The Congress could still fill the void of a strong opposition provided the old leadership is ready to welcome new ideas along with new leaders.
In bringing back former party chief, Sonia Gandhi to the helm of affairs again even if for an unspecified interim period, the Congress has clearly indicated that it is clueless and is incapable of fighting for its own future.
In simple words, the country’s oldest political organisation does not know what to do and how to forge ahead. It ultimately clung to clutches after going through innumerable rounds of informal deliberations for over two and half months after the resignation of former party chief Rahul Gandhi.
The Congress is in deep crisis today. Road ahead for the 135 - year old party is long, arduous and dark. Times are turbulent and waters choppy. Majority of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) leaders, having lost touch with ground realities, out of tune with changing times, incapable of clear thinking having learnt nothing apart from honing skills for self-survival, opted to postpone the impending crisis that is threatening to make the country’s oldest party extinct. A large number of them are unprincipled, opportunists and self-serving individuals for whom self- interest is paramount.
Congress leaders went into empty yet dramatic motions instead of going into action to evolve a strategy to strengthen the party
Sonia remained the only option because CWC members are known to think and decide for their limited individual interests rather thinking collectively for the party’s future and to make it relevant according to dictates of changing times.
After the resignation of former party chief Rahul Gandhi on May 25 in the wake of a resounding defeat of the Congress in the general elections, Congress leaders went into empty yet dramatic motions instead of going into action to evolve a strategy to strengthen the party to take on frontally a political rival that has no scruples in the game of politics and is ruthless in dealing with its opponents.
As party leaders both at the national as well as state and district levels began to leave the party in hoards, well entrenched unprincipled veterans became panicky as majority of them have come to acquire their positions of eminence with the blessings of Gandhis-Indira, Rajiv, Sonia and Rahul a bit.
Having nurtured their little fiefdom and mutually suspicious of each other, top old leaders failed to evolve a consensus on a leader outside Gandhi family who could lead the party taking everyone along. It is essentially because, old leaders even in the face of party’s worst ever crisis are not ready to sink their inter-personal differences for forging unity so that they could take the role of shaping new leaders who could come to the forefront to wage a people’s struggle to make the party reinvent and relevant.
Few names like Mukul Wasnik, Malikarjun Kharge, Sachin Pilot or Jyotiraditya Scindia came to be mentioned but whether leaders were indeed serious or were going through needless motions to show their earnestness is though uncertain yet it is well known now. It would have been an ideal situation if these old leaders had agreed on a single name outside Gandhi family so that a collective leadership could develop. But, then that would require sinking their differences and parting with their privileges and even posts
In process of balancing factional interests, she (Sonia Gandhi) would be pushing the party down the hill as old leaders would not allow any young to come to the front.
It is equally true that more and more Congress leaders, who have been in the party for pelf and power would have left the party, if a non-Gandhi would have emerged to lead the party for an interim period till a new leader could be elected at an All India Congress Committee (AICC) session.
It is a known and established maxim –“that it is always far better to rebuild afresh then doing repairs.” It would have taken time but then the revival of the party was more guaranteed then in the present approach of bringing back Sonia Gandhi who could only postpone the eventuality but can do precious little to avert or stop the extinction. She would be required to do lots of firefighting. In process of balancing factional interests, she would be pushing the party down the hill as old leaders would not allow any young to come to the front.
While profusely thanking Rahul Gandhi for his role and regretting that he was no more ready to lead the party, the Congress Working Committee succeeded in persuading Sonia Gandhi along with party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to take over the reins of the party at least for an unspecified interim period hoping that either Rahul or Priyanka by then would agree to their pleadings.
It must be mentioned here that Rahul had diagnosed the party’s disease correctly like his father Rajiv Gandhi had done earlier but young Gandhi lacked the ruthlessness required of a leader who can perform surgical interventions if required. There is a need for dropping or removal of the deadwood in the party but they are so well entrenched and shrewd enough to lie low and cunningly hit back to survive.
The Congress still has a window of opportunity however small to pick up the threads to refigure its priorities and reboot its ideological thrust in tune with aspirations of the people.
When Rahul resigned none of the veteran leaders followed suit while trying to persuade him to take back the resignation. They all wanted that a Gandhi should lead the party but he or she should also remain their dependent upon them- sort of their prisoner so that he or she did not act independently.
The Congress still has a window of opportunity however small to pick up the threads to refigure its priorities and reboot its ideological thrust in tune with aspirations of the people. While Gandhis - three of them-are active in the party, it can and is in a position to evolve a model of collective leadership and allow state units to decide their own affairs in a framework of federalism because without strengthening state and district units, party organization cannot be rebuilt.
There is enough political space in the country and it will grow in times to come. A strong opposition party is the need of the hour and the Congress could fill up the void provided old leadership is ready to welcome new ideas along with new leaders.
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Satish Misra was Senior Fellow at ORF. He has been a journalist for many years. He has a PhD in International Affairs from Humboldt University ...
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