While Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was away on his unexplained sabbatical, a former minister, known to be close to the Nehru-Gandhi scion, had remarked that the world would see a “brand new Rahul Gandhi” on his return.
Demoralised Congress members were not so hopeful. They were convinced that Rahul Gandhi was not serious about pursuing a career in politics, that he did not have the requisite leadership qualities, was a poor orator and lacked consistency and commitment.
As it happens, Rahul Gandhi has surprised his party and the people at large since he returned from his leave of absence. A reinvented Congress vice-president is now making a conscious attempt to shed his image of a disinterested politician by leading the party from the front.
The party rank and file is predictably thrilled with the “new” Rahul Gandhi, but they are also worried that he may disappear after putting in a “guest appearance”. They are hoping he will demonstrate greater staying power and long-term commitment this time since this is a “make or break” moment for him and the party.
Even those who are convinced that Rahul Gandhi will stay the course are worried that he may peak too early and that he may find it difficult to sustain the campaign against the Modi government, which has another four years in office. “He must raise issues which are substantive and have an element of truth or else he will lose credibility,” said a senior Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh.
In the long run, however, Rahul Gandhi’s success will depend on the National Democratic Alliance government’s failures, just as the Bharatiya Janata Party’s assent to power last year hinged on the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s unpopularity.
Visibility in the media
For the present, however, Congress cadres are glad that Rahul Gandhi has plunged himself into the hurly burly of politics in an attempt to revive the party.
“Certainly, the party is upbeat,” remarked Congress spokesperson Rajiv Gowda. “Rahul Gandhi is now controlling the agenda, he is visible, his sense of timing has improved and he is showing greater spontaneity in his interactions with the media and interventions in the Lok Sabha.”
Indeed, Rahul Gandhi has kept up a scorching pace since his return. After beginning with an informal interaction with farmers, Rahul Gandhi addressed a large kisan khet mazdoor rally where he accused the Modi government of pushing ahead with the land acquisition bill to please its corporate cronies.
The Congress heir apparent followed this up with two combative interventions in the Lok Sabha where he took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being insensitive to the plight of farmers and then took off on a kisan padyatra to personally listen to the woes of farmers who have been hit by the current agrarian crisis. He first journeyed to Punjab and then made way to Maharashtra.
Besides espousing the cause of farmers, Rahul Gandhi spoke up for net neutrality in a clear attempt to endear himself to the youth, and undertook a trek to Kedarnath to address the perception that the Congress leans more towards the minorities.
BJP's sallies
Rahul Gandhi’s sustained attack against the ruling alliance is not expected to dethrone Modi. But it certainly has energised party workers, pushed the ruling alliance on the defensive, and positioned Rahul Gandhi and the Congress as being more empathetic to the poor and marginalised sections.
His new avatar has not gone unnoticed by other political parties. While the BJP and its allies have dismissed the Congress vice-president’s overdrive as a flash in the pan, the saffron outfit is not sure how it should react to his constant barbs at the prime minister.
Since Modi, as prime minister, cannot be seen as publicly engaging in a war of words with a political adversary, it has been left to BJP minister Arun Jaitley and his colleagues to put down the Nehru-Gandhi scion.
Stung by Rahul Gandhi’s description of the ruling alliance as “suit boot ki sarkar”, Jaitley hit back, saying “it is a soojh boojh ki sarkar”, while poking fun at the Congress leader’s unexplained sabbatical. Private conversations with BJP leaders, however, reveal they are taken aback by Rahul Gandhi’s political overdrive and upset at the media coverage he is getting.
“Rahul Gandhi’s forays to the rural hinterland and his effort to focus on the problems of farmers will not have any lasting impact,” remarked a senior BJP minister. “He forgets that the Congress has lost its political capital and until it regains this capital, he will not make much headway.” At the same time, he admitted that the dynasty will not lose its relevance.
Short-term advantages
While Akali Dal leader Naresh Gujral dismissed Rahul Gandhi as a “used tube light which flickers intermittently”, Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi was impressed with the Congress vice-president’s efforts and did not shy from heaping praise on him.
“Rahul Gandhi’s new avatar shows that he has conquered anger and if anybody can manage to do that, then he has total control over his thought process,” Trivedi said. “To me, Rahul Gandhi appears serious and determined and is clearly on a mission. I am sure that the same people who thought Rahul Gandhi was not up to the mark will praise him provided he continues in this direction.”
D Raja of the Communist Party of India was more cautious in his reaction to the “new Rahul Gandhi”. He conceded that Rahul Gandhi has flagged burning issues that have pushed the Modi government on the backfoot but felt these polemics would, at best, have a short-term advantage. “He must back this with a strong economic agenda,” Raja pointed out. “Rahul Gandhi should learn from Indira Gandhi’s experience. She was able to take on the powerful Syndicate in the party because she came up with such an agenda.”
According to a senior Congress leader, it had become imperative for Rahul Gandhi to become proactive for another reason: he has to emerge as a leader in his own right and dilute his mother and party president Sonia Gandhi’s influence and hold over the party. “He is basically addressing his own party cadres,” he added.
