Quietly but steadily, the Indian National Congress with Mallikarjun Kharge as president is undergoing qualitative changes. What Narendra Modi derisively calls a dynastic party has been slowly restoring internal democracy and reestablishing healthy traditions.
Big Media might choose to ignore it. But which other party (barring the Left parties, which have their own inbuilt practices) calls its top decision-making body barely three weeks after the earlier meeting (on September 16) to discuss urgent policy choices? At a special meeting of the Congress working committee on October 9, members loudly debated controversial issues like OBC reservation and the party’s stand on the Israel-Hamas war.
On reservation, sharply divergent views were expressed by leaders like Manish Tiwari, Abhishek Singhvi, B.K. Hariprasad and Bhupesh Baghel.
The chief ministers of Karnataka, Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh supported the move but Himachal Pradesh chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed reservations.
On Israel, Ramesh Chennithala got wide support when he emphasized the need to uphold the Palestinian cause. This, he said, was the party policy from Indira Gandhi’s days. Both resolutions were duly revised after the debate and unanimously adopted — in true democratic spirit.
Can you imagine such free and frank debate in any other party in India, family-run or under the Modi-Shah regime? The BJP calls its national executive as per its constitution but the first day’s agenda will invariably be for president J.P. Nadda’s explanations of party policies and the members’s tasks. The last day is the most important. It is for Modi’s homilies to the members, which they respectfully listen to.
Narendra Modi and J.P. Nadda. Photo: X/@JPNadda
As per the media narrative, the CWC meeting was called to endorse the resolution on OBC reservations — not discuss and adopt. The reporters are so used to the BJP practice of endorsing documents drafted by experts as official resolutions. Hence, free and frank discussions are viewed as dissensions or revolts under ‘weak’ leadership.
Compromises between state leaders
The Congress has moved ahead from the days when the high command suddenly asked Amarinder Singh to quit as Punjab chief minister and in his place imposed an untested nominee. Now decisions are taken in an orderly manner after wider consultations. The party could develop a structured leadership in state after state.
In Rajasthan, it has amicably settled, at least until the elections, the dispute between Sachin Pilot and chief minister Ashok Gehlot. Pilot’s cooperation has improved the party’s chances in the assembly elections.
In Chhatisgarh, T.S. Singh Deo was persuaded to accept the compromise to function as deputy chief minister. Singh Deo was a claimant for the CM’s post and had refused to work under Bupesh Baghel.
D.K. Shiv Kumar, who had fiercely fought for the chief ministership of Karnataka, finally agreed to function as deputy chief minister in the wider interest of the party.
The worst challenge is in Delhi, where the state Congress leaders are adamant against any compromise. Things are gradually changing, with the state leaders shifting focus on fighting against the BJP.
Compare such compromises with the high-handed way in which Amit Shah removed and appointed CMs in BJP-ruled states like Gujarat and Uttarakhand. The latter’s case is more curious. There were three CMs in four months in mid-2021.
Another healthy trend in the Congress has been the grooming of a leadership structure in states. The new policy is based on the assumption that elections are won on cooperative efforts by the central and state leaders. This is in sharp contrast to Modi’s policy of treating state leaders as dispensable and seeking votes by leveraging his popularity.
Like all good authoritarian leaders, his emphasis has been to directly reach out to the voters without anyone in between. This led to revolts by the leaders who had devoted their entire lives to the BJP and were ignored.
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From dissent to consensus
The Congress suffered its worst desertions after the 2019 elections, when its tally in the Lok Sabha was just 52. Narendra Modi emerged as an uncrowned king. The party had to contend with large-scale defections, some to the BJP, others to the Nationalist Congress Party and Trinamool Congress. Incidentally, the BJP has been very selective in accommodating defectors from the Congress. Those were the days when the Congress was seen as a sinking boat in a turbulent sea.
In August 2020, a group of 23 senior leaders in a letter to interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi demanded wide-ranging reforms. This included collective leadership and elections to choose the party president and all organisational committees. Among this ‘G-23’ were senior leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Kapil Sibal and Manish Tiwari.
The phenomenon lasted for about two years while the Congress leadership remained adamant. In the process, many more members departed. Some like Jitin Prasada joined the BJP, Kapil Sibal became an independent leader and Ghulam Nabi Azad formed his own party. Initially, the leadership dismissed the G-23 implosion as a revolt.
