JOIN USTo challenge Modi, Rahul should change the narrative
A government led by the same leader at the helm should be changed at least after ten years, especially if its performance is below par. Or, like in the US, there is merit in the head of the executive retiring after two terms, if only to inject new blood and introduce fresher dynamics.
It is, however, safe to assume that Narendra Modi will seek a third term in 2024. So, it is incumbent upon Rahul Gandhi, the icon of the family-based Congress, to gear up to take charge of the Opposition camp and emerge as a more forceful leader. So far, he has failed to do so, and there are definite reasons for his failure.
It is not that someone hailing from a political dynasty will not succeed in the current phase of Indian politics. Naveen Patnaik, the chief minister and supreme leader of the Biju Janata Dal, is an apt example. Naveen Patnaik may lack the charisma of his legendary father, Biju Patnaik. While Naveen Patnaik has helmed Odisha for more than 21 years at a stretch, Biju babu could never record even two consecutive wins as the state's chief minister.
What could be the secret of Naveen Patnaik's success? Briefly, it is his pragmatism and ability to innovate a niche political line. In 2000, he came to power in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and later dumped the partner. He has steered clear of the Hindutva and 'secular' political camps, as both sides have their fault-lines. But he maintains a cordial working relationship with Modi to ensure the development of his state.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, however, has not learnt from such examples. The argument isn't that he should copy Naveen Patnaik's strategy. However, to fight Modi's agenda that combines Hindutva and development, the Congress leader needs to adopt a fair, prudent, political line that appeals to the people.
Instead, Rahul Gandhi has tried to force the same old issues that have not worked in the electoral arena. His raking up the alleged irregularities in the Rafale fighter jets deal did not help. The Rafale controversy was a feeble attempt to recreate the Bofors scandal and bound to fail. His opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) could not strike a chord. The CAA and NRC may work in a state like West Bengal, where 30 per cent of the voters are Muslims, also immigrants from Bangladesh living in India, but not at the pan-India level.
Rahul Gandhi's pet anti-Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) rant does not help either. It shows he is perpetually in denial of reality. There are radicals among Hindus and Muslims. But like the Left, the Gandhis, both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, come across as vociferous against Hindu radicalism and silent about Islamic radicalism. It only helps the BJP to paint the Opposition anti-Hindu.
Such stances will not help in the current polity. The secularists have to be seen to fight all shades of fundamentalism. They cannot support hijab as personal freedom and criticise ghoonghat as regressive Hindu agenda. Progressive minds have criticised hijab and ghoonghat, or polygamy (both llegal and illegal), for a long time as expressions of male domination. Supporting hijab (by the Congress) or ghoonghat (by the BJP) will only take us back to the medieval age. There is no winner in this game.
The regressive sections of Hindutva can be successfully countered only through a truly secular and progressive agenda. But, only the Congress cannot build such a force that can take on the BJP's juggernaut. It will have to create a front consisting of all parties willing to defeat the BJP in 2024. So far, Rahul Gandhi has not taken any initiative to change the narrative by introducing a new agenda or forging opposition unity. He has rather been inclined to see the entire opposition space as his fiefdom.
This mindset was reflected in his party's attitude towards the Trinamool Congress (TMC) when the latter jumped into the fray in Goa. The Congress dubbed the TMC as a stooge of the BJP. But then what is the Congress doing in UP, where it is a straight fight between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP)? Off the record arguments like the intention being weaning certain anti-SP castes from the BJP do not hold water, for the voters are not ignorant anymore.
In other words, to emerge as a genuine challenger to Modi, Rahul Gandhi needs to armour himself both with a progressive agenda and an array of anti-BJP political parties led by the Congress. It is not an easy job, for it requires a changed mindset. But many in his party would help him chart out such a course if he is willing to listen to them.
But it appears Rahul Gandhi is inclined to wait for a day when the BJP will decay through a natural process. But, if the BJP wins the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, it will have enough scope to rejuvenate itself by changing the leader, as the CPI(M) did by replacing Jyoti Basu with Buddhadeb Bhattacharya in Bengal during their 34-year-long stint. If it happens, Rahul Gandhi may lose the race.
(Diptendra Raychaudhuri is a journalist and an author based in Kolkata)
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.