Being Rahul Gandhi

RAHUL GANDHI AND all he epitomises are very crucial to Indian politics. Some people are needed only so that they can complete both the narrative and the plot. In many ways, Rahul is a necessary evil and I say this with gravitas. This country needs a Rahul Gandhi only to appreciate (or not) a Narendra Modi.

In fact, Modi needs Rahul Gandhi more than India does.

So why does this man keep failing? Why is he the butt of all jokes? Why do people smirk the moment you mention his name? And to say this is all owing to BJP’s IT cell is stupid. And gives BJP far more credit than it deserves. Rahul Gandhi is the self-inflicted wound that keeps giving. He doesn’t need anyone else to help him. He has, and to be fair to him, very strong opinions and isn’t afraid to express them even though some of those opinions stem out of intellectual innocence. And to say that people have become unkind to Rahul only after Modi became prime minister is again a myth. Rahul was never taken seriously by anyone except his mother and his coterie. And both he and his coterie, especially the latter, are unelectable. It is the tyranny of the arrogant that began destroying Rahul Gandhi. And I cannot fathom why.

I still believe what Rahul did with the Bharat Jodo Yatra was superb. It was good for the Rahul Gandhi brand but not perhaps for the party, and that was evident in the state election results that followed. Which brings me to the first strategic point of concern.

The people in Congress (despite Kharge) have not been able to untangle Rahul from Congress. This worked when Indira Gandhi was alive and even with Rajiv Gandhi to an extent, but today’s India despises entitlement and respects self-worth and hard work. The fact that Congress is seen as subservient to Rahul is causing the damage and exodus from the former. People no longer care about Rahul because neither can he win elections nor keep his flock together, so the question that people ask is what kind of leader is this man?

The second reason is consistency. No one ever taught strategy to Rahul even when he was working as a porter. Consistency is a critical strategic tool. Rahul shifts from issue to issue, thereby coming across as someone who is trying his luck at whatever may work rather than pursuing a cause. And, again, here the conflict arises. The very industrialists that Rahul abuses are state guests at state capitals when those (his party) governments are seeking investments. Which diminishes both his worth and the worth of what he says. Yet another blow to his persona.

The third reason is this man’s optics. How can anyone forget Rahul Gandhi tearing up an ordinance while his Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was walking into the Oval Office, thereby undermining the highest office of the land? But for this, I would not blame Rahul alone. It is also about who we were as a people. We loved the feudal lords; we loved worshipping the family; they could do no wrong until, of course, Modi arrived. The silent pacts between Vajpayee and Sonia on not attacking family members were also thrown aside. Modi has no reason to honour anything except the mandate he was given. This was and remains alien to the Gandhis. To be fair to them, they actually believe they are God-like only because so many people have made them believe so. They have failed to read the tea leaves as well as comprehend the changes the country has experienced. Indira Gandhi died in 1984—40 years ago. Rajiv Gandhi died in 1991—33 years ago. So, someone who is below 35 years of age doesn’t even know about them or what they did. This is the truth no one tells Rahul Gandhi.

Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi are the only ones keeping the Gandhi family name alive. The former by attacking Nehru, and the latter by praising his grandmother and father. The rest of India has moved on.

The only difference is Modi keeps it alive to win elections. Rahul Gandhi keeps it alive to hopefully stay relevant. And this is something that will further hasten (if that is at all any longer possible) his irrelevance. It is not good for democracy even though it may be the best thing that will happen to Congress.

Congress doesn’t need fresh blood. It needs a fresh mind, body, and an Indian soul.

About The Author

Suhel Seth

Suhel Seth is Managing Partner of Counselage India and can be reached at suhel@counselage.com

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