The elusive resurrection route for Congress

Changes in the organisation are the need of the hour. We need to change our style of working is what every Congress man including AICC president Sonia Gandhi said. The three-day brain storming session at Udaipur began with the idea of bringing organisational reforms, fix timelines and assign responsibilities.

The party general secretary Ajay Maken hinted that there would be major organisational changes. But the trillion-dollar question is will there be a change in the leadership? Will anyone other than the family member be asked to lead the party?

If the mood of the partymen is any indication, the quest for resurrection of the party is missing. When the issue of leadership would come up, 99 per cent of the participants will reiterate their demand for Rahul Gandhi to take over as the party chief. At the most the party may go in for some cosmetic changes.

For anyone who knows the way the party functions, it is difficult nay impossible to make any big changes in the party. Yes, some drama may be enacted which would be used to drum up support for making Rahul as AICC president. Any honest discussion on the leadership crisis would require serious "chintan" which perhaps is a bit too much to expect from Congress party.

If that happens the Chintan Shivir apparently would not make much of difference in the functioning of the party. The party after its decimation in 2014 has been led by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Did it make any impact in cornering the NDA government or did it succeed in improving its strength politically? The answer is clear 'No'.

On the other hand it has lost some of the states which it was ruling. We have seen that Rahul Gandhi could not make any impact on the electoral politics. All state units continue to be riddled with infighting. The young and second line leadership has not been encouraged in the party. Now they say those below 50 will be given some responsibility. But what measures it would take to ensure that the below 50 get a free hand to show their abilities is the big question.

The failure of the Congress party has emboldened Modi to say, "I am made of different mettle and I will continue to serve the country," meaning that he is the face of BJP during 2024 elections and would be exempted from retirement though he would be 73 years old.

The timing the leadership chose for the session - amid the Congress organisational election process - is intriguing. The next Congress president is due to be elected by August-September and he/she would assume charge at an AICC plenary alongside new CWC-AICC teams. Under normal circumstances, the new team could have hosted the 'brain-storming session'.

If the party goes in for cosmetic changes and feels that it had done kayakalp of the party, it would prove to be another major disaster. Day one of the three-day Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir at Udaipur instead of indulging in introspection and discussing implementable action plan focussed on lashing at the Modi government. There is nothing new in its observations.

What is required is to first admit that the Congress party had faltered in setting its house in order and then discuss what repairs it needs. On one hand the AICC president said that they would implement one person one ticket per family but then they came up with a rider and introduced a clause for second ticket from the family.

The big question is why this rider? Is it to ensure that one ticket each for Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and two from Vadra family? This is what the analysts feel. Why not simply say that only one family one ticket on merit basis?

Unless the party gives up the attitude of wavering and takes firm decisions, gives clear cut message to the rank and file, any number of such Shivirs cannot resurrect the party.

The grand old party needs to probe deep into the reasons for its failures and come with new practical strategies only then it can be ready for the 2024 elections. Making statements that no front minus Congress can work would make no sense. It will only help BJP because neither the Congress nor the regional party or parties are in a position to generate confidence among the voters that they can be a better alternative to the BJP government, though that is the need of the hour.

In her presidential address, Sonia Gandhi urged Congress leaders to debate with an open mind and express their views openly, Sonia Gandhi said changes in the Congress organisation were the need of the hour and the meeting was about "chintan on national issues as well as meaningful aatmachintan on the organisation".

If at least this can happen, then one can say with some confidence that Congress is on the path of revival. But Congress men being what they are, believe in drumming support for the family and will raise slogans 'Rahul ji aap sangarsh karo.' "Hum kya karenge," they will not say. Once the vital issues are conveniently skirted, the rest is simple. It involves twisting of phrases to spin a grand narrative of 'organisational electoral strategy reforms' and wind up the Chintan Baithak.

Any Sangarsh should be with unity which can never be found in Congress. Let's take the example of the recent visit of Rahul Gandhi to Warangal and the much-hyped Warangal declaration. What happened, he came, he spoke, he left and after that all seniors are silent.

He asked the rank and file to go to people and see that the declaration gets registered in their mind. But there has no such effort in that direction so far. Internal dissensions continue. At the national level the G-23 came up with several solutions to revive the party. This even Sonia Gandhi and Rahul did not like and none of the group's suggestions were taken into consideration. Congress thinks it is fighting the government. But any battle sans strategy or does not have a disciplined army cannot win.

If the Congress really expects good results from the Chintan Shivir it should ensure that discipline is restored in the party, youngsters are encouraged and it should also go in for a genuine and proper election of a new party president not the selection based election which has been the practice for over a century.

Dynamism and new look is important. Take the example of Cadbury's chocolate. It's also very old but still very popular because of new marketing strategies, new packing, new flavours and new slogans.

Similarly, the Congress also needs to reinvent itself with a new team of leadership which can show its dynamism (if allowed), new set of rules and shedding the baggage if need be by retiring some of its senior leaders.

The Congress for a change accepted that the party's opponents have been faster than the Congress in catching up with the new tools of democracy. "Now the party will use the new tools of democracy more efficiently." Let us hope they really mean it.

All eyes are on what Rahul Gandhi would say on May 15. The unfortunate aspect is that he thinks that he is delivering a speech full of punches that would make the ruling BJP hang its head in shame. One would really wish that he gets script writers who can give him such speeches. His speeches so far could not stir the rank and file and regain even an inch of the lost political ground.

Notwithstanding the official narrative, the Congress Chintan Shivirs and setting its house in order, there is no point in talking about communal polarisation, Centre-State relations, forming of alliances, inflation, unemployment and privatisation of profitable public sector undertakings (PSUs), internal security, the government's silence on the border face-off with China, the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, and minimum support price for farmers. It will only turn out to be another three-day mela or a three day outing for 400 party leaders.

Amidst this background, the Congress needs to brace for the larger tasks of fighting off the new politics that the BJP has unleashed on it even as powerful regional parties are challenging the Gandhi's-led Congress' right to be the pivot of anti-BJP national politics. Congress should at least now realise that it will be tested on its ability to deal with the thickening political war clouds which as of now seems to be beyond their capacity.