Rahul Gandhi’s baptism by fire: the road ahead

As Congress President Rahul Gandhi observes his 48th birthday on June 19, he cannot but be aware of the distance he has covered since 2014. Following a drubbing in the general election that year, when the strength of the Indian National Congress in the Lok Sabha dipped below 50 for the first time (it had won 127 seats even in 1977), people had openly scoffed at what had then appeared to be an idle boast when he told the media that he would transform the party in ways they would not imagine.

Political pundits in 2014 were willing to wager that the Congress would remain out of power for the next 15 years, if not more. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s uncouth war cry of a ‘Congress-mukt Bharat’ seemed to resonate in unlikely corners and Rahul Gandhi was seen as a weak, uncertain leader.

Since then, he has clearly grown as a leader. So much so that the BJP’s IT cell feels it important to mock him almost on a daily basis. The vicious attacks have shown the panic in BJP ranks and file as the Congress President went about transforming the party. It is still a work in progress but there is a sense of purpose that is unmistakable.

The party has sprung new wings like the All India Professionals’ Congress, the Overseas Congress and the Unorganised Workers’ Congress in addition to a social media cell and a Research department. It has made its presence felt on social media and the existing frontal organisations like the NSUI, Youth Congress and Mahila Congress appear more businesslike. Today, almost all of the government’s fictitious claims are served with a point-by-point rebuttal by Congress leaders and its social media cell.

Rahul Gandhi himself has led the party’s campaign in Gujarat, Punjab and Karnataka from the front and shouldered the main burden of campaigning in even those states where the party has not fared well in elections.

The re-imagination that has gone into transformation of the Grand Old Party of Indian politics into a young and energetic force had started in right earnest even before the elevation of Rahul Gandhi as the party president. Even before his elevation, he had candidly spoken of the need of the party to undergo massive structural and organisational changes.

The task was herculean. Besides galvanising demoralised party leaders and workers, he had to face a barrage of personal attacks and insults that was directed at him and his family members. The vicious attacks, which often crossed all boundaries of civility, were part of the BJP-RSS game plan to keep him under constant pressure.

In the plenary session of the party, he had spoken about the need of the wall between leaders and workers to be broken down. He had also hinted that the party would promote young and savvy leaders while at the same time turning to veterans for guidance and direction. Arguably, he has had some success in this direction.

Along with that, Rahul Gandhi has started doing another thing. He has been regularly hitting out at the Modi government on crucial areas of non-delivery like jobs, farmers’ woes, the pains of demonetisation and GST, its treatment of Dalits and the minorities and the government’s disastrous foreign policy. And while he has been making use of social media platforms to articulate his points, he has taken good care to interact with people directly at election rallies, road shows, campus visits, business meets, etc.

Also, he has shown the pragmatism and humility to join other secular-minded parties in electoral battles in places where the Congress is not at its strongest best, as in Kairana, Jokihat, Gomia and Silli. And in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, where the Congress is still a force to be reckoned with, his leadership has led to convincing bypoll victories by the party itself.

The biggest challenge for Rahul Gandhi will be to cobble up a national coalition ahead of 2019 and to see it successfully mount a challenge to the NDA. A coalition is already in the making. He has to make sure it grows and lasts. It will require balancing the Congress party’s interests with aspirations of regional leaders. It will also involve at times playing the peacemaker in an alliance of erstwhile adversaries. But for India to get back on its secular, pluralistic, progressive and socialist roadmap, he has no option but to succeed.