A week back, a senior leader, Anand Sharma, a Brahmin, spoke out against the Congress leadership, and especially questioned Rahul Gandhi’s style of functioning. It is worth mentioning that Sharma has been one of the peers of the 23-group which had questioned the commitment of the leadership to the party. By resorting to this tactics, they were in fact concealing their real intention: questioning the approach of Rahul towards restructuring the Congress.

Though Rahul unfolded his future ideological narrative through the countrywide Bharat Jodo Yatra last year, these leaders, those who feel isolated from his efforts to bring about major ideological reorientation, became anxious of their own political survival. The Congress has traditionally been a heterogenous conglomeration. All kind of leaders took refuge in the party; from soft leftists to ultra-rightist, like Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. A top leader once quipped: “Congress Shivji ka baarat hai” (Congress is like marriage party of Lord Shiva), meaning a gathering of all kinds of ideological adherents.

Ever since Rahul started forming a significant grip on the party apparatus, giving it a left-of-centre and pro-social justice re-emphasis, a significant number of Congress leaders deserted the party and stood in queue before Modi and Amit Shah’s doors for entry into the BJP. Undeniably, these so-called leaders are only interested in their share of the power pie and living off the ill-gotten fruits of neoliberal corporatism; they simply cannot survive without it. Hence, what scared them is the perceptibly changing character of the Congress. They could not accept a party with progressive, left-of-centre stance.

The firm stand of Rahul Gandhi and party president Mallikarjun Kharge to give a new shape and dimension to the party has betrayed fears within the entrenched second-tier leadership within Congress, itself a product of the liberalization and privatization era. Rahul is systematically accused of by his own partymen of patronizing young left-oriented leaders. In fact, the unease in the party was manifest in a letter to Kharge from Sharma a few days ago. Like his peers, Sharma dislikes the caste-census and other inclusive policies being promoted inside the party by Rahul. In his letter, also sent to Congress Working Committee members, Sharma had argued that the Congress had never engaged in, nor endorsed, identity politics. He said the current departure from this position was a matter of concern for many.

It would be wrong to describe Sharma’s action as irresponsible. It reflected his strong class identity and commitment. It would not be wrong to infer that the class of such upper caste leaders nursing strong feudal trait would not like Congress to win the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Termination of status quoist and right of centre politics would harm their class interest. Count the faces that left Congress and joined BJP. Most of them shifted their allegiance because Congress could not be taken for granted anymore to fulfil their narrow class interest.

Leaders like Sharma, Ghulam Nabi and others realise that Congress with its old approach could not aspire to regain its space in Indian politics. BJP, under the watchful eyes of RSS, has been systematically transforming itself. In fact, Modi’s consistent attack on Congress is part of the design to allure the Congressmen and make them feel secure. A serious look at the BJP organisational structure would unravel that most of the state units of the party are managed and controlled by turncoat Congressmen. It is surprising that RSS never opposed the elevation of such leaders.

In his letter, Sharma argued: “Congress has believed in inclusive approach, which is non-discriminatory in formulating policies for equity and social justice for the poor and the underprivileged. In my humble opinion, this (demand for a caste census) will be misconstrued as disrespecting the legacy of Indira-ji and Rajiv-ji. Also by default, that will be an indictment of successive Congress governments and their work for empowerment of the disadvantaged sections.” One would like to know from Sharma whom he intends to fool with his appeal to Congress’s illustrious history.

In the recently held assembly elections to Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, it was clearly evident how the Congress leaders of these states, instead of reaching out to the Dalits, minorities and EBCs, preferred to prostrate before the rightist elements. This was the primary reason for the defeat of the Congress in these states. While the upper castes threw their weight behind the BJP, the poor withdrew from the Congress feeling betrayed.

A section of the mainstream media and “enlightened” middle class has been expressing its concern at these desertions. There is every possibility that more leaders may switch over. It must be realised that the purification drive of the Congress is going to be long-drawn exercise. May be the BJP will win the Lok Sabha election for a third successive term. But that must not be construed as the final burial of Congress. One thing is absolutely clear: Congress has to transform itself and emerge as a phoenix, but in a different form. It cannot continue to be social club of politically divergent elements with no ideological objective or orientation.

Nevertheless, Rahul has to ensure that the EBC, Dalit and minorities are completely assimilated within the party. It needs deep ideological interaction. It is intriguing indeed to notice that section of the poor, EBC, Dalits and minorities who have emerged as the neo-middle class are finding themselves comfortable in the cozy company of the BJP. In Bihar, UP and especially in Bengal, they are the main support base of the BJP. Obviously, the economic empowerment needs a proper ideological balancing and orientation. Congress has to emerge as the voice and face of this deprived section. It is only then the BJP would not be able to lure them.

Apparently, Rahul has come to realise this need which was why he expressed regret for the Congress’s past stance on a caste census and argued that the nation cannot progress without social justice. Keeping in view the future, he has made this the fulcrum of his political discourse. The Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) covering 25 crore households was conducted in 2011. The socioeconomic data is used now for welfare programmes, but the caste data never got published by the Modi government.

It is not that only that the upper caste Congress leaders are opposed to this policy reorientation of Congress. Even the satraps of the anti-BJP regional parties are not willing to allow space to the Congress, as is being witnessed on the issue of seat-sharing in major states UP, Bihar, Bengal and Maharashtra. These leaders are scared of revival of Congress in a new avatar. They are forcing the Congress to play second fiddle. To some extent, they are right. Ceding space to Congress would endanger their own existence and political survival.

It is also evident that these leaders be vote-getters in their own states, but cannot catch the imagination of the people across the country, without projecting Rahul as the challenger to Modi. No doubt Congress lost Chhattisgarh, MP, Rajasthan, but at the same time it won Karnataka and Telangana on its own. This sends a loud message to the constituents of INDIA bloc, that no one in the opposition has the ability to take the fight straight into the den of the saffron ecosystem other than Rahul. Others are scared of repression by the state machinery, but he is not. He speaks directly on the face while others evade.

Though Modi popularised the sobriquet “Pappu” for Rahul, it was also used by the Congress leaders, surprisingly by those who were close to Sonia Gandhi. In September 2013, Rahul Gandhi during the “Meet-the-Press” programme of Ajay Maken at the Press Club of India had revealed his ideological vision by denouncing as “complete nonsense” the ordinance to shield convicted lawmakers from disqualification. He had announced his emergence as the new ideologue. He had told the nation: "I'll tell you what my opinion on the ordinance is. It's complete nonsense. It should be torn up and thrown away.”

It was the beginning of senior leaders starting to feel insecure, and some of them even confided to Sonia to put a rein on him. Most of the leaders, who are seen opposing Rahul in modern times, had ganged up against him. Since he was the Nehru-Gandhi scion, none dared to oppose him publicly at that point of time. But it gathered momentum once Modi came to power and took charge of the attack.

An insight into his functioning would make it distinctly obvious that Rahul is fighting at two fronts: one inside his party against his own partymen and second against the RSS and saffron ecosystem led by Modi. India’s political institution has probably not witnessed any political leader who has been under such severe glare and scrutiny. In this backdrop, the people of India can rightly expect from leaders like Lalu Yadav, Akhilesh Yadav and Mamata Banerjee to rise above their narrow political gains and embrace Rahul Gandhi as their joint leader. (IPA Service)