Most analysts believe that if Rahul does not cancel his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra journey in time, the Congress will suffer a significant loss even before the general elections start in little over a month’s time. Rahul should return to Delhi soon and reorganize the party structure, giving responsibility to those who can meet with party leaders and workers, listen to their concerns, and find solutions, is the belief. Rahul Gandhi must also understand that the turmoil in the party is entirely the responsibility of the organization’s general secretary, K.C. Venugopal, after him. At the third rung of the ladder is national president Mallikarjun Kharge, who cannot do anything out of his own will. Instead of strengthening the organization, they all are busy cheering for Rahul. The biggest mistake of the Gandhi family was that all three power centers came from the same family. Sonia Gandhi should have retired from politics the day she handed over the responsibility to Rahul in 2013. She continued to advice from behind the curtains.
The daughter, Priyanka, should have stayed away from politics for now. Due to this triangular struggle, the party is in its current situation. Reports of tension between siblings started emerging. The only correct move was made by the organizational general secretary Venugopal, whose experienced politics compensated for everything. Despite losing two general elections and 90% of the elections, no lessons were learned. Sonia Gandhi, who managed the Congress well for two and a half decades, started relying on her inexperienced son and his advisors instead of seeking advice from experienced leaders.
As a result, those who understood politics were sidelined. Rahul reduced his interactions, and the party split into two factions. Leaders started leaving the party, and inexperienced advisors became leaders without public support. Sonia Gandhi remained silent and started following the path suggested by such leaders. Her decision to contest the Rajya Sabha elections was a significant opportunity to distance herself from politics, but she missed it. It is believed to be a wrong decision to refrain from contesting Lok Sabha elections and opting for Rajya Sabha nominations. If it’s only to save the family legacy, BJP will make it a big issue in the elections. It was the right time for Sonia to announce her complete retirement from politics and hand over full responsibility to Rahul. However, for some reason, she didn’t do it. This will result in leaders and workers feeling disillusioned, trying to communicate their concerns but failing to get through. This will further deepen disappointment among the leaders.
Tribal leader Mahendra Jeet Singh Malviya from Rajasthan also left the party in disappointment. Malviya and four to five prominent leaders from his area have been in Delhi for ten days, trying to meet Venugopal, in vain. Rahul is not easily accessible. All hopes rest on Sonia Gandhi, but even she cannot be reached out when needed. This made him to take the decision of joining BJP. Malviya leaving is a setback for the party. Venugopal, a Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan, has complaints against him for not meeting party leaders. Malviya is just one example. Leaders like Ashok Chavan from Maharashtra have also not been given time to meet senior leaders. He even said that the party doesn’t care about elections. This could result in more leaders leaving the Congress. Some big leaders from Rajasthan and Maharashtra might leave soon. In the last three years, the list of those leaving the party has grown long. Milind Deora recently left the party. Before him, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ghulam Nabi Azad, R.P.N. Singh, Jitin Prasada, Amarinder Singh, Sunil Jakhar, and even in Uttarakhand, half of the ministers are former Congress leaders. There are rounds of rumours that suggest that even Kamal Nath and Navjot Singh Sidhu may join the BJP.
Wrong ticket distribution in Rajya Sabha elections has created a crisis for the Congress in the governments of Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh. In Himachal, the party nominated Abhishek Manu Singhvi as its candidate. Instead of selecting former union minister Anand Sharma, who belongs to Himachal, the party strategists opted for Singhvi. The BJP, sensing an opportunity, has fielded former Congress minister Harsh Mahajan against him, adding to Congress’ woes. There is chaos within the party. If due to cross-voting Mahajan wins, it will pose a crisis for the Congress government in the state. However, according to the number of MLAs, Singhvi should win. But the atmosphere can turn around. Similarly, in Karnataka, BJP’s ally JD(S) fielded D.C. Kupendra Reddy, putting the third Congress candidate in trouble. The BJP is testing the waters in these two states. If successful, it’s certain trouble for the Congress governments there. Chandrakant Handore of Congress is stuck in Maharashtra.
The party’s grassroots workers in Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Himachal are unhappy. Many in Rajasthan wanted a Rajya Sabha seat for Dinesh Khodaniya, for which they went to Delhi, but couldn’t meet anyone. After this, Venugopal could have solved the problem by discussing the issue with Malviya and other leaders during Sonia Gandhi’s nomination. But Rahul doesn’t want to leave him alone for a minute. The situation of regional incharges is so bad that they can’t even reach the top leadership. This has created an atmosphere of disappointment within the party.
Everyone is worried about the future. Rahul Gandhi’s situation has reached a point where he can’t understand anything. Sonia Gandhi has turned a blind eye. Leaders and workers feel that Rahul is surrounded by people who are not worried about Congress’ sinking ship. Senior leaders are angry with Rahul’s Nyay Yatra. They say when they should be sitting in Delhi formulating strategies with experienced leaders, they are wandering around. If Rahul doesn’t change his working style, many leaders from several states may join the BJP even before the elections. Congress will lack candidates to contest elections. After all, the leaders sitting at 24 Akbar Road don’t contest elections themselves, but manage to get Rajya Sabha seats. That’s why they don’t let the truth reach Rahul and instead keep him busy.