Rahul Gandhi’s Photo-Ops

IF ONLY HOW-TO manuals could create a leader, Rahul Gandhi would have become one a long time ago. His backroom handlers send him out to motorcycle garages to dirty his hands in grease and muck in Delhi’s Karol Bagh, and then over to Haryana’s verdant fields for him to know firsthand how they grow paddy. Other times, he is dispatched to railway stations to play the coolie, literally lugging a suitcase over his head while the commonsensical thing would have been to use the wheels on the bag to walk it to its destination.

Such photo-ops soon make it to various social media websites and elicit much derisive comment, with most people saying how the growing up process of the 53-year-old Congress princeling remains incomplete, and might well stretch into his sixties.

However, this very public education of Rahul Gandhi in what are essentially everyday facets of life could well prove counter-productive. For, the perceptive voter can always be chary of handing over the reins of the country to someone still being made to familiarise himself with the basics of ordinary life, someone who feels obliged to play a coolie one day and a motorcycle mechanic the other as part of his learning process.

Running a diverse and always difficult nation of over 1.4 billion people with as many problems has never been an easy task, even for those who were clued into men and matters—such as Jawaharlal Nehru or Indira Gandhi. Trusting a dynast of the famous family who at 53 still seems wet behind the ears may prove risky—especially when the alternative available is an experienced leader with a proven track record of good and purposeful governance.

WHILE STILL ON the backroom team of Rahul Gandhi contracted to make a ‘leader’ of their subject, it too needs a lesson in Congress’ history. Making Rahul parrot OBC reservations and reservations within reservations for OBCs in the 33 per cent quota in legislatures for women, without him being remotely mindful of the record of the Grand Old Party, can only invite a sound rebuff from the targeted voter groups. Caste reservations have all along been an anathema to Congress.

Both Indira and Rajiv Gandhi had determinedly refused to make public the findings of the Mandal Commission. Also, despite vociferous demands, the commission was not set up by a Congress government but by the first non-Congress government at the Centre. In its dying days, the VP Singh government undertook to enforce the OBC reservations while Congress sullenly watched from the sidelines.

Besides, the Women’s Reservation Bill moved by Congress had no provision for the one-third OBC reservations within the one-third quota of seats for women in legislatures. Nor had the party shown any eagerness to pass the Bill while in power.

Putting a low premium on the OBC’s intelligence, Rahul seems to think by chanting “OBC reservations” day and night, he will now endear himself to this large segment of voters. He won’t. By regurgitating Kanshi Ram’s original slogan “Jiski Jitni Sankhya Bhari, Uski Utni Bhagedaari (Share in power as per the percentage in population)”, when the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was still finding its feet in Uttar Pradesh, Congress cannot expect to find traction in the Hindi belt. A few years down the line, even BSP had softened its stance in order to enlist the support of the swarn jatis (upper castes).

There was another slogan BSP had used with an eye on firming up its original support base among the Jatavs and other Scheduled Castes. It was: “Tilak, Taraju Aur Talwar, Maaro Inko Jootey Chaar” (the reference being to Brahmins, Banias, and Kshatriyas who needed to be firmly shunned). Even if Rahul is not advised to begin chanting the latter slogan as well, there is every chance that his harping on Jiski jitni… may alienate the small percentage of the upper-caste vote that may have been inclined towards Congress.

Now, don’t think Rahul has developed a special love for OBCs. No. Having been told that OBCs overwhelmingly vote for a fellow OBC, that is Modi, he has set out to try and break the close emotional bond. Hence, the aggressive adoption of the caste card. But pulling the wool over OBCs’ eyes may not be that easy.

About The Author

Virendra Kapoor

Virendra Kapoor is a political commentator based in Delhi