Sonia Gandhi failed leadership test: Smriti Irani on Congress president's Parliament speech
Do or Die: PM talks to Nation, Sonia remembers family
There are certain events in the life of a people when their representatives are expected to rise above partisan considerations to tap into solidarity, a latent sense of the "we" feeling, that helps forge national identity. The 75th anniversary of the Quit India Movement - a national uprising that convinced the British masters that the people of India had gained a proud assertiveness of a united Self and could not be shackled any longer - definitely qualifies for such a time.
But Congress president Sonia Gandhi failed that test of leadership when she chose to reduce her speech in Parliament into a long, pitiable lament over the loss of control that Nehru dynasty wielded before Congress' defeat in 2014.
Great leaders are also great followers and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech on Wednesday in Parliament to mark the occasion was proof of that axiom. For him, the most important lesson from India’s freedom struggle was the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi ji’s Do-or-Die campaign. Borrowing richly from his “Karenge Ya Marenge” call, the Prime Minister today took a new pledge that is in the true spirit of India’s freedom fighters of yore: “Karenge Aur Kar Ke Rahenge (Will do and will continue to do)”.
Sonia Gandhi's address, unfortunately, smacked of a deeply self-righteous tone. Compared to the statesman-like position voiced by the Prime Minister, who recalled the sacrifices of freedom fighters, including the Congress’ own stalwarts Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Subhas Chandra Bose - all of Mrs Gandhi’s speech came through as a contrived interpretation of India's freedom struggle.
It attributed greatness only to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, whose family she belongs to. Her partisan approach was obvious in the exclusion of the names of both Subhas Chandra Bose and Vallabhbhai Patel from her speech. Betraying a patently insular slant to her version of the Independence movement, Sonia Gandhi credited only the Congress party, denigrating the contribution of the millions who stood behind the Mahatma in response to his clarion call, courting arrests and indulging in widespread civil disobedience to mark the Quit India movement in 1942.
The Prime Minister, on his part, described Gandhi ji's call of Do-or-Die as one that was instrumental in hastening India’s journey to Independence by transforming the freedom movement into a larger mass mobilisation that touched the farthest corners of the subcontinent.
In his speech, Prime Minister Modi not only spoke of the past but also of the future, not only spoke about India but also of the world. Highlighting the role that women played in the Quit India movement, he emphasised that we must strive to empower women and facilitate their optimum contribution towards building a New India by destroying the shackles that held them back.
He also spoke about how India’s quest for freedom bolstered the Independence struggles of other nations under the yoke of colonialism. Exhorting the people of the country to rise above all kinds of differences, including those created by politics, to forge ahead by fighting poverty, injustice and terrorism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was forward-looking, positive, unifying and gracious in his address, as the occasion demanded.
In contrast, Sonia Gandhi’s speech lacked any passion or vision, bordering on the monotonous. Bent upon proving that blood is thicker than water, she dwelt at length only on Nehru and his stint in jail.
Such assertions that challenge the memory and sense of history of Indians are entirely conceited and inward-looking. Bitter and illiberal, she also used expressions such as "nafrat aur badle ki raajneeti", totally out of context, to vitiate the atmosphere in the House and made it seem like an election campaign speech.
[This post first appeared on Smriti Irani's Facebook page.]