Challenges galore for the Congress president.
NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge is likely to constitute his long-awaited new team next week. In fact, it continues to be a tough and challenging job for Kharge to carry out this exercise.
He could not announce his new team earlier because of the Bharat Jodo Yatra and some state Assembly elections. Who should be in and who should be out? This is the real challenge for Kharge. Undeniably, Kharge is dependent on former Congress president Rahul Gandhi for any big changes he intends to make. It seems the Gandhi scion is calling the shots even now.
Needless to say, General Secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and K.C. Venugopal are the most powerful leaders after Rahul Gandhi in the Congress. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is looking to establish herself at the national level. It will be interesting to see whether Priyanka Gandhi Vadra continues to be in-charge of UP or she is given some other responsibility. She is unlikely to remain UP in-charge, given the party’s miserable performance so far in the largest Hindi belt state under her supervision. She is focusing more on the states where Congress is hopeful of wins. Congress’ poll prospects are apparently good in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh where elections will be held this year end. Telangana will also go to polls this year. If Congress works on an effective strategy in these states, it will have fair chances to score victories. The “victory” in these three states will definitely help Congress in the Lok Sabha polls next year. Congress, in fact, needs to control its motor-mouth leaders and avoid politics of appeasement.
For this to be a reality, Kharge needs to constitute a team of efficient leaders. The leaders who could recharge cadres and functionaries need to be brought in. Kharge should have a group of leaders who do not avoid meeting workers, and who listen to the problems of the workers. Venugopal may be a Gandhi family loyalist, but he is not fit for the general secretary post. Kharge rather needs a Hindi speaking leader as general secretary as in charge of organisation. In fact, the practice and tradition of listening to the workers is nowhere to be seen in the Congress over the last few years. It is not easy even for the senior leaders to get a hearing from Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, let alone the workers. Rahul Gandhi’s team is so influential that the leaders have to meet its members first before reaching the Gandhi scion. This is also one of the reasons for the party’s poor condition. Kharge has also not been regular in the office at the party headquarters.
The decisions taken at Udaipur and Raipur sessions for strengthening the Congress are unlikely to be implemented. The party has been high on rhetoric in terms of reservation for the backward and women in the organisation. But it was hardly ever implemented. The constitution of the new team is not also expected to see the implementation of reservation. However, the party needs to send out a message that something new has happened. Another challenge for Kharge is to recharge the frontal organisations. Mahila Congress and Sewa Dal are almost non-functional. B.V. Sriniwas is seen struggling alone in the youth wing of Congress. Mahila Congress has no permanent president, with even workers not around.
Congress has suffered because of the existence of multiple power centres. There are four power centres at present. Kharge has the tough task of strengthening the party in states as well. There is no organisational structure in existence in various states. All eyes will, therefore, be on what message Kharge delivers when he constitutes his team. It will also be seen whether Kharge does something new or he allows the organisation to remain as it is.