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Demoralised Congress members were not so hopeful. They were convinced that Rahul Gandhi was not serious about pursuing a career in politics, that he did not have the requisite leadership qualities, was a poor orator and lacked consistency and commitment.
As it happens, Rahul Gandhi has surprised his party and the people at large since he returned from his leave of absence. A reinvented Congress vice-president is now making a conscious attempt to shed his image of a disinterested politician by leading the party from the front.
The party rank and file is predictably thrilled with the “new” Rahul Gandhi, but they are also worried that he may disappear after putting in a “guest appearance”. They are hoping he will demonstrate greater staying power and long-term commitment this time since this is a “make or break” moment for him and the party.
Even those who are convinced that Rahul Gandhi will stay the course are worried that he may peak too early and that he may find it difficult to sustain the campaign against the Modi government, which has another four years in office. “He must raise issues which are substantive and have an element of truth or else he will lose credibility,” said a senior Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh.
In the long run, however, Rahul Gandhi’s success will depend on the National Democratic Alliance government’s failures, just as the Bharatiya Janata Party’s assent to power last year hinged on the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s unpopularity.
Visibility in the media
For the present, however, Congress cadres are glad that Rahul Gandhi has plunged himself into the hurly burly of politics in an attempt to revive the party.
“Certainly, the party is upbeat,” remarked Congress spokesperson Rajiv Gowda. “Rahul Gandhi is now controlling the agenda, he is visible, his sense of timing has improved and he is showing greater spontaneity in his interactions with the media and interventions in the Lok Sabha.”
Indeed, Rahul Gandhi has kept up a scorching pace since his return. After beginning with an informal interaction with farmers, Rahul Gandhi addressed a large kisan khet mazdoor rally where he accused the Modi government of pushing ahead with the land acquisition bill to please its corporate cronies.
The Congress heir apparent followed this up with two combative interventions in the Lok Sabha where he took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being insensitive to the plight of farmers and then took off on a kisan padyatra to personally listen to the woes of farmers who have been hit by the current agrarian crisis. He first journeyed to Punjab and then made way to Maharashtra.
Besides espousing the cause of farmers, Rahul Gandhi spoke up for net neutrality in a clear attempt to endear himself to the youth, and undertook a trek to Kedarnath to address the perception that the Congress leans more towards the minorities.
BJP's sallies
Rahul Gandhi’s sustained attack against the ruling alliance is not expected to dethrone Modi. But it certainly has energised party workers, pushed the ruling alliance on the defensive, and positioned Rahul Gandhi and the Congress as being more empathetic to the poor and marginalised sections.
His new avatar has not gone unnoticed by other political parties. While the BJP and its allies have dismissed the Congress vice-president’s overdrive as a flash in the pan, the saffron outfit is not sure how it should react to his constant barbs at the prime minister.
Since Modi, as prime minister, cannot be seen as publicly engaging in a war of words with a political adversary, it has been left to BJP minister Arun Jaitley and his colleagues to put down the Nehru-Gandhi scion.
Stung by Rahul Gandhi’s description of the ruling alliance as “suit boot ki sarkar”, Jaitley hit back, saying “it is a soojh boojh ki sarkar”, while poking fun at the Congress leader’s unexplained sabbatical. Private conversations with BJP leaders, however, reveal they are taken aback by Rahul Gandhi’s political overdrive and upset at the media coverage he is getting.
“Rahul Gandhi’s forays to the rural hinterland and his effort to focus on the problems of farmers will not have any lasting impact,” remarked a senior BJP minister. “He forgets that the Congress has lost its political capital and until it regains this capital, he will not make much headway.” At the same time, he admitted that the dynasty will not lose its relevance.
Short-term advantages
While Akali Dal leader Naresh Gujral dismissed Rahul Gandhi as a “used tube light which flickers intermittently”, Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi was impressed with the Congress vice-president’s efforts and did not shy from heaping praise on him.
“Rahul Gandhi’s new avatar shows that he has conquered anger and if anybody can manage to do that, then he has total control over his thought process,” Trivedi said. “To me, Rahul Gandhi appears serious and determined and is clearly on a mission. I am sure that the same people who thought Rahul Gandhi was not up to the mark will praise him provided he continues in this direction.”
D Raja of the Communist Party of India was more cautious in his reaction to the “new Rahul Gandhi”. He conceded that Rahul Gandhi has flagged burning issues that have pushed the Modi government on the backfoot but felt these polemics would, at best, have a short-term advantage. “He must back this with a strong economic agenda,” Raja pointed out. “Rahul Gandhi should learn from Indira Gandhi’s experience. She was able to take on the powerful Syndicate in the party because she came up with such an agenda.”
According to a senior Congress leader, it had become imperative for Rahul Gandhi to become proactive for another reason: he has to emerge as a leader in his own right and dilute his mother and party president Sonia Gandhi’s influence and hold over the party. “He is basically addressing his own party cadres,” he added.