The Congress is set to elect its new chief in four months, but there is no word yet on the much-needed revamp of the party organisation. The overhaul, almost three years overdue, is said to have been held up because of a tussle between the party’s old guard that owes allegiance to party President Sonia Gandhi and the younger lot which is loyal to Vice-President Rahul Gandhi.
Since 2014, when the party suffered a humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha polls, there had been talk of sweeping changes in the party organisation, including the All India Congress Committee and various state units. When the party appointed new general-secretaries for the poll-bound states of Karnataka, Gujarat and Rajasthan in May, it was widely believed that the revamp had been set in motion. But there has been no movement since.
Party officials who did not wish to be identified said that Rahul Gandhi had drawn up a list of members to induct into the team before he left for an 18-day foreign visit last month, but the reshuffle was put on hold following pressure from the party’s senior leaders, which fears it will be relegated to the sidelines in the new set-up. The old guard is learnt to have convinced Sonia Gandhi that she should not rush to make these changes as it could impact Rahul Gandhi’s anointment as party president.
Congress insiders said that though Sonia Gandhi has more or less handed over the reins of the party to Rahul Gandhi, she will be unable to turn her back on the senior leaders, who have stood by her over the past two decades. She also fears that the party veterans could make it difficult for Rahul Gandhi to function as president if she brushes aside their suggestions. “Sonia Gandhi has been dependent on the old guard ever since she joined active politics...it is very difficult for her to forsake them now,” said a senior Congress functionary.
Signs of trouble
Senior Congress leaders had been shocked when in May, the high-profile Digvijaya Singh had been removed as general secretary in charge of poll-bound Karnataka and replaced by the relatively low-key KC Venugopal. In Rajasthan, the fairly junior Avinash Pande was elevated to the post of general secretary and given the responsibility of the poll-bound state, while former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot was given charge of Gujarat. Though considered a Sonia Gandhi loyalist, Gehlot was picked by the Nehru-Gandhi scion for this all-important assignment primarily to move him out of his home state, where he had been at loggerheads with State Unit president Sachin Pilot, who is close to Rahul Gandhi.
Senior leaders were afraid that as more of the impending changes are made, more of them would be sidelined. “This development served as a wake-up call for the senior leaders who immediately put aside their differences and came together to ensure that the organisational revamp was put in cold storage,” a Congress leader pointed out. “The party is essentially run by the general secretaries...if the senior leaders lose these positions, they will be nowhere,” he added.
The decision to appoint four secretaries, all from Rahul Gandhi’s young brigade, to work alongside the general secretary of each state, has also aroused suspicion in the party that the younger team will phase out the senior leaders eventually. For instance, Manickram Tagore, PC Vishnunadh, Madhu Yashki Goud and Sake Sailjanath have been appointed secretaries in charge of Karnataka. Similarly, Vivek Bansal, Quazi Nizamuddin, Devender Yadav and Tarun Kumar have been attached with Pande to work in Rajasthan.
State shake-ups
Two months ago, it was almost certain the organisational changes to the All India Congress Committee would be followed by a string of new appointments to the state units. Senior leader Kamal Nath was said to be all set to take over as Madhya Pradesh Congress president as the Rahul Gandhi appointee Arun Yadav had failed to deliver. However, there has been no word on his appointment, purportedly because Nath is Sonia Gandhi’s pick, while the vice-president Rahul Gandhi favours former Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
Haryana Congress president Ashok Tanwar is also likely to be replaced because of his running feud with former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, which has divided the party into rival camps. Former Union minister and Rajya Sabha MP Kumari Selja is tipped to take over as Rajasthan state chief, but is waiting in the wings. Uncertainty prevails in the Mumbai unit too, presently headed by Sanjay Nirupam, who is said to be on his way because of a growing rebellion against him in the state unit.
The delay in the revamp, meanwhile, has demoralised the party rank and file. “The BJP has already started planning for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections but our party is still talking about organisational changes,” said a Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh.
Now that Rahul Gandhi’s back from his foreign trip, there is hope that some action may finally be taken.
However, the internal turmoil in the Congress has also put a question mark over the elections to the post of party president due in October. Though Rahul Gandhi’s ascension has been on the cards for a while now, it is not certain if it will happen this year. Even if he does take over as party president, the turf war in the party will pose a huge challenge.