Bharat Jodo Yatra is over but Congress bracing for challenges ahead

As leaders took the last step of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Srinagar on the 135th day of their foot march, Rahul Gandhi said that the yatra is not over yet and this is just the beginning – an apt summing up of what is in store for Congress that has struggled to take on the juggernaut of the BJP-RSS in the past nine years.

They may project the Kanyakumari to Kashmir yatra as a non-electoral exercise but the party is keenly looking at its impact across the country and how Rahul is viewed by the electorate as well as a section of Opposition parties, which is reluctant to do business with him as the commander.

For sure, the Congress expects its organisation to be resurgent at the grassroots and has announced its first follow-up to Bharat Jodo Yatra – a two-month ‘Haath se Haath Jodo’ Abhiyan where party workers visit households in 6.5 lakh villages across the country with a letter by Rahul and a chargesheet against Modi government.

The road ahead is not easy though there appears to be a change in people’s perception about Rahul – the earlier non-serious leader image is giving way to a determined leader with a purpose image, which Opposition leaders, including those who skip Monday’s grand finale of the yatra in Srinagar, acknowledge.

Rahul also appears to draw a redline for his party people on the BJP-RSS. He has used the public meetings and 13 press conferences done during the around 4,000 km yatra to make it clear that there is no other way but to fight it tooth and nail and those compromising on ideology would have no space in Congress.

With the yatra, a dual leadership format is being introduced in the party as Rahul has cemented his place as “the leader” of the party brushing aside the rebellion by G-23 earlier against his style of functioning while Mallikarjun Kharge remains president. It is to be seen how their ‘jugalbandi’ works out and there is no reason to believe that they will be at odds given their functioning so far.

After tasting its first victory in an election since 2018-end in Himachal, the Congress is bracing for elections in states and many believe a victory in Karnataka could change the prospects of the party in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls.

But the fear in the party is that a defeat or failure to form a government in the state could have an adverse impact on its performance in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and finally the Lok Sabha polls. It would also have an impact on its pole position in the Opposition space though Congress insists that any alliance without it as the pivot is “meaningless”.

Leaders believe that the issues – from price rise to unemployment to the spread of hatred – raised by Rahul during the yatra resonate with people and will have an impact on election-going states.

The first and foremost challenge for the party will be to sustain the enthusiasm generated among cadres, who appeared dejected after a series of electoral setbacks, especially after 2018. Leaders hope the Plenary Session in Raipur in late February will bring in more hope with the induction of young faces in leadership.

At the organisational level, it is to be seen how the Udaipur Declaration is implemented and a way forward could be discussed at the Raipur Session.

By conducting an election to the president’s post and election of a non-Gandhi, leaders insist that credibility has been regained but an election to Congress Working Committee and Central Election Authority as well as setting up a Parliamentary Board would further add to the seriousness of its intent. However, a section argues such an election could have an adverse impact on the organisation.

In Udaipur, the party had resolved to ‘One Man, One Post’, ‘One Family, One Ticket’, a performance assessment of party functionaries and 50% seats and party positions to those below the age of 50 years. It is to be seen how all these decisions can be institutionalised in the party with a section arguing that some of them are not practical.

Despite being keen, Kharge himself could not implement the ‘One Man, One Post’ policy as intense lobbying among claimants for the position of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha has put it on hold.

The party has also not been able to complete the reconstitution of its committees from block to state level though it has initiated Leadership Development Mission, a programme to groom Dalit and tribal leaders, as decided in Udaipur.