The outcome of the Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly elections, where voting took place on Monday, could well determine if the fault lines within the Congress widen further.
The latest round of State elections are not only the first set of elections post the Lok Sabha rout of the party but also one that has been fought under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi.
Under Sonia
She was made the interim party chief after former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi took moral responsibility for the party’s Lok Sabha defeat and stepped down. Almost on cue, several Congress members, perceived to be close to Mr. Gandhi, too, also put in their papers.
But contrary to expectations, none of the senior leaders resigned even though “offers of resignation” were leaked to the media.
In the weeks that followed Mr. Gandhi’s resignation, there was an intense struggle between the veterans and younger leaders.
Privately, several senior leaders cited Mr. Gandhi's “Rafale-centric election campaign” as the reason for failing to connect with voters.
The younger leaders hit back with the counter-argument that the veterans were clinging on to their positions even at the cost of the party.
The tussle that had begun in the Congress’s moment of victory in the Assembly election in 2018 — when seniors like Kamal Nath and Ashok Gehlot edged out younger leaders like Sachin Pilot and Jyotiraditya Scindia after winning Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan — has now reached the next level.
With Ms. Gandhi back in the saddle, the old guard has been proactive in managing party affairs, be it election management or appointing new office-bearers.
Rahul stays aloof
Though Mr. Gandhi did address a few election rallies, he has adopted a hands-off approach that was more than evident when he left for a four-day meditation trip to Cambodia in the middle of the election campaign.
“In the past few years, numerous conspiracies are being hatched to eliminate all those young leaders who have been groomed by Shri Rahul Gandhi in the plast decade and a half,” alleged Ashok Tanwar, a Dalit hand-picked by the former party president, after he was removed as the Haryana Congress Chief.
Other Congress leaders like Sanjay Nirupam and Tripura Pradyot Deb Barman of Maharashtra too made similar allegations. So, if the Congress does not fare well, party veterans are sure to feel the heat and will have to make way for new faces in the next reshuffle expected sooner than later.
