- The Grand Old Party had its organizational election to elect a president after a very long time and the party has chosen a leader as well. Most importantly, a non-Gandhi leader has been chosen for the top post. A quintessentially loyal congress leader and a Dalit to boot Mallikarjun Kharge will hold the reins of the party at an extremely crucial period for Congress. As you are aware, Congress has ceded tremendous grounds to the Bharatiya Janata Party and other regional parties in the last two decades. The new incumbent is expected to shore up not only the fortune of the party but also hold together diverse leaders who are aspiring for their share of sunshine in the hierarchy. How Kharge goes about essaying the role of glue would be interesting to observe.
PC: Pallavi Ghosh
- Due credit must be given to the Gandhi family as well for being steadfast in stalling pressure exerted by the party leaders to don the role of presidentship. Rahul Gandhi was very candid in ruling out someone from the Gandhi family to head the organization. Of course, there was a drama played out in the form of Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot who was first chosen to contest as an official nominee of the Family but dropped out owing to shrewd moves orchestrated by his supporters. In stepped Kharge, and to hardly anyone’s surprise, won the Congress president polls hands down. The result was plain to guess. But alongside enjoying this upper hand, Kharge has faced not-stop speculation that he will only be a puppet president.
- Now, the task for Kharge is cut out with Himachal and Gujarat elections around the corner. Moreover, he has immediate room to prove the sceptics wrong. We know how Congress is struggling in both states without a party president fronting assembly battles since mid-2019. Expect Kharge to hit the ground running immediately. Mind you, the five other large states that go to the polls ahead of the 2024 general election include the only two where Congress is still in government – Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh. Holding onto these while clawing back to gain ground in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana has to be red-lettered on Kharge’s to-do list. Further, it is indeed a party chief’s job to go about talent spotting too.
PC: THE QUINT
- People observant of Congress would realise there exists a general despondency surrounding the rank and cadre. Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra is attempting to energize the cadre which was sorely missing since the last few years. The moot point to ponder over here is whether Kharge emerges out of the Gandhis’ shadows to reenergize Congress. The answer would be mixed as the Gandhis’ will keep essaying a role crucial for the very survival of Congress. And some senior loyalists would still want to piggy-ride on Gandhis’s indispensability to Congress. It will be interesting how Kharge succeeds in tackling these undercurrents as he assumes the responsibilities. Hopefully, Congress will pose some decent challenge to the BJP in the days ahead. At least for the sake of democracy to remain vibrant and throbbing.
