01 Oct 2022  |   05:13am IST

It is ‘friendly fight’ for Congress’ top post

As the Congress works to resolve the Rajasthan crisis amid the race to pick the next party boss, Friday was the last day to file nominations for the top post.

Three senior leaders from Congress are now in fray for the top post of the party which recently has received public bantering during recent elections. Shashi Tharoor, Mallikarjun Kharge and KN Tripathi are in fray to replace Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi (interim chief). Irony is that all these three contesting leaders took the ‘blessings’ of Sonia Gandhi before filing their nomination. The polling will take place on October 17 and votes will be counted two days later.

Even though the party has taken all steps to ensure that the voting will be done in a more ‘transparent’ manner by issuing voters ID card with QR Codes, etc, the expectation among the Congress leaders is that Kharge, who is close to the Gandhi family will ultimately win the race. The ‘drama’ began from Rajasthan, especially when Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot made his intention clear that he wanted to become the President of Congress and also retain his Chief Minister’s seat in Rajasthan. However, his wishes ended up as a damp squib after interim President Sonia Gandhi asked him to continue as Chief Minister.

All the intra party squabbling in not sending the right signals to Congress workers as they all are left divided in group supporting their ‘favourite candidate’ for the Party’s presidential elections. In fact, other names of like Kamal Nath, Sushilkumar Shinde, Mukul Wasnik and Kumari Selja were doing the rounds for the post. Articulate and savvy Kerala MP Shashi Tharoor after filing his nomination mentioned to media that “It is a friendly contest that is going to happen. We are not enemies or rivals. No disrespect to him but I will represent my ideas.”

Earlier former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh had also filed his nomination but withdrew when the name of Mallikarjun Kharge proped up. This is clearly a sign of indecisiveness within the senior leadership of the grand old party. Kamal Nath, also the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh whose government was allegedly toppled in connivance with Singh, told the media that he would focus on upcoming election of his home turf. Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to face assembly polls in 2023.

As Kamal Nath reached Delhi and met Sonia Gandhi, speculations were rife that the senior leader is going to fight for the post. However, decimating all the presumptions, he said, “I will not take this responsibility because this will take away my focus from Madhya Pradesh. I don't want to divert my focus from Madhya Pradesh.” Kamal Nath’s clarity does gives him an edge from other leaders and in coming years he is likely to emerge as even stronger leader in the Party.

No doubt that the significance of Gandhis in Congress will remain even after the president elections as a new role is likely to emerge for the Gandhi family as ‘mentors’. Comparing the internal democracy of Congress with that of Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress leaders have quipped that when JP Nadda became BJP president there was no election, nobody even took the suggestions of even 10 leaders.

For a Party like Congress which is out of power at the Centre, it is very crucial to maintain their strength as many leaders are jumping the fence and joining the ruling BJP. Whosoever emerges as the new president of the Party the first and foremost task will be to keep the flock together and at the same time ensure that the Gandhi family is still relevant in Indian polity.


IDhar UDHAR

Idhar Udhar