Would Congress Party see its fortune’s revival after Rahul’s elevation to the top slot?

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All bottlenecks have finally been cleared for the much awaited supreme post of the 131 year old Congress Party for the Gandhi family scion Rahul Gandhi, that freed India from the colonial cluches of the imperialist British. The timing for the crowning has been chosen at a time when elections to the Gujarat Assembly are on the peak that involves the prestige of prime minister Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi equally. However, the Nehru Gandhi’s crowning as the party president will have any positive impact on the results of this much hyped election is still to be seen after the polling on 9th and 14th December respectively. Rahul’s much awaited elevation to the top most slot of the Congress Party that ruled the nation for more than six decades is significant because the entire CWC, the largest decision making body has cleared his name for his election as nobody else in the party seems to have the political guts to challenge his leadership by contesting against him.

There is every possibility of the Congress Vice President becoming the party chief on 5th December. Since joining the active politics after her mother Sonia Gandhi’s deteriorating health condition Rahul Gandhi has travelled a long distance fighting all odds within and outside party by some of his detractors though nobody came to the fore to oppose his leadership except the non heavy weights like Gufran Azam the former MP of Congress who opposed his leadership openly finally having been expelled from the party. Dynastic politics of Congress confined to the Nehru Gandhi family has always been the main election plank of the anti Congress opposition parties mainly the BJP apart from corruption which helped them return to power but minus Nehru Gandhi family members the Congress party holds no significance as right from the pre independence day from Moti Lal Nehru great grand father of Rahul Gandhi to Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru to Indira Gandhi to Rajiv Gandhi to Sonia and now Rahul himself the Congress has ruled this nation for sixty protracted years sending a clear message that despite tons of criticism and opposition to the dynastic character of Nehru Gandhi family, the people of the country has by and large voted for them and primarily this factor has never produced any leadership alternative that could challenge this inheritence, within the Congress party. It is only because of this continuing political inheritence that the Congressmen and the rank and file of this 131 year old party have finally compromised to follow them undisputedly. And Rahul Gandhi despite so much of political incompetence as compared to prime minister Narendra Modi in popularity, oratorical skills and other positive factors, with no immediate hope of becoming the national political alternative is widely accepted in the party as their undisputed leader. On Rahul Gandhi’s elevation as party president which will be formally finalised on 5th December, the Congress’s arch rival BJP got the golden opportunity to widely oppose his crowning by charging allegations of dynastic perpetuation thus making ridule of the democracy.

In their statements criticizing the Congress’s move to crown Rahul Gandhi as the party president the BJP leaders say that while in their party a block or booth level ordinary grass root worker can become the national office bearer or the party president even a prime minister of the largest democracy of the world, in Congress except the scion or members of the Nehru Gandhi family can be the only one for whom the top slot of the 131 old party is reserved even if they don’t deserve it. Nobody in the Congress, either have the guts to challenge them nor are they given opportunity to reach the top slot. Is it not the open defiance or like ridiculing the democratic traditions of the country ask these BJP leaders. It may be recalled that after the tenure of PV Narsimha Rao when the Congress Party acknowledged the majority Sonia Gandhi refused the post of prime ministership despite her being the unanimous choice and the former Governor of RBI and fr finance minister in Narsimha Rao government was crowned as the proxy prime minister. Since then Rahul Gandhi activated himself in the party affairs. Had he desired, he could have conveniently been the prime minister by replacing Dr. Manmohan Singh after few years or could have joined his cabinet as one of the powerful minister but Rahul being modest always preferred to learn politics and involved himself in strengthening the party organisation as well as the frontal units like Sewa Dal, NSUI n Mahila Congress before reaching the top slot either in the party orthe government.

Rahul campaigned extensively in all the states’ and national elections all over India and established one to one interaction with the peoole in the rural areas of the country. When Dr. Manmohan Singh’s government was ruling the nation Rahul Gandhi was greatly instrumental in the enactment of Laws related to land reforms and land bill giving farmers their due for the land acquired by the government for industrialisation or contruction activities. He also gave relief to the farmers of the country by waving off the farm loans to the tune of about 70000 crores during the Congress led UPA government. He went to Dalit houses and had meals there to impress the dalits of the country and even did SHRAM DAAN by working with labourers in various projects, of course symbollically. He was also instrumental in the introduction of MNREGA during the UPA rule that gave employment to millions of the poor nationally, at least three months in a year. Though Rahul’s efforts as the national campaigner of the Congress party has not yeilded any fruitful results, after Congress losing several states at the hands of the BJP which is now ruling in over eighteen states, his actions, energy, potentiality and special knack as a leader on the move have always kept the party leaders, workers and youths encouraged.

Over the past months Rahul Gandhi has shouldered the responsibility of being the chief campaigner, exhibiting a special confidence in his oratorical skills in public meetings as well as in the social media that has put the national leaders of BJP in a position of unease. The Congress party has not seen any election to the post of its national president since the last 17 years when in 2000 the then deviated Congress leader Jitendra Prasada contested against the then Congress president Sonia Gandhi. This time it seems Rahul Gandhi’s election would be unanimous and on 5th December he will take charge as the Congress president with his mother as a chief patron of the party to bless him and the 131 year old party.

SUNIL NEGI