Author:
Publication: Outlook
Date: December 22, 2003
Outlook put together a list of proposals
for the party to consider and then asked intellectuals across the country
for their views
The rout in the assemblies has changed
the complexion of national politics and sent the Congress into the doldrums.
The party needs to reinvent itself if it hopes to challenge the BJP in
the 2004 general elections. Outlook put together a list of proposals for
the party to consider and then asked intellectuals across the country for
their views. The most vital question pertains to Sonia Gandhi's position.
Should she remain party president but declare that she is not in the race
for prime ministership? Then, she would avoid an Atal-Sonia contest. Besides,
renunciation has always appealed to the Indian psyche. Forging alliances
is the other big Congress failure. Should the party now be prepared to
cede space in states where there are potential electoral allies? Should
the Congress overhaul its party structure? The Congress Working Committee
(CWC) continues to be packed with leaders incapable of winning an election.
And what of Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi? Should they come forward to help
their troubled mother? Or is the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty at the heart of the
party's troubles?
Ashis Nandy Writer and sociologist,
Delhi
Renunciation by Sonia will democratise
the Congress. I believe Sonia is a liability not because of the foreigner
issue -that is a problem only for a very marginal section of society. The
real problem is that the dynasty handicaps the party. The Congress can't
get allies because of the dynasty. And they can't create individuals like
Pramod Mahajan or Arun Jaitley who are driven by the ambition of making
it to the top. Since the Congress is not open to competitive politics,
young talented people no longer join the party. And the talent within sees
no reason to work for the party. Of course, the Congress should cede space
to allies and realise that the days of an absolute majority are gone. Yet
the Congress record in building alliances remains very poor because the
decision-making remains in the hands of individuals with no base of their
own. Individuals like Digvijay Singh and Ashok Gehlot should be accommodated
at the national level-they are better than those in the CWC. What base
does an Ambika Soni have? The bane of the Congress is that the dynasty
is fearful of individuals with a popular base. Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi
should campaign without seeking office. And the party must raise issues
of unemployment and the marginalised sections-the peasants, the SCs and
STs. There have been 25,000 farmer suicides during BJP rule. A healthy
Opposition should have been able to capitalise on that.
Dipankar Gupta Sociology Professor,
JNU, New Delhi
If Sonia were to step back it would
revive the Congress. But she won't do it because it will be political harakiri
for her and her children. The party can't get allies as long as Sonia is
there. Why should Sharad Pawar or Mulayam Singh help Sonia? They have ambitions
for the top job themselves. They hate Sonia because of the dynasty that
blocks everyone else from aspiring for the number one slot. But I have
done studies that show that the Congress would have won half the seats
even in Gujarat if alliances were sewn up. But they simply don't know how
to handle allies. Today, the Congress has nothing positive to offer, no
vision, no programme. As for Sonia's children, I believe that women are
more acceptable than men as heirs, so Priyanka could make a difference.
But again it would be perpetuating the dynasty.
Kancha Ilaiah, Political Science
Professor, Osmania University, Hyderabad
If Sonia Gandhi were to cut her
hair and wear jeans, most ordinary Indians would have no problems with
it. Sonia should not shy away from her foreign origins and Christian identity
because most ordinary Indians have no problems with that.She is being misled
by the old Brahmin-Baniya coterie around her. It is this same old guard
that is misguiding her about aligning with parties with caste-based ideologies.
Sonia Gandhi is not a scholar politician and given her background, she
lacks historical knowledge of Indian politics. As a result, the coterie
has led her to believe that caste politics is bad. New alliances are key
to the survival of the Congress.
Harsh sethi, Senior Editor, Seminar,
New Delhi
The future of the Congress is very
bleak. It is far too simplistic to analyse their situation only in terms
of leadership change or whether they should focus on micro-management of
elections, like the BJP. The deeper analysis would be to see why the party
behaves like a private limited company in which everyone is looking to
protect his or her feudal interests. It doesn't function as a cohesive
unit. The results of the present elections should not surprise anyone who
has observed the party's decline for quite some time. The Congress has
still not come out of the steel age while the country has moved on to the
electronic age.
Achyut Yagnik, Political scientist,
Ahmedabad
Just changing the top leadership
will not make much of a difference. The Congress today has been reduced
to a mere election fighting machine and is no longer a political party.
There is virtually no organisation left at the grassroots. That is why
the party no longer raises issues that affect its traditional votebanks
like the tribals and Dalits. It has become elitist. This is because Sonia
is surrounded by a kitchen cabinet full of people who have no political
base. One instance is Ahmed Patel, who can't win an election from Gujarat
but calls the shots in Delhi. A complete overhaul is required. The party's
frontal organisations are virtually defunct. One hardly hears about the
Seva Dal, the Youth Congress or the Mahila Congress. Contrast this with
the Sangh parivar organisations that have penetrated down to the village
level.
Chunibhai Vaidya, Gandhian, Ahmedabad
Like the NDA at the Centre, the
Congress must rustle up a workable coalition. And this is not possible
with Sonia Gandhi aiming for prime ministership. She shouldn't waste time
in announcing that she is not in the race. Another thing which ails the
Congress today is the absence of an efficient propaganda machinery. The
party has let the voters get misguided by the BJP's communal agenda and
is now paying a heavy price for this.
Dilip Chitre, Marathi writer, Mumbai
It will help if Sonia Gandhi says
she doesn't want to be prime minister. She should say she will only be
the party president. If Rahul and Priyanka want to enter politics, they
should work for the party first and not seek office. Sycophancy, a darbar
culture and the lack of internal democracy is the real problem. Everyone
in the Congress is a small or big entrepreneur. Because power has been
vested in a small elite, the Congress is no longer in touch with the people.
We are a politically over- drugged country. There are so many different
parties reaching out to different sections now. The Congress today does
not offer people anything that the others don't. It has lost touch with
the real issues of the masses.
Alyque Padamsee, Media consultant,
Mumbai
I don't have a problem with Sonia
Gandhi's foreign origin on principle but feel she has faltered in setting
out a clear agenda or goal. These elections were fought on the issue of
development and the Congress lost because of anti- incumbency and because
today the party has an image problem. The BJP benefited from their mastery
of spin and handling of the media. I think now everyone has two lives,
one is their real life and the other is the one they lead in the media.The
media now dictates elections so it is extremely important to manage it.
You can address a few thousands in an election rally but reach millions
in a few minutes on TV. The Congress must learn to use the media better.
It should get a communications director.
Dr Sabyasachi Basu Ray Choudhury,
Professor, Rabindra Bharati University, West Bengal
I do not think Sonia should step
down as elections are too close and changing horses midway can be disastrous.
But alliances are vital and the Congress should realise that if the BJP
manages to improve its tally, it will be difficult for the Congress to
stage a comeback. I don't think it is a bad idea to introduce Priyanka
Gandhi in the campaign, but not as a supreme leader. I don't know whether
she is the trumpcard for the Congress but she is a crowd-puller: people
see Indira in her and that can only be an asset. She will also attract
the younger voter. The Congress should also realise that there is no soft
Hindutva-it can only be hard.
Dr Razi ahmed, Director, Gandhi
Sangrahalay, Patna
Though renunciation appeals to
the Indian psyche, it is something which has no place in politics today.
But members of the CWC having no popular base should be removed in the
interest of the party. Senior leaders like Digvijay Singh and Ashok Gehlot
must not be written off. The Congress must go in for alliances at the national
level. A national alliance with the BSP can really help the Congress. The
party must also tap issues like rising unemployment and develop a team
of star campaigners like the BJP. Priyanka and Rahul must stay away from
politics. Enough is enough!
