POLITICAL DIARY
New Delhi, 28 January 2006
Rahul Debut’s At
Congress Session
CHALNA HAI, CHALNA HAI, PAR KAHAN?
By Poonam I Kaushish
It was billed as the greatest political extravaganza of the
new year. A feel good show intended to instill a new vigour and vitality in the
Grand Old Party. A lesson in political ABC --- aggression, bounce and
confidence --- to achieve greater heights. Alas, all plans went phut. Pricked by scams galore. Which
popped up like the proverbial bad penny, leaving the party more deflated than
ever.
How else should one describe the 82nd three-day
Congress plenary held at the Gachibowli stadium (renamed Rajiv Nagar) in Hyderabad on 2l-23
January last? Its title –Ateet Ki Neev,
Bhavishya Ka Nirman, Nayi Zimadari (Building a future on the foundations of
the past is the new responsibility) – could not have been more misleading.
Held as it was under the shadow of the Volcker and
Quottrochi scandals, the looming crisis in neighbouring Karnataka where its
Government was tottering on its last legs, and skirmishes with the Left on
crucial policy matters. But our Congress netagan
typically
chose to brush everything under the carpet. Refusing to see the writing on the
wall, they continued yet another charade in wishful thinking --- without a new disha and without a fresh sandesh.
Before you read me wrong, this is not to detract from the
positive aspects of the session. One, it injected the aphrodisiac called power among
the 15,000 delegates who assembled at the Rajiv Nagar, aimed at steering a new
direction, sense of consolidation and organizational renewal. Two, boasting of
flawless arrangements by the hosts, headed by Congress Chief Minister Rajashekhar
Reddy, it proved that when it sets it’s heart on delivering, none can do it
better than the Congress. Proved by the 150 computers in the media centre. Three,
it lined up a Gen Next leaders, headed by Rahul, who are willing to assert and call
a spade a spade.
Promises were a plenty. So also the pledges. There was a khichri of Nehruvian socialism (reform
with a human face) and Manmohanic liberalization. There was lots and lots of
secularism without any clue about how it could be translated it into votes. A huge
typical Congress tamasha which failed
to find answers to the dilemmas facing the party. It refused to address the
ticklish issues of striking a balance between its stand on alliances and
coalitions and the need to expand its organization and social base in the
states ruled by its allies or other opposition parties. What is more, how to
fulfil its “coalition dharma”, check corruption, maintain austerity and build
bridges between the party and the government.
The political resolution which recognized the inevitability
of coalition governments, terming them as ‘a political reality’ at least for
the next few years, put the onus for the successful run of such arrangements on
its partners. It talked of “collective responsibility.” Asserted Defence
Minister Pranab Mukherjee at a media briefing, “ Coalitions are a give and
take. Our partners should be ready to
give so that all Indians are able to take.
The alternative is too dangerous to even countenance”
The dichotomy was so obvious in the document. “The
discipline of coalition politics was honestly and strenuously followed by the
Congress from that day (the day it accepted the reality), making the UPA
possible and successful.” Implicit was
the message that while the party had followed the dharma, the partners had not. The resolution is almost certain to
be contested by the alliance partners as the party shares power with other
outfits in many states. Coalitions in
these states have had had their own share of troubles, thanks in no small
measure to the attitude displayed by the Congress.
As the crisis in Karnataka has shown, the Congress has none
to blame but itself. On the sidelines of the session, senior Congress leaders
confided that Dharam Singh was basically to blame. Emboldened by the outcome of
the panchayat elections, the state
unit ill-advisedly needled the JD(S) and its President HD Deve Gowda. And when
the former Prime Minister rushed to Delhi
to hold talks with Sonia Gandhi, the latter refused him an audience.
In Andhra Pradesh, the TRS is up in arms against the Grand
Dame for its refusal to take any steps towards the fulfillment of its
long-standing demands for the creation of a separate state of Telangana. And in
Maharashtra, the Congress is engaged in a
behind-the scenes feud with the NCP after it overtook the latter in terms of
numerical strength in the state assembly.
