Lok Sabha 2019: Is the Congress losing the plot?
Pitched against the shrewd electoral management of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its prime challenger, the Congress, currently looks indecisive and out of focus — instead of rising sharply to the occasion.
It has struggled to stitch up alliances and manage its internal strife, sending out a message of an arrogant party still lost in its past glory and unwilling to bend.
Here is why the Congress seems to have lost the plot.
The General Elections 2019 is the mother of all elections, with opposition parties all set to combine forces to stop the Modi juggernaut.
If actions speak louder than words, then the Congress — the prime challenger — seems to be out of sorts, struggling to get its act together to cobble up a united front against the BJP. Whether it is about dealing with the tussle in Bihar, Bengal, J&K and Karnataka, or the internal turmoil in Maharashtra, or the heartburn in Uttar Pradesh — the Congress looks confused.
Kabhi haan, kabhi na in Delhi
In Delhi, it's in a state of 'Kabhi haan, kabhi na' (on-again, off-again) with the AAP. "We will go alone in Delhi as decided in the meeting. All state leaders feel that it is in the party's interest to fight alone and Rahul ji has agreed to it," Congress leader Sheila Dixit said a few weeks ago, outside Rahul Gandhi's residence, 12 Tughlak Lane, in the heart of Lutyen's Delhi.
The decision had the grumbling AAP in a tizzy, with Arvind Kejriwal going on to accuse the Congress of helping the BJP by not aligning with AAP.
However, within days — and much to the frustration of its own leaders — the Congress was taking the opinion of party workers on the alliance through the Shakti App.
The ball is in Rahul Gandhi's court. However, irrespective of the outcome, the fact that it has taken seven months to decide on seven seats shows the party in poor light.
Knives are out in J&K
It could have drawn comfort from strong alliances in other states — but all is not well for the Congress up north either. Despite the National Conference (NC) and the Congress leaving one seat each for the so-called "ally", the knives are out in Jammu and Kashmir.
Fighting for the same vote bank, the battle on ground zero is getting uglier.
The sharpest attack came from Akbar Lone — the National Conference candidate from Baramullah. "Congress is more dangerous than the BJP. They stab you behind your back," Lone said, rebutting a "friendly" contest.
If Lone's outburst is any indication, then the Congress has clearly messed it up in J&K, where out of the six seats, both parties are putting up candidates in four seats — making it a clear advantage for the BJP.
'Left' out of the 'Maha'gathbandan in Bihar
In Bihar, the situation is no different.
While the BJP-JDU combine declared a 50-50 seat-sharing formula almost two months ago, the Mahagathbandhan ambiguously dragged its feet over seat-sharing until recently. Now, the Congress and RJD are locked in a tussle over the Darbhanga seat. The Congress desperately wants the seat for BJP turncoat cricketer Kirti Azad, but Tejasvi is apparently unwilling to budge — offering Valmikinagar instead.
Further, the Left has been left out — despite being on hot pursuit to be counted in the Mahagathbandhan. It may not be able to win many seats, but it can surely play a spoiler — with Kanhaiya Kumar being given a ticket from Begusarai and Pappu Yadav ready to play truant.
"I don't want to comment on others. This is a democracy and everybody has the right to fight elections," Tejaswi reportedly said.
However, insiders in the RJD are cribbing about how the Congress has been unwilling to accommodate it in Jharkhand, and why even the Bihar alliance deal was dragged on for this long.
The Maharashtra mess
In Maharashtra, the Congress has not been able to get Prakash Ambedkar on board. Further, despite stitching up alliances with almost 56 outfits, the party is reportedly unable to handle its internal tussle.
On the other hand, its arch rival, the BJP-Shiv Sena — despite publicly attacking each other a few months back — appear more credible and sorted.
Congress Maharashtra chief
Ashok Chavan's now-viral audio, lamenting the state of affairs in the party, is also telling.
"I tried to explain. Now I am also planning to resign," Chavan is heard reportedly saying in the leaked audio clip.
In fact, unable to wrestle out the Ahmednagar seat from its ally, the NCP, the Congress faced a big jolt when Sujay Vikhe-Patil — son of the veteran leader of the opposition Radhakrishnan Vikhe Patil — switched sides and joined the BJP. This has added to the Congress's sloppy show in a state that has been a major contributor to the party's tally, even in the most adverse situations.
Karnataka ka Natak
The bad run continues from the west to down south.
The one state where the party was hoping to do well is Karnataka. However, the JDS-Congress alliance is marred by egos and personal rivalry between the Gowdas and Siddaramaiah.
In fact, the JDS is reportedly struggling to find decent candidates for the eight seats, having bitten off more than it can chew, while former chief minister Siddaramaiah is reportedly unwilling to forget and forgive Deve Gowda and Kumaraswamy for defeating him in Chamundeshwari in the last assembly elections.
Despite several attempts by the leadership in Delhi to sort out these differences, Siddaramaiah is looking to seek revenge in Mandaya — where Deve Gowda's grandson is in the fray.
Misplaced priorities?
The battle of Bengal looks lacklustre for the Congress-Left alliance — where it is designed to be Team-C in a raging war between the unforgiving Trinamool and the relentless BJP.
To add to the abounding perplexities, the Congress seems busy obsessing about the latest 'Gandhi debutant' — Priyanka Vadra.
The tri-cornered contest in the most crucial Uttar Pradesh state is bound to work to the advantage of the saffron party — with the Congress entry cutting into votes of the SP-BSP alliance in more than 12 seats, including Fatehpur Sikri, Moradabad, Ferozabad, Kushinagar and Barabanki.
A case in point is the Brahmin face of the party — Jitin Prasada — reportedly unwilling to fight from Dhaurahra, anticipating trouble. The BSP is fielding a Muslim candidate against him.
Even former MP Rashid Alvi has backed out from Amroha — a seat he had been preparing for the past few years, with the entry of Danish Ali, who recently joined the BSP and has been given a ticket from Amroha.
Meanwhile, the party is desperate to project Rahul Gandhi as the leader of the opposition — despite the internal divisions. Most of the time, it appears to be elbowing its allies to provide more room to its leader — a PM in waiting. However, with almost half a dozen opposition leaders also harbouring that very ambition, it has been unable to command the respect that it demands from regional satraps. The regional satraps seem, in turn, to be wary of the wishfulness of Congress sycophants.
However, in politics, the perils of writing off any party are grave. After all, all it takes is a good over to bounce back in form — and the game is still on.
Also read: Congress has flunked the alliances test. What about the election exams?