Enter Sonia - The Hindustan Times
Editorial
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10 May 1997
Title : Enter Sonia
Author : Editorial
Publication : The Hindustan Times
Date : May 10, 1997
It will not be an exaggeration to say that Mrs Sonia Gandhi's entry into the
Congress is an event of enormous significance for the party. After the tragic
assassination of her husband, there has not been any comparable occasion with the
potential of making such an impact on the organisation. Considering that the
Congress remains even in its present not very robust state a crucial player on the
political scene, there is little doubt that the fallout from Mrs Sonia Gandhi's
formal ,political debut will be widely felt at the national level as well. One
immediate effect will obviously be the rejuvenation of t e party, which has been
virtually moribund since the 1989 defeat. Neither the five-year stint in power
from 1991 nor the present assertive role at the Centre has been sufficient to
breathe life into it. The party seemed to lack a focus largely because of the
absence of a figure who could arouse loyalty and enthusiasm. It is too early to
say how successfully Mrs Sonia Gandhi will be able to fulfil this role, but there
is little doubt that her presence in the organisation will make much more of a
positive impact than that of almost any other leader at present. In any event,
her entry only formalises what was always a known fact-that she was a person who
wielded considerable influence on the party and to whom many Congressmen looked
for guidance. Now she will be a figure of authority within the party rather than
outside.
Notwithstanding the boost which the Congress will receive, so far as its internal
organisational structure is concerned, her entry cannot but create a certain
imbalance. After all, no one will be able to pretend that she is an ordinary
member. As a result, the party president's post will lose some of its importance.
But this is a problem to which the congress is not unused. After all, throughout
much of its history, the Congress ,has been a party of heavyweights and accustomed
to functioning with more than one centre of power. How it accommodates Mrs Sonia
Gandhi within the hierarchy is its own business. The problems for her will really
be from outside. So far she has led a sheltered existence, away from public gaze.
Now she will be in the full glare of publicity. Her every move and every
utterance will be closely scrutinised. Mrs Sonia ,Gandhi cannot be unaware that
Indian politics is not a place for the fainthearted. It is an arena where almost
no holds are barred. She will have to cope, therefore, with much that she has not
faced so far, including personal attacks. But having made, the choice, she must
be prepared for all this and also hopeful of success. She must be acutely
conscious, too, of the fact that she represents a great legacy with which India's
struggle for freedom and emergence into a proud democracy are inextricably linked.