Similarly, even while the Party exhorts its workers to
strive hard to revive the party’s fortunes in the states where its base has
been eroded or has a negligible presence, it is tempered with the realization
that it cannot declare open war on partners who have grown at its expense. Like
the RLD and Jan Shakti in Bihar and the
Samajwadi and BSP in UP. Also, with the Left parties being the UPA Government’s
‘life-line’, it cannot afford to get on its wrong side. Notwithstanding the
fact that it has gone to considerable pains to dispel speculations about
friendly fights in the forthcoming elections in Kerala and West
Bengal – States where the Left is directly pitted against the
Congress.
Significantly, the Congress maa-beta duo Sonia and Rahul both made a forceful pitch for waging
a “long and forceful war to recover ground in the Hindu heartland”. Realizing
that they would be trapped in the quagmire of playing second fiddle to regional
players in unless they got their act together in the vital states of UP, Bihar
and Madhya Pradesh which account for nearly 200 Lok Sabha seats, Sonia made no
bones about the fact that she was no longer satisfied with the Party’s space in
coalition politics and extolled her partymen to take “the commanding heights of
politics again”.
Undoubtedly both she and Rahul succinctly diagnosed the
problem but could not come up with convincing answers to galvanize the comatose
units. Specially, against the backdrop of the Party’s shrinking vote
nation-wide. Crippled as it with rank indiscipline within. Big, small and petty
leaders are all pulling in different directions. In the last three years alone
the Party has changed its PCC chief thrice in UP. Not only that. Three top guns
“refused” to attend the session. Uttarkhand Chief Minister N.D. Tiwari (dropped
from the CWC) and his counter part in Himachal, Vir Bhadra Singh. Bengal leader Ghani Khan Chowdhary who is reportedly keen
to join Trinamool’s Mamata. There were loud whispers of discontent about the
recent AICC reshuffle specially the reconstitution of the CWC which now has
been packed with “non-entities”. How then one wonders will the party recapture
its lost glory?
That sycophancy reigns supreme was so evident when
speaker-after-speaker eulogized, in glowing terms, the sacrifices made by the
Nehru-Gandhi family and, in particular, Sonia Gandhi. Never mind Sonia making
amply clear at the outset itself that she did not want the speakers to waste
time eulogizing her or Rahul. Even before Rahul had stepped into the city,
banners converting his name into an acronym (R-reformist, A-accomplished,
H-honest, U-upcoming, L-leadership) had sprung up all over.
Speakers continued to unabashedly croon, “The entire country
is looking towards Rahul… Rahul aana, is
desh ko aage le jana, (please take the country forward), Rahul lao, Desh bachao.” Slogans were
vociferously raised for him to join the CWC. In his maiden address at the
session, the Gandhi scion was a picture of calm and composure as he read out
from a prepared text, yet never failing to connect. His speech, which came in the form of an
intervention during the discussion on the political resolution, was heard with
rapt attention by the delegates.
He posed some soul-searching, posing some uncomfortable, yet
real, questions – Why is that the Congress, which, at one point of time, was so
strong in the Hindi heartland, has become so weak? What should be the mantra to re-charge the
party apparatus in north India?
But there were no answers. True he did not set the Krishna
on fire. But the young man minced no words that he meant business. Whether he
really means business and can deliver time alone will tell.
In sum, even as Sonia offered the moon and the stars to
project a Congress rainbow on India’s
future political horizon and every Congressmen present lapped it up, the
reality was different. In fact, harsh. Barely had the session ended in a grand
finale of a new sankalp the party had
mud all over its face. What with the Supreme Court severely indicting Bihar
Governor Buta Singh as well as the Central Government and appropriately casting
doubts, how so ever politely, about the President’s conduct. Raising a moot point: How will the Congress fare
in its new tryst with destiny. Chalna
hai, chalna hai aur chalna hai. But where? ---INFA
(Copyright,
India News & Feature Alliance)
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