The demand is surprising as all signatories to the letter demanding the return to democratic functioning in the Congress party grew as pawns in the political chess board of Indira Gandhi and functioned at her will for forty years. She used the party to move in or move out persons at her pleasure or displeasure with all followers waiting with bend heads and folded hands for her pleasure. Any self respecting person had no place in her political games.

Sonia Gandhi sought to emulate her style of politics though without her ability to comprehend politics. Indira Gandhi managed to win back power in 27 months after her ouster in 1977 March though many disliked the methods she had adopted. She silenced critics with her sacrifice of life for retaining unity and integrity of India in 1984. Sonia Gandhi retained her post without ability or guiles of her mother in law with sole motive of ensuring installation of her son Rahul Gandhi in the high office. She was dotting mother to ignore to verify whether or not her son had capacity for it or not. She was merely following Indira Gandhi who had set the stage for her son Rajiv Gandhi to emerge as her successor though in four years her son had through several instances proved his inability to comprehend politics of ruling vast mass.

Sonia Gandhi had, after seven years, discarded the veil of mourning for her assassinated husband to campaign for the Congress. She declared in her first campaign rally in 1998 that she would not contest though within a week she had second thoughts after the young party workers and leaders from Amethi came to assure her of an easy victory. She accepted the party post without hesitation four months later as if she was assuming role of the head of the family estate. Following tradition, she got herself elected as the chairman of the Congress parliamentary party though she was not member of either House of Parliament. Her ambition to be the Prime Minister was reflected in her rushing to the President K R Narayanan to stake claim to form the government after the defeat of the Vajpayee government in April 1999.

The 1999 election disproved the assumption that Indian voters could be enchanted with name of Indira Gandhi or her family. Indian voters have never voted for personalities but for the mantra that cast spell to decide without getting influenced by lures offered, caste or class considerations or coerced by threats of violence or even by physical strength displays. Even though the party got the lowest number of seats, merely 113, lower by thirty over its victories in two previous elections, she continued to be the party chief as no alternative was visible. She was forced to shed the stature of her party from the national party to be B team of the regional parties in several states. The coalition won in 2004 with the Congress in lead with 146 seats. She assumed double role as the leader of the parliamentary party but nominated Dr Man Mohan Singh to occupy the chair without commensurate power. He was chosen as he was a bureaucrat for forty years with mentality of submitting to the political authority. He had no supporter in the party to be ever in position to challenge Sonia Gandhi. She proved it by insisting for and getting her Advisory Council. It became the super cabinet, formulating programmes for the Singh government to implement.

The Council was stuffed with a dozen known social activists in different sectors but none having sought popular endorsement even once to get in any elective body. They all believed charity was the only ointment to provide relief to poor. Man Mohan Singh argued that charity could not end poverty. On the contrary it might perpetuate the poverty conditions as charity to meet their consumption needs might desist the poor becoming productive. The Council prepared two purely consumption schemes needing the financial support of Rs. 2.95 lakh crore but without adding even a rupee worth to national assets. The Prime Minister was reluctant to accept such huge financial burden but Sonia Gandhi insisted and had her way. Neither she nor her Council became apparently aware of the rapid social transition in mentality of even poor as reflected in growing number of school going kids. It reflected clamouring in poor minds also for dignity of life. The poor were not enamoured and the middle classes resented diversion of huge proportion of state finances for feeding poor.

To ward off any danger to the coalition government, Sonia Gandhi coerced the Prime Minister to put off all his economic reform measures. The Prime Minister had to assert to retain the nuclear deal with America and face the confidence vote in the Lok Sabha than show desperation and revoke the deal that was to end the isolation of India in nuclear sciences development of 35 years. The Man Mohan Singh government survived due to the BJP drama of flinging currency notes in the Lok Sabha as the bribe money to its two members.

The government was directed to come to settlement with the Anna Hazare group with a view to end his agitation. The government also conceded demand or severe legal provisions to take cognizance of unsupported complaints of women of molestation of their modesty. Indira Gandhi had rejected it in 1982 as it opened doors for scheming women to blackmail males. Her attitudes showed complete lack of political ability. The BJP commander Narendra Modi with astute political mind had exploited the lack of it in his opponents in 2014 election. She had not learnt even basic need to look into audience eye while addressing them. There are clear indications that he will not heed to the ultimatum served by her party men. It may open doors for them to look for fresh pastures as they have no strength to persuade other sheep in the party to be on their legs.