But the G-23 also eventually triggered the transformation of the Indian National Congress as a vigorous movement. The process, in fact, had begun even before Kharge’s election as president and the appointment of Jairam Ramesh as AICC’s communication head. The G-23 is now a thing of the past. Most of its prominent members have been accommodated in the Congress Working Committee or other important positions.
By 2022, regional parties like TMC and KCR’s Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) had opened offices in Delhi. This was part of their prime ministerial ambitions. The Congress resurgence has made them retreat. Among the opposition parties, the Congress alone has the infrastructure to daily pound the ruling party on emerging issues, including the prime minister’s relationship with Gautam Adani.
While the BJP’s candidate list is finalised by Amit Shah and his technocrats, the Congress this time is experimenting with a new system to provide more power to state leaders. The selection of candidates was left to the state leaders. This time, the central election committee focused on trying for consensus on disputed names. So far, the new system has worked smoothly. There were a few protests by the disappointed aspirants, which is to be expected.
P. Chidambaram, Anand Sharma and Kapil Sibal were among the G-23 leaders.
Ghar wapsi of leaders
Proof of the Congress resurgence can be found in the frantic ghar wapsi to the party during the past six months. And this massive exodus happened without the support of raids by investigating agencies. Here is a partial list of those who joined the Congress in the past few months:
- Kasireddy Narayan Reddy, BRS MLC, joined the Congress on October 6.
- L.B. Nagar BRS leader Rammohan Goud joined the Congress on October 12.
- BRS leaders Mynampally Hanumanth Rao and Vemula Veeresham joined the Congress on September 29.
- Senior BRS leader Tummala Nageswara Rao joined the Congress on September 16.
- Thirty-five BRS leaders, including former MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and ex-minister Jupally Krishna Rao, joined the Congress in late June.
- In Madhya Pradesh, several MLAs from the Gwalior-Chambal region who left the Congress along with Jyotiraditya Scindia have rejoined the party. These include Virendra Raghuvanshi, Promod Tandon, Ramkishore Shula and Dinesh Mallar.
- OBC leader and former MP Bodh Singh Bhagat joined the Congress on September 21.
- A former two-term Madhya Pradesh BJP MLA, Girija Shankar, joined the Congress on September 11. Eight days earlier, 10 BJP leaders, including an MLA and a former legislator, switched to the Congress.
- Rajesh Patel, a senior BJP leader in the Budhni assembly segment, joined the Congress on September 21. His father was a Jan Sangh leader.
- On October 16, several BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal leaders in Punjab joined the Congress.
- On October 19, several BJP and AAP leaders in Gujarat, including an ex-MLA, joined the Congress.
Attempts to counter ‘anti-Hindu’ allegations
The arrogance with which the BJP pushes its hard Hindutva has reverberations in other parties. For example, the Congress is often targeted with allegations of ‘minority appeasement’ and being ‘anti-Hindu’. These have to be countered.
Hence, Kamal Nath during his visit to the Mahakal temple in Ujjain sought the blessings of the god to get rid of the ‘corrupt BJP government’. In 2020, Kamal Nath conducted Hanuman Chalisa at his residence and sent 11 silver bricks to the Ram temple in Ayodhya. At times, he would demonstratively appear in saffron attire and pay respects to Hindu priests. Once, he organised a meeting of priests at the Congress office with saffron flags and decorations all over.
UP Congress president Ajai Rai visited Kashi to seek the blessings of the deity. He assumed office amidst Vedic recitations. They performed ‘Maha Rudrabhishek’ – all demonstratively to send the message that the Congress is not anti-Hindu.
In Chhatisgarh, the Congress government sponsored the annual Ramayana and Kausalya festivals with great fervour. In 2021, the Ram Van Gaman Tourism Circuit was inaugurated to develop places where Ram was believed to have lived during his exile. The government also renovated the Mata Kausalya temple at Raipur.
In Orissa, Congress workers led by the PCC chief held demonstrations demanding the opening of the Puri Jagannath temple. In Haryana, the Congress has launched a movement to cash in on Brahmin resentment against the BJP. In a different context, the Congress in UP has launched a Dalit outreach programme with Kanshi Ram as its mascot.
Even Rahul Gandhi has been increasingly using phrases like Bharat Mata to send the right message. Of late, he has been seen wearing attire with religious symbols. During the Telangana election campaign, he and Priyanka Gandhi offered prayer at the famous Ramappa temple before launching a yatra.
P. Raman is a veteran journalist.
