JOIN US‘We lost the battle, but will win the war’
Completing 50 years in politics, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge has seen the ups and downs of the Congress and Indian politics. With Congress faring badly in the recent elections, he sat with DH’s Shemin Joy to explain the political situation and Congress’ space in Opposition unity.
After the recent election loss in five states, several argue that Congress has been weakened and it does not occupy the pole position in the Opposition. Do you agree?
We may have lost the elections, but it does not mean we have lost ground. In a democratic system, we win many times, we also lose. In this election, our own people created trouble in Punjab. In Goa, some so-called secular parties spoiled our votes. People blame us and ask why we don’t take other parties into our fold. What are these parties actually doing? When we accommodate them, they take our space. Instead of weakening the BJP, they are actually eating into our votes. They do not create new space. They venture into states where Congress is strong. This happened in places like Goa and Manipur. In these elections too, we have not been wiped out. BJP has worked with a particular vengeance against the Congress in many places where we were strong. They are not giving a level playing field.
Are the 'so-called secular' parties AAP and Trinamool Congress?
I am not taking any names. But my question is how are parties going to help build a strong Opposition against the Modi government? Isn't this an ideological fight? Political alignments will depend on how situations emerge after the elections. But if we fight each other, it will not help. We have learnt this. We have people at the grassroots level. Younger and committed people should be rewarded. We should identify those who do serious politics and not the ones who get nervous if they don’t get a seat to fight elections.
With Punjab victory, many find AAP as a possible alternative to the Congress. Do you see a threat from AAP?
I don't say a threat. We are a party that has a presence across the country. There is massive propaganda and publicity. people have been given the wrong impression about many things that happened in the past. Internal fighting gave space to them. BJP never says they are fighting elections on ideology. They usurp power by hook or by crook. Then they force their ideology. We are fighting for our ideology. Only Rahul Gandhi speaks against communal polarisation, price rise, inflation and Chinese aggression. No other party speaks up except for the injustice meted out to their states. Other than the Congress, no one speaks for the entire country. But the BJP threatens and humiliates people. In many places, they openly ask voters why they support Congress.
The recent disagreements over party leadership has been talked about much. Is the leadership question creating unease in the party?
This is a wrong perception. The Congress leadership is fighting to organise people against the Modi government. In 2004, Sonia Gandhi refused to be the Prime Minister despite the party asking in one voice. She suggested Manmohan Singh. No one from the Gandhi family has become a minister. But nowadays, if a leader is denied a MLA or MP seat, they simply cross over. Despite the Congress president’s health concerns, she takes active interest. I don't want to blame anyone. But it is not true that it is because of the Gandhis that there is a problem.
Some Opposition leaders believe that the Congress era is over and that the party is on its way out. How do you respond to it?
Everybody will say that. Once upon a time, the Communist Party of India was the main Opposition in the country. Once, the BJP had only two seats. So, these are things that happen in a democracy. We don’t want to build an autocracy or a dictatorship. This is democracy and this is how things work in democracy. We will naturally come back and build up. Our party will emerge.
There is a view Congress is not capable of fighting BJP. That is why AAP or TMC, despite being regional outfits, are emerging. Do you agree?
I don't want to comment on other parties. I will only talk about my party. My party is everywhere and it is visible. We are fighters. We will fight. We may have lost this battle, but we will win the war.
Has Congress clout in Parliament diminished among the Opposition after the election results?
No such situation is there. We were all together. When elections came, different parties took different positions. Trinamool and Congress fought each other in West Bengal while AAP and Congress were contesting against each other in Punjab. However, Rahul Gandhi told Opposition leaders in November last year during a meeting at my office in Parliament that all of them can join hands for the common good at national level in Parliament despite going in opposite directions in states. Basic message was that do not let the state equation distract the bigger fight in Parliament. Everybody accepted this. Some people got the upper hand after the results and have still not reconciled with this. We have to fight together. We have to speak to each other. In a democracy, we must unite, forgetting our past, to decide what should be done in future.
Is the Congress ceding space to smaller parties before 2024 in the context of Opposition unity?
Let us see what happens tomorrow. We are the Congress. We are building our party. Our leaders are working around the clock. The one thing everyone should know is that when Rahul Gandhi travelled across states as Congress president, we won many states. Even Gujarat was neck-and-neck and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to camp there in the last leg for BJP to win marginally. When we lost five, everybody is talking. When five years back we won it all, everybody praised us. Let's wait and see.
What about the opposition within the Congress. Are they signs of that ending soon?
See, ours is a democratic party. Discussions will be there. The Congress president has openly said in the last Working that committee that if there is something wrong, please bring it to her notice. She said she is ready to sacrifice anything for the sake of the party. What more do you want? The point is how much I am contributing. Every leader should think about that.
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