Congress' egress as a political force

"It is not necessary that the president (of INC) should be from Gandhi family" declared Rahul Gandhi in the Congress Working Committee that was discussing the poll results. Rahul was resisting the attempts (genuine or dubious?) of other members of the CWC to persuade him to continue to lead the party. P.Chidambaram took the histrionic cake by breaking down in tears when Rahul expressed his determination to resign from leadership. PC warned Rahul Gandhi that his resignation would lead to Congressmen in Tamil Nadu immolating themselves. What a blend of sycophancy and deception!

PC and his ilk require a non-thinking leader like Rahul Gandhi to save them from many criminal cases. Rahul Gandhi has faulted the leaders like PC, Kamal Nath and Ashok Gehlot for pushing the candidature of their children. Why did he allow this in the first place? Kamal Nath has ensured the victory of his son. Gehlot could not save his son from defeat. Karti Chidambaram won piggybacking on DMK. KC would now claim that the people's court has exonerated him from charges levelled by the CBI  and the ED.

Rahul Gandhi has blamed these leaders for the poor performance of the party. These leaders would blame the Congress workers who in turn would blame the voters for not supporting the Congress. 

Bonded Legislators

Congress party is hell-bent on taking one misstep after another. It has now made its W.Bengal legislators 'voluntarily' decide to give an undertaking on 'stamped' paper that they will not air any views against the party headed by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Is their forced loyalty restricted to the Gandhis? Are the Gandhis party's leaders for life? Is not the party insulting its members by seeking a pledge of loyalty? Is this any different from the practice of bonded labour?

The pledge is possibly restraint of trade affecting the legislator's right to  cross the floor whenever his / her conscience dictates so! This undertaking given by morally deficient legislators which is anyway legally unenforceable reflects the political bankruptcy of the GOP.

Digvijaya Singh created a flutter by seeking a major surgery in the party. He has now clarified that a major surgery is not what people take it to be. It does not mean excising any part of the party. Rather it means extending an invitation to former Congress people to come home. In India 2016, words do not mean what they are supposed to mean. This makes political life simple. You can say anything and get away with it.

Brain-dead Congress

Reacting to the dismal performance of the Congress party in the recent general elections in five states, Shashi Tharoor says,

"The time for introspection is now past. Time for action has come…It is time to move and it is time to make some visible changes that the world and the country can see because for a couple of years after 2014, the process for consideration, reflection, introspection and so on has been taking place. It is now time for the leadership to draw on the conclusion from their introspection and take necessary action.” 

Digvijaya Singh laments, “Today’s results disappointing but not unexpected. We have done enough introspection. Shouldn’t we go for a major surgery?” 

Action? Major surgery? In any political party, the leadership is supposed to be the brain. If the brain is dead, can the patient be revived? Unlike for a human being, the brain of a political party can be replaced. When the brain is dead, it serves no purpose to indulge in transplant of kidney or heart to revive the patient.

If the party is not willing / able / ready to free itself from the toxic clutches of the Gandhi family, the Congress will soon become a thing of the past. Didi rightly said that Rahul Gandhi is Modi's USP !

Saving Congress from its leaders

Raghuram Rajan had wanted capitalism to be saved from capitalists because the latter misuse and misinterpret rules of the game and facilitate growth of crony capitalism. Similarly, we need to extricate the Grand Old Party of India from the evil clutches of Congress (wo)men who are its present leaders.

Be it Sonia Gandhi or P.Chidambaram or Abhishek Manu Singhvi, they can only be ranked 0 in 0 to 10 scale of ethical practices (0 being least ethical). Though it is redundant to recount their egregious ethical lapses, it is impossible to forget their roles in choppergate, masking terrorism and benami transactions and unscrupulous assurances on judicial appointments as quid pro quo for sexual escapades. Such leaders deserve nothing short of social ostracism since our dilatory legal system will never catch up with their shenanigans.

It behoves practitioners of principles of Congress as enunciated and practised by leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri to join together and throw these disgraceful vile elements out of  the Congress party.

Congress' views and Congressmen's views

Indian National Congress is the most democratic political party in the world. It is the only party which dissociates itself from the views expressed by everyone of its members but does not disempower them from freely expressing their personal opinions. It is a miracle that there is a political party whose 'collective opinion' is not shared by any of its members and therefore is always at variance from the opinions of all its members.

P.Chidambaram wanted Sonia and Rahul Gandhis to speak more and more often. The High Command lost no time in qualifying it as PC's personal view and confirmed that the party does not toe this line.

Digvijay Singh desires that Rahulji should take over leadership because 'the Congress always favours young leaders'. (?) The party immediately declares that this is his personal view and not that of the party.

G.K.Vasan wants appropriate importance to be given to Kamaraj.  Expectedly this is shot down as an individual's opinion. He was not Kamaraj Gandhi after all.

Shashi Tharoor had the temerity to praise the prime minister's initiative for cleanliness. This certainly was not the party line.

At this rate, even if Soniaji or Rahulji expresses any opinion, the party may hastily dismiss that as their personal opinion. Is that why they do not take the risk of saying anything?

We now understand why Manmohan Singh was totally inarticulate during his prime ministership. He did not want to give a chance to the party to distance itself from his views.