- Of late, the Grand Old Party (GOP) is in the news for all the wrong reasons is stating the obvious. It defies logic for the way prickly political situations have been handled in recent times. Right from the drubbing, Congress received during the last parliamentary elections, and the subsequent resignation of the then President Rahul Gandhi, the party has hurtled from one defeat after another failing to present itself as a formidable pan-India opposition party. The party’s fixation with the Gandhi family is consistently failing to yield any desired results vis-à-vis regrouping organizationally as well as electorally to present itself as a viable alternative to the BJP.
PC: Kumar Ketkar
- Steadfast electoral reverses and exodus of leaders in search of greener pastures have had a deflating say in the way the party stands presently. As you are aware, there are murmurs heard within the party when a few senior partymen kept raising issues of a much-needed makeover for the past couple of years. The group has come to be known as G-23 who was vehemently pushing for organizational elections and internal democracy. Senior leader Kapil Sibal during a press conference a few weeks back had raised hopes of the Congress Working Committee deciding on the matter of leadership.
- However, much to the disappointment of many, Sonia Gandhi firmly pushed back the Sibal complaint that “in our party, at the moment, we have no president” by claiming that she was a “full-time and hands-on” party president. Her grandiose statement firmly establishes the fact that there won’t be immediate changes to the leadership. As is its wont, several leaders including the G-23 leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma joined the chorus for Rahul Gandhi to take over the reins of party presidentship once again. He is reported to have conceded, “let me think about it”.
PC: India TV News Desk
- As such, the party has delayed internal polls to August-September 2022, at which point the anointed scion may ascend back to the presidency that he had surrendered as a gesture of accountability for the 2019 election debacle. What does it showcase though? Nothing else but returning full-circle to a mess rather than doing the promised course correction. Make no mistake, the answer will largely depend on the ensuing elections to the crucial states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Uttarakhand next year. Going by the look of things, there cannot be any surprises forthcoming in the already written script in the abovementioned states, save for some miracles.
- Bharatiya Janata Party has predictably latched on to the Congress’ conundrum mocking the CWC as a Parivar Bachao working committee. Mind you, such attacks have a track record of effectively weakening the Congress plank. The Congress appears to be in no position to cash in on the simmering matters like Agri-agitation, Covid induced economic shocks, inflation, poverty, and joblessness. Any opposition would have made every effort to seize the matter to corner the ruling dispensation. Sadly, the Congress high command continues to resist change to overhaul the organizational structure. Such a self-destructive and arrogance-laced foolhardy stand hardly will serve the purpose of Congress.
