When Rahul Gandhi spoke of the plight of poor like Kalavathi and Sasikala in Parliament, he was ridiculed by his opponents. However, his visit was able to change the life of Kalavathi with the result the poor woman aspired to contest the recent Assembly elections. He went further and started visiting the Dalit huts, eating with them and trying to know their problems. He started travelling by train and visiting university campuses, interacting with the young. While some ridicule these as gimmicks, the public seem to like the symbolism.

When Rahul Gandhi entered politics in 2004 and became an M.P, he was a reluctant leader and his critics ridiculed his way of talking, his public utterances and his approach. They felt that he was a novice in politics and was being pushed by his mother Sonia Gandhi to take charge of the party and the country. Rahul has so far stuck to his decision of not joining the government or becoming the Prime Minister. There were some skeptics who believed that he may fail.

However, the path chosen by Rahul Gandhi and his late father Rajiv Gandhi to power are somewhat different. Rajiv Gandhi became the Prime Minister under tragic circumstances after the assassination of his mother Indira Gandhi and remained the PM for five years. He talked of the 21st century and dreamt of a modern India. Rahul Gandhi came into politics in 2004 when the party was in the opposition. He remained an opposition member and confined himself to U.P initially. He took on the regional satraps like Mayawati and Mulayam Singh Yadav. The incredible results of Uttar Pradesh in which no one expected Congress to do so well was not because of any significant or strategic caste calculations but the gamble attempted by Rahul who insisted on the Congress going it alone. The results of Lok Sabha polls have proved that his gamble has paid off.

Why is Rahul Gandhi clicking? First of all he has been able to catch the imagination of the youth who form 70 per cent of the population. They are appreciative of his effort and sincerity.

Secondly, the Gandhi surname has helped him. Thirdly, his strategy to shun power has clicked quite well. In India people appreciate renunciation and Rahul has proved that he is not hankering after power. Many are impressed that instead of becoming the Prime Minister he has chosen to spend his days seeking to help the poor and trying to understand the country. Fourthly, Rahul Gandhi is focused. His main aim is to connect with the people and he is trying to do so in his own way. One may ridicule his idea of spending the night in the hut of a Dalit family but by persisting in this approach, he is able to gain confidence of the poor slowly. Perhaps he has taken a leaf from the life of Mahatma Gandhi that nothing is better than touring the country to get a first hand experience. Fifthly, Rahul is able to vibe well with the youth of this country and trying to connect with them through his interaction in universities.

Also, Rahul has no competitors in politics. Within the party he has been recognised as the heir apparent and there are no challengers. As for the other parties, no one has emerged so far to compete with him. Although his cousin Varun Gandhi could have been a challenger, he has already fizzled out after his so called “hate speech” during the Lok Sabha polls. So his space in the political arena is safe at the moment.

The subjects he has chosen like corruption, nepotism, changing the system and reaching benefits to the poor have also clicked. Even within the party, his bold themes like democratisation of the party, changing the system and the like have brought him cheers.

Moreover, he has made it a point not to involve the Congress party; his visits are his solo efforts. Often his partymen do not even know about his visits until the press reports.

As far as the party is concerned, Rahul has sent a message that he is keen on rebuilding the Youth Congress and the NSUI as he has been given this responsibility. He began recruiting Congressmen and the initial response was quite good but it is not known how much progress has been made by the new recruits. His experiment to give tickets to the youth has also succeeded to a certain extent.

In short, Rahul is trying to create his own constituency. It is said well begun is half done and he appears to have begun well. Time and age are on his side. It is to be seen whether he will be able to get the Congress on its feet by enthusing the youth. His main problem would be to find people with commitment and conviction and not power seekers. When Rajiv Gandhi talked of power brokers at the 1985 AICC, the party was shocked but events proved that he could not get rid of power seekers. Rahul too will face the same problem. The path to power is difficult and he has a long way to go. (IPA Service)