Congress: At the CROSS roads…
The recent controversy about Salman Khurshid’s comments on current political status and need for their No2 leader to demonstrate bigger role may have caught many eye balls, but the point he raised may be only a tip of the iceberg for the party which is facing challenges on various fronts currently. Today when we see (or at least try and see, since there is little clarity!) the UPA Govt in action, one can figure out that it’s more about the Congress party which seems to be “enjoying” this tiger ride more than anyone else. Its allies are in the best position where they are enjoying power with little accountability and though they are in Govt. they never leave any opportunity to run down the Govt along with opposition on any step which does not “seem pro-masses”. Barring a DMK which had its anxious moments thanks to Telecom scam, allies seem to be enjoying the best of both the World’s, while the Congress seems to be getting the brunt from all the sides!
If we see the political scenario from the public eye, there are quite a few pointers which the grand 127 year old party needs to immediately address or else it is staring a realistic scenario of losing the “Ruling tag” in the near future:
1) No Visible Defined Goal: There seems to be a mess of sorts in terms of Goals, Strategy & Execution. The party seems to be lacking not just a long terms road map but even the short term and midterm goals don’t seem to be in place around which the strategy and execution plans can be woven. As one of the senior party leaders has recently stated, Governance and Politics has got intermingled in such a manner that there is only one thing which is clear: Chaos! Initially the power sharing between the PM and party high command worked well for them, but the recent spats, scams, policy decisions have cast a shadow over the arrangement as to who will plan and who will execute, “How” is a question which hardly reaches the table. Party needs to have a Vision, a Direction towards which it needs to be led as a collective well-knit unit in the interest of all the stakeholders…
2) State of Paralysis: Often we hear only about the lack of economic reforms, but it is more of total lack of reforms: Be it economic, political or administrative which is collectively hurting the Nation. There have been bills including judicial ones which have been pending. Due to scam up roars, even bureaucracy has gone into a freeze not willing to take any action for that matter. If Manmohan Singh getting FM and Pranab being proposed for Rashtrapati Bhawan is considered a move, Sonia may have played a master stroke in not just getting their man as President but also paving way to allow PM to play and direct the Reforms game he is considered to be a master of! Though in this current landscape, it will not be easy even for him.
3) Lost in the politics of Coalition: Opposition seems to acting better than their allies. At least they are clear that they need to oppose! Economic paralysis is something which is hurting everyone and its time Govt gets the political will to score before it gets late. Party seems to be finding light in the maze between TMC, SP, BSP & DMK. Neither these “Allies”, nor the Govt is sure if they are “In” or if they are “Out”. Even after winning 206 seats in 2009, if Congress has to manage such show, one can reckon their state if there tally falls in the next Lok Sabha. Bigger problem is that it does not itself have clarity if it wants to go all alone in future or manage this “Coalition of Opportunism”.
4) Showing the National face or the Regional face? Its centrally controlled leadership under Sonia Gandhi’s iron hand has certainly helped it being stable and having disciplined stock which was not the case in 1990’s, but little local faces have started hurting its fortunes now. Be it UP, Bihar, AP or many other states, at most places it is devoid of strong local leaders. If YSR could ensure 33 seats for them in the last polls in AP, after his tragic demise, going against popular sentiment and not allowing his son to be in the chair is a decision which today will be difficult to justify knowing the YSR Congress monster it is looking at in addition to the Telengana woes and seasoned TDP in the next polls in the state which sent Max. MP’s for it. What it needs to think is if it needs more Sheila Dixit’s to help Center concentrate on bigger challenges.
5) Who is the Leader: Youth OR Experienced? Though parties like SP have seamlessly combined the Youth power with experience of erstwhile leaders, Congress yet seems not to be in sync as there have been murmurs of dissent every time elections come or policy is prepared with experienced lot calling the shots as of now. Though transition is underway, it still would take time before the Youth start leading from the front and come out of the shadows of the elderly. There seems to be a base prepared in terms of second rung youth leaders and the Crore plus IYC membership, but one yet has to see them taking the center stage.
6) History or the Future? Today nearly 65% of the country’s population is less than 35 years of age. This population only relates to Nehru and Indira as historical personalities and now they seem more inclined to see fresh ideas, fresh ideologies corresponding to the current times. So today when Sonia Gandhi seems to be having some undisclosed illness and preparing to pass the baton, Rahul Gandhi would be the face who would be tested by this population. Though there would be a lot of followers he would get, there would be an equal amount of detractors in the crowd who would test him and find empowerment breaking the “dynastic shackles” in their endeavor to see a modern India free from historical references of any sorts. It is here the party needs to clearly learn from its history to strengthen its Present and seek a brighter future for itself and the country!
7) Popular or Practical Policies? Success of MNREGA has given confidence to NAC to go with more such schemes like proposed Food Bill. But seems there heart and mind are not in sync as to which way to go as the mind tells them that the direction of heart is not easy. Moreover 2 things deserve to be given due importance. Firstly the funds which need to be spent for such inclusive programs need to be arranged and current economic paralyses along with shaken investor confidence will not help the cause. Secondly there have been good policies which have been made for ages in India. Where we lack is the Execution. There still seems to be little importance given on that front.
8) To be Corrupt or to be in Opposition? Power corrupts & absolute power corrupts absolutely. After witnessing recent scams, public will be happy they dint give the latter to UPA in 2009. It’s evident that every party which comes to power gets to see the corrupt side of some of its leaders, sometimes less sometimes more. With recent media renaissance and frenzy to highlight happenings, corruption as an issue has become a headache for those in power. If that was not enough, the groups like Anna’s People against corruption have further helped propagate the sentiment of people against the ill. So Congress needs to decide if it prefers to fight corruption charges being in power or fight the Govt by others; after sitting in the opposition!
9) Give us 10 More Years?? One can imagine a BJP or BSP to come to the electorate and ask them to give a term to depict how they could lead the development efforts. But when one hears a Congress leader asking for another “Chance” it seems a joke to say the least. An individual may not be the best judge to figure out if the current state of the nation is good or bad knowing the history where we started 65 years back, but the party which has been at the helm of things for almost 5 decades now forming almost 70 % of the central Govt’s till date should not seek chances from the voters. It should simply talk of its performance: The Good or the Bad is something which needs to be decided! In 2004, they got a chance as they were riding the anti-incumbent wave, but if this time if there has to be one, they will need to tide against it!
10) Self Introspection: Like in recent UP polls, a party leader hinted something which seemed pro-minority, and when it fell flat suddenly they projected themselves to be "truly secular" and "Unbiased". They want to talk about merit, in the same breadth they talk about increased quotas. There are a lot of times we don’t work on the basics while being in complex scenarios. One such basic; which party leaders should currently do is self-introspection to clearly identify What they want, When they want and How they intend to do it. The answers to these simple questions may give them a road map to have answers to more complicated ones!
In this entire dark story there are a few bright spots. Congress as a party has seen all this many times earlier. They have it what it takes to “Manage” this and much more, thanks to their experience! They are masters in turning the tide and have been written off earlier also; only to come back stronger. Lack of a planned, united & strong opposition is another factor allowing it breathing space during crisis. Hopefully even this time there would be seasoned players and think tanks within the party who would be having answers for not just these points but many other obstacles which will come during their bumpy run to 2014. How successful they would be in clearing these points along with more severe opposition assault is something the Janta of the country will decide when they go to vote in 2014.
