As Rahul Gandhi readies to take charge of Congress, he assures old guard they will not be sidelined

As Rahul Gandhi prepares to take over the reins of the Congress, the Nehru-Gandhi scion assured senior party members that they will not be sidelined and will be given their due place in the new dispensation.

Gandhi held out this assurance in the course of a question-answer session following his valedictory address at the 112th annual session of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Thursday, where he used the occasion to train his guns at Prime Minister Modi for his mishandling of the economy and extended his party’s full support to small and medium enterprises which, he said, have been severely hit by the government’s policies.

Replying to a question on the induction of young faces in the party, Rahul Gandhi maintained that though the Congress will give greater representation to younger leaders, it will take the support of the wisdom of its seniors. The Congress vice-president said that having interacted with leaders like Manmohan Singh, Pranab Mukherjee and P.Chidambaram, he realised that there is “important value” to somebody with such a wealth of experience. “There is great value to experience,” he reiterated.

The Congress vice-president’s speech was predictably focused on the economy, the adverse fall-out of demonetisation and the scrappy implementation of the Goods and Services Tax. However, his brief but positive comment on Congress senior leaders is bound to be heard and followed closely by the party’s old guard, which has been worried that they will be marginalised once Rahul Gandhi puts his own team in place.

Sinking morale

In fact, the Congress old guard, known for its proximity to party president Sonia Gandhi, has been resisting any changes in the organisational set-up ever since she handed over her responsibilities to Rahul Gandhi. An organisational revamp was promised three years ago when the Congress suffered a humiliating defeat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. As the party’s morale hit an all-time low, the rank and file expected the Congress leadership to take quick remedial measures to restore its lost credibility and revive its fortunes. The cadres hoped that as a first step in this direction, the Congress would infuse fresh blood in the organisation and retire those senior leaders who, it was believed, were responsible for bringing the party to such a sorry pass. What followed was a prolonged power tussle between Sonia Gandhi’s loyalists, who feared their marginalisation, and those close to Rahul Gandhi who were clearly impatient for a change.

As a result, the organisational changes and Rahul Gandhi’s elevation were continuously put off. Even when the Congress vice-president did appoint his nominees, he had to make the changes very carefully and in stages so as to soften the blow. On one hand, he brought in his own nominees like Avinash Pande, KC Venugopal and RPN Singh and on the other he also drafted seniors like Ashok Gehlot and Sushil Kumar Shinde in the organisation.

However, the tug-of-war still continues. For instance, the long-awaited replacement of Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Arun Yadav has still to come through. It is learnt to be delayed due to pressure exerted by senior leaders Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh, who have teamed up to stall Jyotiraditya Scindia’s appointment to the post.

Nevertheless, the old guard has resigned itself to Rahul Gandhi’s imminent elevation. However, even as they admit that they have no choice but to accept the Nehru-Gandhi scion as the next Congress chief, there is also fear among the seniors that they will be overlooked in Rahul Gandhi’s team.

On his part, Rahul Gandhi was at his diplomatic best while responding to the question on the induction of young leaders in the Congress. However, he was his usual combative self when he launched a scathing attack on Modi while taking potshots at finance minister Arun Jaitley for the current economic slowdown. Gandhi used the platform provided by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry to pitch himself as Modi’s challenger. The very fact that he was invited by the PHD chamber to deliver the valedictory address at its annual function and that Rahul Gandhi’s remarks were applauded by the audience, should be heartening news for all those in the Congress who have doubts about the Nehru-Gandhi scion’s acceptability as a serious and credible leader.

Capitalising on disappointment

Rahul Gandhi took a leaf from the Prime Minister’s playbook, describing the current state of the economy as a “Modi-made disaster” and the present form of GST as “computerised licence raj”. Taking a jibe at this government’s aversion to dissent and debate, Rahul Gandhi remarked that “Start Up India” should not become “Shut Up India”.

Continuing with the party’s strategy to woo the owners of small and medium-sized industries, Rahul Gandhi described them as the real drivers of economy and assured them of the Congress party’s full support if it came to power. The corporate sector as well as small enterprises had deserted the Congress and publicly backed the Bharatiya Janata Party and Modi in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Sensing that this sector is disillusioned with the ruling party because of its economic policies and the complicated GST structure, the Congress leader is making strenuous efforts to reach out to them.

Stating that the only force capable of meeting China’s challenge is small and medium enterprises, Rahul Gandhi asserted, “We will ensure you all get dignity; your troubles are India’s troubles. Your successes will drive India forward.”