Rahul Gandhi’s entry into parliamentary politics in 2004 proved auspicious for Congress.
Rahul Gandhi is the first member of his family during whose time Congress is in opposition at the Center for the third consecutive time. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru remained in power until his death in 1964. Indira Gandhi faced the only defeat of 1977. He returned in the next elections in 1980. Rajiv Gandhi was out of power in 1989. In 1991, Congress returned to power again. However, due to his tragic demise even before the election results, P.V. Narasimha Rao became the Prime Minister. The situation of Indira ji and Rajiv was different in that the rivals who ousted them from power scattered before the next contest. The challenge before Rahul Gandhi is more difficult because his rivals Narendra Modi and BJP come forward in every contest with more strength and expansion than the previous one. On the occasion of his birthday, a look at the political journey of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
Rahul Gandhi’s entry into parliamentary politics in 2004 proved auspicious for Congress. In this election, Rahul Gandhi was elected to the Lok Sabha from Amethi for the first time. In the gap of three Lok Sabha elections, Congress got the opportunity to lead the UPA 1 government in this election. In 2009, Congress once again performed better. Even after victory, Sonia Gandhi had rejected the offer of the post of Prime Minister. Rahul Gandhi could have taken this place. But the decision of the family and Rahul was in favor of Dr. Manmohan Singh.
In reality U.P.A. During the ten years of the government, Rahul avoided taking any direct responsibility. In the few years of his first term in the Lok Sabha, he limited himself to Amethi-Rae Bareli. On some occasions he was heard saying that he was still learning. Whenever Dr. Manmohan Singh invited him to join the government, he rejected it. But on 27 September 2013, such an occasion came when the reality was publicly demonstrated that even though Rahul may not be in the government, it is not possible to ignore him. Then Rahul Gandhi suddenly arrived at Ajay Maken’s press conference and termed it as nonsense and tore the ordinance which had banned the immediate disqualification of MPs and MLAs convicted by the court. After a lot of embarrassment, the Manmohan government withdrew this ordinance.
Rahul Gandhi’s entry into parliamentary politics was in 2004. Photo: PTI
The face of the party upon entry
As an MP, Rahul Gandhi spent his first ten years preparing to fight. This will not be considered a big time for the political journey of an ordinary MP. But as soon as Rahul entered active politics, he was considered the biggest face of Congress. These were ten years of the party’s government.
Meanwhile, Rahul could have worked hard to create an atmosphere in favor of the party through the government and organization. But he took over the responsibility of the election campaign in 2014 when U.P.A. Along with the failures of the government for ten years, Congress was continuously shrinking amidst the growing support base of BJP in various states and the rise of regional parties. Since then he has remained the face of the party. In the 2014, 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections fought under his leadership, Congress got 44, 52 and 99 seats respectively.
three consecutive defeats in leadership
Till now, Rahul has unsuccessfully led the party’s election campaign in three Lok Sabha elections. He has not been able to show any charisma even in the state elections. For the salvation of Congress, it is necessary for BJP to go out of power. The problem is that this is not possible with the current strength of Congress alone. In the 2024 elections, the opposition alliance had restricted BJP to 240. Congress was boosted by reaching 99 seats as compared to 52 seats in 2019. But after this, BJP recovered from the shock of Lok Sabha election results by registering a strong victory in the assembly elections of Maharashtra, Haryana, Delhi, Bihar and West Bengal.
Rahul Gandhi amid one stop of India Jodo Nyay Yatra. Photo: PTI
On the other hand, the strength of Congress and its alliance partners further decreased. Rahul’s problem is that when the alliance partners are in power, they have objections to the leadership of Rahul and Congress. On the other hand, Congress is not in a position to counter BJP alone.
Vigilant allies only in the center
The scenario after the 2024 elections is not encouraging for the Congress. The rise of Congress in this election alerted its Indi alliance partners more than the BJP. The strengthening of Congress is a matter of concern not only for BJP but also for regional allies of Congress. In some cases, this is more likely to raise concerns among allies than the BJP. In fact, regional parties have strengthened themselves at the expense of the Congress in many states. Muslim votes have a big contribution in his strength. This vote bank joins that party which can stop BJP.
The strengthening of Congress will mean the return of Muslim votes to it. His turn may also attract other anti-BJP voters towards Congress. Why would the regional parties occupying this vote bank in their states want to take this risk? They become allies of Congress in the Lok Sabha elections because only limited participation is possible for them in power at the Centre. To achieve this, Congress’s cooperation and compromise on seats does not seem to be a loss-making deal. But the question of share in the states is complex, due to which unity cannot be maintained.
Many times Rahul Gandhi’s efforts became a joke. Photo: Rajya Sabha
Rahul’s style becomes a joke
To be strong at the Centre, Congress needs to be strong in the states. Congress is searching for its old strength. The party cannot rely only on the Lok Sabha elections. But as soon as its campaign in the states begins, the alliance partners start taking different paths. This is seen everywhere during state elections and by-elections. It is not one-sided either.
