At upcoming Congress plenary, Rahul Gandhi likely to take the nomination route to pick his team

When Rahul Gandhi took over as Congress general secretary in 2007 and was given charge of the Youth Congress and the party’s student wing, the National Students’ Union of India, his main agenda was to usher in inner party democracy.

The Nehru-Gandhi scion used every forum to underline the need to give representation to grassroots workers in the party’s decision-making structures and constantly advocated elections for its various organisations. Wanting to do away with the nomination culture, he made a beginning in this direction by holding internal elections in the Youth Congress and the National Students’ Union of India. Though well-intentioned, the exercise did not serve the purpose for which it was conducted as it only ended up encouraging the use of muscle and money power.

Having taken over as Congress president in December, Rahul Gandhi now has another chance to show he remains serious about ushering in internal democracy. This opportunity will present itself at the All-India Congress Committee session in Delhi on March 16-18 to ratify his appointment as party chief. Rahul Gandhi could choose to walk the talk by calling for elections to the Congress Working Committee, the party’s highest decision-making body.

Of the 24 members of the working committee, 12 have to be elected by the All-India Congress Committee delegates while the remaining are nominated by the Congress president. Except for two occasions in the past when elections were held, the party chief is invariably authorised to nominate all the working committee members on the ground that this ensures representation from all sections, which may not be possible in an election.

‘Why invite trouble?’

Rahul Gandhi may be keen on holding internal elections at the plenary session but, from all accounts, he will emulate his mother and predecessor Sonia Gandhi, who had opted for the nomination route that allowed her to exercise full control over the decision-making body. One reason cited by party leaders for not conducting elections is that the electoral rolls of the All-India Congress Committee delegates are yet to be published while several pradesh committees or state units have not completed the election process. Though the election schedule will be announced during the plenary as per constitutional requirements, it can be expected that delegates attending the session will give their authorisation to the Congress president to choose his team.

While a host of technical reasons have been cited for not going ahead with elections, the real purpose of avoiding this exercise is to ensure Rahul Gandhi’s leadership is not undermined at this early stage of his tenure. “There is no pressing reason for the party to hold internal elections,” said a former Congress minister.

Party leaders pointed out that such elections are undoubtedly healthy for inner party democracy but the decision to proceed with the exercise depends on the prevailing situation in the party.

“The fact is that Rahul Gandhi has just taken over as party president… it is too early to hold the CWC elections,” said a senior Congress office bearer. “Let him settle in first.” According to party leaders, the situation in the party is still very fluid with no one sure about his or her inclusion in Rahul Gandhi’s team. Everyone is in wait-and-watch mode. In such a situation, an election would lead to factionalism, which is uncalled for especially when there are no major signs of groupism in the party, they said. Though Rahul Gandhi faces no serious challenger in the party, there is the possibility that he would be overshadowed by the elected members who would have proved that they too have clout in the organisation. “Why invite trouble?” asked a former Congress minister.

More importantly, it was said, Rahul Gandhi needs time to understand the functioning of the complex organisation and get a firm grip on party affairs, for which he has to first demonstrate that he is capable of winning elections. “Rahul Gandhi made a good beginning in Gujarat,” a senior Congress leader said, referring to the 77 seats the party won in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly in December, which cut down the Bharatiya Janata Party’s victory margin. “If he can ensure a victory for the Congress first in Karnataka and later this year in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, his hold on the party will be complete,” the leader added.

The exceptions

Congress leaders recalled that though PV Narasimha Rao had taken over as prime minister when he opted for elections to 10 seats in the working committee in 1992 at the Tirupati session, the exercise had resulted in the victory of senior leaders such as Arjun Singh and Sharad Pawar who were leaders in their own right. Realising the elected leaders would necessarily be more assertive, the politically-savvy Rao asked these members to resign on the ground that the working committee did not have sufficient representation from the weaker sections, Dalits and women. Rao subsequently inducted the winners as nominated members.

Similarly, when Sitaram Kesari opted for internal polls at the Kolkata plenary in 1997, the election was marked by bitter factional battles that eventually resulted in the victory of Kesari baiters such as Arjun Singh, Rajesh Pilot and Sharad Pawar.