time in semantics.
The BJP is a formidable force. And not just because it is in government now. It has a well oiled machinery, a clear and precise agenda, a strong leadership that does not like to change course, a ruthlessness that has worked well for it till now, and a focus that gives it clear sightedness of approach. In contrast to this earlier, the Congress was scattered; almost leaderless made worse after Ahmed Patel’s sudden demise; a leadership that was still finding its feet and appeared weak and confused; and a membership that had no faith in the party itself. There was no focus, cadres, ideology….
It is important to point this out to understand why the BJP thought it could rid India of the Congress party. And to understand what a long way the Congress has come over the past couple of years after Rahul Gandhi and his team took over. There has been a concerted effort to ensure that there is no visible coterie around him, with all senior leaders being involved in reviving the party and taking it forward. And as they say, perceptions matter in politics.
Rahul Gandhi is courageous and tenacious. As the years have shown. He did not leave and back off despite the derision and the ridicule and the threats. He has overcome the charge of dynasty by visibly showcasing a loving family, a mother and a sister who like him have used the assassinations and deep grief to develop courage, compassion and humanity. Even those who are critical admit that these qualities are his, and he has a level of courage that is not seen in many even across the world today. He does not hesitate to kiss Sonia Gandhi, or hug Priyanka Gandhi —- with family loving Indians now embracing these images with relish sufficient to cut into the ‘dynasty’ criticism. Whether deliberate or not (I suspect it is) it has worked to rob one of the major criticisms, hurled at him by the BJP, of impact. And made the Congress visibly easy about embracing the First Family without being too defensive.
His courage is infectious, and has encouraged the party workers and leaders to come out of hibernation. The Congress spokespersons are as firm, speak well, speak loud and do not mince words. This is a fresh approach that is paying dividends.
Rahul Gandhi has provided a quiet leadership that has worked its way through the party, and into the opposition alliance. He does not come through as autocratic, a ‘my word or the highway’ approach but is firm under a smiling exterior. He is willing to listen though, and if convinced does not hesitate to change the course of action. He has brought in an ideology for the Congress party — of love and harmony and peace and livelihood — a tenacious mix that works well in opposition to the BJP.
He does not hesitate to approach the people – from travelling in trucks, to working with mechanics, to joining the farmers in the fields, to inviting women farmers for a meal with his family where they ask Sonia Gandhi when he will get married, to speaking with students, to meeting delivery persons. He seems to be celebrating India’s diversity. And this is clearly helping the Congress leaders to come out of their four walls, as could be seen in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh, and shed some of the arrogance that had crippled the party for a long long time.
Alongside there is a plan to revive the Congress. Its frontal organisaitons – women, youth and sewa dal — have been mobilised. And even in Madhya Pradesh Kamal Nath appears active in trying to get the party ready for the forthcoming elections. In Rajasthan differences between Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot seem to have been worked out and Rahul Gandhi started the election campaign immediately after his fiery speech in the Lok Sabha after being reinstated.