Where Congress is in direct competition with BJP, it wants to fight alone. On the other hand, regional powers want to limit Congress to a symbolic stake in the states under their influence. The final decisions in Congress are taken by Rahul. Even if there is disagreement on any question, the party follows them.
But their problem is that once they catch a line, they repeat it so much that people stop taking it seriously. His slogan of ‘Chowkidar Chor’ ultimately became a joke. Same was the condition of Adani-Ambani and Rafale. No matter how many voices were raised in favor of caste-wise census, the same questions were raised that who had stopped you from doing this when your government was in power? At present, the slogan of vote theft and election theft is on their lips. This style of Rahul may be liked by his supporters but even the allies do not support Congress on these issues beyond a certain limit.
The election results are repeatedly proving Rahul a failure. Photo: PTI
waiting for charisma
Congress won a huge majority in the first three elections fought under the leadership of Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru. Under the leadership of Indira Gandhi, Congress won on three out of four occasions. Rajiv Gandhi, the third generation of the family, had set a record of winning 414 seats in 1984, surpassing all previous results. But after this, the party’s defeat and the aura of the Nehru-Gandhi family started diminishing.
In 1991, 2004 and 2009, the party’s governments depended on the support of others. Since the 1998 elections, Sonia Gandhi tried to take over the party which was rapidly losing its support base. His being of foreign origin was coming in the way at every step. Still, the seats won under his leadership defeated the UPA government at the Center in 2004 and 2009. Congress was given a chance to lead the governments. After Rahul’s coming forward, the party is no longer facing the question of leadership crisis. The crisis and challenge is for Rahul to prove himself capable. The condition for the party to regain its lost support base is that the leadership should be so charismatic that its presence and hard work breathe life into the organization. His name and work cast a spell on the voters. Make the ruling party voiceless among the voters. These issues are decided in elections. The election results are repeatedly proving Rahul a failure.
Challenge to cherish your family
It is not that Rahul is not working hard. Even after the defeat in the Lok Sabha or assembly elections of many states, he is continuously aggressive towards Narendra Modi and BJP. But sometimes he is seen trying to rejuvenate the organization and sometimes he gets stuck. On one hand, it fills enthusiasm among the leaders and workers. On the other hand, complaints of difficulty meeting them are common. After the 2019 elections, Rahul resigned from the post of party president. All efforts to convince him failed. He was also adamant that the president would be from outside the Gandhi family.
After Rahul’s coming forward, the party is no longer facing the question of leadership crisis. Photo: PTI
Sonia Gandhi remained in office as acting president for the next three years. Then Mallikarjun Kharge was made the president. Rahul kept his promise. The president was chosen from outside the family. But no one doubts that Rahul has the final say on every important question related to the party. Many well-known faces of the party have meanwhile left the party. More people are broken than joined. Those who left were considered greedy for power. Many may have gone to other camps for this very reason. But the chief is expected to have the skills to keep the clan together in bad times. The question is not just about Rahul’s ability. The question is also that what efforts were made by Rahul to satisfy or resolve those who had or have complaints?
Long walks, still power is far away
He is the first member of the Gandhi family to make two big trips in less than a year before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to regain the lost ground of the party. For the first time, it was a padyatra of 3570 kilometers in 136 days. It passed through 12 states and 2 union territories. For the second time, he took the help of bus to cover a distance of 6713 kilometers in 15 states within 67 days. In between they also walked on foot. For the first time, Rahul traveled from Kanyakumari in the south to Srinagar in the north.
The second time the yatra started from Manipur in the east and ended in Mumbai in the west. For the first time he reached among the public with the name of “Bharat Jodo Yatra”. The second time its name was “Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra”. Whatever may be the name of a politician’s journey, its achievements are judged only through election results. These visits gave the message that Rahul is now ready to compete seriously. The morale of party leaders and workers also increased. The seats increased in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but it got stuck at 99.
indispensable for party
Congress is looking for Sanjeevani. The mandatory condition is that this Sanjeevani should be found from among the Gandhi family only. Sonia has given her best. Priyanka became active in Amethi and Rae Bareli since 1999. After 20 years, in 2019, she became formally active in politics. Took the responsibility of Uttar Pradesh as the General Secretary of the party. She was considered the party’s trump card. But could not show any charisma. Now he is with his brother in Parliament also. Sonia is in Rajya Sabha. But the real command is in the hands of Rahul only. In three consecutive elections, the fight between BJP and Congress was reduced to Narendra Modi versus Rahul. This is suitable for BJP. BJP pulls and Rahul reaches its pitch and competes with Modi. Its scenes are visible from Lok Sabha proceedings to meetings and rallies. Even during foreign tours, he leaves no opportunity to attack Modi and his government. Rahul believes in fighting. they are fighting. Voters can decide anything. His leadership for the party is unquestionable and indispensable.
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