The Gandhis Must Relinquish Congress & Politics
Bhubaneswar (Pramit Pramathes Satpathy) The Gandhis are both weakening the Congress whilst strengthening the Modi government. It will shake the Congress party whilst surprising the BJP, that the Gandhis must go now. In the interests of their party, and of the country, they should go not merely from the top leadership of the Congress, but from the party entirely.
The continuation of the three Gandhis – Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka – is enabling not just the consolidation, but also the strengthening of the Narendra Modi regime. On the other hand, their immediate departure will create an opening for a more credible opposition leader, not necessarily from within the Congress but, perhaps, from the wider opposition. They must go so we can rescue the country from Modi.
If the Gandhis do not take such a decision immediately, it would soon be too late to rescue even the rubble of our democracy and republic. Modi will have an easy ride so long as the Gandhis continue and the damage (if) he’s doing to our social fabric, economy, institutions, our standing in the world and our relations with our neighbours will only get worse. The continuation of the Gandhis in politics is acting like a safety net or insurance policy for Modi’s authoritarian, sectarian and incompetent regime, as many opposition parties allege.
Sonia Gandhi’s attitude is like the Mughals with a divine right to rule. Perhaps she sees Modi like Sher Shah Suri, an interloper who will go away. The Gandhis are both weakening Congress whilst strengthening the Modi government. First, the Gandhis don’t have a consistent ideology. Sonia and Rahul claim to be principled secularists one day and promote soft Hindutva the next. They take credit for the free-market reforms promoted by past Congress governments one day but pour scorn on entrepreneurs the next.
They only believe in family control of the party. Rahul and Priyanka have never known otherwise. The Gandhis have no coherent ideology. They are lack of hard work. Rahul Gandhi’s behaviour during the Bihar campaign was that he suddenly took a holiday in Himachal Pradesh. Rahul lacks dedication and commitment. Rahul Gandhi’s behaviour during the lockdown was not other than “one photo -op”. Then Rahul effectively disappeared. He’s only active on Twitter and that it’s his sole area of activity.
Even Jamia Millia Islamia students and farmers have either lost trust in the Gandhis or see them as a liability. During the Jamia protests of December 2019, Congress was invisible. At the moment, when farmers are protesting outside Delhi, they have told Congress not to come. The farmers are worried that associating with Congress will mean they will be seen as stooges of a discredited party.
We can compare Congress under the Gandhis to the BJP. The three most important people in the BJP are Modi, Shah and Nadda. They’re unrelated to each other, self-made and have risen to the top by their own efforts. In contrast, the top three people in Congress are Sonia Gandhi and her children. They’re related, they only entered politics because another family member facilitated their entry and far from being self-made they epitomise entitlement and privilege. Congress under the Gandhis can never challenge BJP.
Equally it is important, that the Gandhis are impeding the rise of other Congressmen. Why have good leaders of Congress left ? Because their path to political advancement had been blocked by Rahul Gandhi. Why are the Gandhi children still in politics ? They know they are incompetent. The continuation of the Gandhis at the top of the Congress provides a credible cover-up or excuse for the Modi government’s failures. So long as descendants of Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi lead Congress, the ruling regime can deflect criticisms of its policies in the present by pointing to the mistakes of Congress governments in the past. Sonia and Rahul Gandhi have not apologised for the Emergency. The present problems with China in Ladakh are countered by referring to Nehru’s lapses in 1962. The problem in Kashmir is excused on the grounds that Nehru created it. There are innumerable instances where the Modi government’s lapses or failures are countered by referring to what happened under Nehru or Indira Gandhi.
It is specifically about Rahul Gandhi, here is a man who could not retain Amethi, his pocket borough. How can he revive Congress, win elections and return to power ? Rahul Gandhi is a well-intentioned dilettante. He is completely mediocre … (with) no original ideas. Now Rahul Gandhi should find another profession. Rahul Gandhi is incapable of hard work.
It was possible that Congress’s electoral fortunes would soar if the Gandhis were removed or part company will become like the Liberal Party in Britain, an institution with a great and glorious history but now a rump with no future. It could quite likely, Congress could end up like the Liberal Party. It is out of concern for India’s democracy and future and because it is realised that if the Modi government is to be defeated we need a new and credible face other than the Gandhis. Unless we have a credible opposition we cannot have change. The Gandhis cannot provide such an opposition. In the interests of their party electorally they should go.
