Rahul ‘RE-ORIENTED’

The Congress unveils a revised and enlarged edition of Rahul Gandhi who would soon take the mantle from his mother

Rahul Gandhi treks the foothills of Himalayas to offer prayers at the holy shrine. Congress circles link crown prince’s long and mysterious absence to deep meditation. On his return, much to the dismay of his own comrades, the ‘snoring’ Rahul is roaring in Parliament and outside. There seems to be a frantic bid to connect to all those sections of society which the grand old party deserted in the past few decades. Immediately after the great debacle of 2014, Congress men felt that the party has gained precious little from minority appeasement. The damage was much graver as the Rahul was pitted against Modi riding a hardline Hindutva wave.

The prayers and meditation talk is certainly aimed at connecting to the Hindu populace who feel ditched by the party. As Modi glamour wears out, Rahul wants to occupy that space perhaps, toeing a soft Hindutva. Perhaps he has diligently read pages from his father Rajiv Gandhi’s political biography. Rajiv opened the gates of disputed Ram Janma Bhoomi - Babri Masjid structure and started his election campaign from the temple town of Ayodhya. Simultaneously, his government surrendered to Muslim fundamentalists to undo the Shah Bano judgment that was a slap on the face of religious orthodoxy. Rahul seems to be consciously treading the same path.

This is perhaps what reinvention means for the patriarchal political formation of India. Meanwhile, despite a history of allowing loot of public resources by private lobbies in coal scam to spectrum sales, Rahul is accusing Modi government of hobnobbing with corporates. The authors of free market are talking the language of the Left. This is perhaps returning to Indira Gandhi’s era of late 60s. So Rahul is assiduously drawing lessons from the experiences of his father and grandmother. For someone who remained passive to observe an eerie silence when netizens across India were swelling the streets on issues ranging from Nirbhaya to Lokpal, he is now talking loudly in defence of net neutrality.

This is a conscious effort to connect to the youth which is politically indispensable in a country that enjoys demographic dividend. Rahul is also planning to go on Bharat Darshan to champion the interests of farmers. An average politician in India firmly believes that people will forget and forgive as public memory is short lived. As the Chai wallah turns to a million worth suit and boot, the Congress man born with a silver spoon in his mouth is championing the cause of the proletariat. The Congress unveils a revised and enlarged edition of Rahul Gandhi who would soon take the mantle from his mother. With the CPI (M) deciding to go to its basics, Rahul-led Congress going back to Nehru-Indira idiom of egalitarianism, the Indian polity is to witness a class war at least in political diction.