Holy grail still eludes Congress
Congress’ Karnataka performance not only exposes the condition of its state unit but also casts a shadow on Sonia Gandhi’s reputation as the prime vote-catcher.
By Aarthi Ramachandran, TNN |
Two months after Sonia Gandhi set a new record in the 122-year-old Congress by completing 10 years as Congress president, she faced one of her biggest challenges since the party came to power at the Centre in 2004.
The Karnataka elections were going to be crucial not just because the Congress is the biggest party in terms of vote share, but also because it threatened to become the BJP���s gateway to the South.
On Sunday morning, as the news of the Congress��� imminent defeat in a one-time citadel appeared certain, party voices from TV studios blamed everyone except the Central leadership for the debacle. Some in the Congress claimed that with 80 seats the party had bettered its 2004 performance (65 seats), but its numbers actually came down from the 85 legislators it had after JD(S)���s Siddharamiah and his followers joined the party. In terms of vote share too, the Congress could not much improve on the 35% it garnered in 2004.
Held after seven months of President���s rule and without any anti-incumbency disadvantage, a win in Karnataka was tailor-made for the Congress. But its mediocre performance in the state, coming after a string of defeats in a number of other assembly polls, has once again shown up the stagnation that has gripped the Congress��� state units.
It has also pointed towards the inability of the Central government leadership to contribute in a positive way to the party���s election campaign. But most importantly, the result has cast its long shadow on Ms Gandhi���s reputation as the party���s prime vote catcher in the run up to the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
Just as Congress��� performance in the 1999 Lok Sabha elections evoked strong criticism of Ms Gandhi���s leadership quotient, the Karnataka results are likely to see disgruntled sections of the party snipe at her style of functioning, while also targeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
By 2004, Ms Gandhi had shrugged off this mantle with her ability to identify and, subsequently nurture, the right alliances responsible for the Congress��� stint at the Centre. But after Congress��� most recent reverses in Punjab, Uttarakhand, UP, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland, Ms Gandhi needed to demonstrate the party���s ability to win in crucial states. In fact, after the 2004 general elections, the party has failed to wrest power in any of the numerically important states.
A strong showing in Karnataka assumed greater significance as it would have helped erase some of the scars from the recent Gujarat verdict where Ms Gandhi tried to take Mr Modi head on, speech for speech. But as though stung by how her high-decibel campaign in Gujarat backfired, Ms Gandhi kept her election outings in Karnataka as uncontroversial and low-key as possible.
The Congress��� campaign in Karnataka appeared listless when compared to the one in Gujarat.
Rahul Gandhi did campaign a lot more in Karnataka, going to all four regions of the state, but it is difficult to attribute the Congress��� showing in southern Karnataka, a traditional strong hold, and its improved tally in the coastal belt, to his electioneering.
Despite having a coalition of leaders representing different castes and communities, the party���s strategy of not projecting a clear leader among the many faces such as SM Krishna, CM Ibrahim, Mallikarjun Kharge, Veerappa Moily, MP Prakash and others, seems to have worked to its disadvantage. The results have also shown that the Congress��� ticket distribution and its campaign were divorced from the situation on the ground.
Former chief minister SM Krishna���s return to active politics from Maharashtra���s Raj Bhawan also triggered intense factionalism. Mr Krishna, who accepted moral responsibility for the Congress��� defeat as chief campaign manager, hinted that things might have been different if there had not been so much resistance to his return to state politics.
She might have seen the writing on the wall, but a party so used to piggybacking on the Nehru-Gandhi name continues to place all its bets on the family. In the absence of a strong second-rung leadership, Ms Gandhi���s charisma remains its trump card. It is time the Congress came up with plan ���C��� now that even plan ���B���, which is ���UPA���s achievements���, has been overshadowed by price rise.
On Sunday morning, as the news of the Congress��� imminent defeat in a one-time citadel appeared certain, party voices from TV studios blamed everyone except the Central leadership for the debacle. Some in the Congress claimed that with 80 seats the party had bettered its 2004 performance (65 seats), but its numbers actually came down from the 85 legislators it had after JD(S)���s Siddharamiah and his followers joined the party. In terms of vote share too, the Congress could not much improve on the 35% it garnered in 2004.
Held after seven months of President���s rule and without any anti-incumbency disadvantage, a win in Karnataka was tailor-made for the Congress. But its mediocre performance in the state, coming after a string of defeats in a number of other assembly polls, has once again shown up the stagnation that has gripped the Congress��� state units.
It has also pointed towards the inability of the Central government leadership to contribute in a positive way to the party���s election campaign. But most importantly, the result has cast its long shadow on Ms Gandhi���s reputation as the party���s prime vote catcher in the run up to the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
Just as Congress��� performance in the 1999 Lok Sabha elections evoked strong criticism of Ms Gandhi���s leadership quotient, the Karnataka results are likely to see disgruntled sections of the party snipe at her style of functioning, while also targeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
By 2004, Ms Gandhi had shrugged off this mantle with her ability to identify and, subsequently nurture, the right alliances responsible for the Congress��� stint at the Centre. But after Congress��� most recent reverses in Punjab, Uttarakhand, UP, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland, Ms Gandhi needed to demonstrate the party���s ability to win in crucial states. In fact, after the 2004 general elections, the party has failed to wrest power in any of the numerically important states.
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A strong showing in Karnataka assumed greater significance as it would have helped erase some of the scars from the recent Gujarat verdict where Ms Gandhi tried to take Mr Modi head on, speech for speech. But as though stung by how her high-decibel campaign in Gujarat backfired, Ms Gandhi kept her election outings in Karnataka as uncontroversial and low-key as possible.
The Congress��� campaign in Karnataka appeared listless when compared to the one in Gujarat.
Rahul Gandhi did campaign a lot more in Karnataka, going to all four regions of the state, but it is difficult to attribute the Congress��� showing in southern Karnataka, a traditional strong hold, and its improved tally in the coastal belt, to his electioneering.
Despite having a coalition of leaders representing different castes and communities, the party���s strategy of not projecting a clear leader among the many faces such as SM Krishna, CM Ibrahim, Mallikarjun Kharge, Veerappa Moily, MP Prakash and others, seems to have worked to its disadvantage. The results have also shown that the Congress��� ticket distribution and its campaign were divorced from the situation on the ground.
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With a slew of central leaders such as Prithviraj Chavan, Digvijay Singh and Vayalar Ravi looking into ticket distribution, AICC heavyweights such as Margaret Alva, BK Hariprasad and others like Jaffer Sharief were upset at their kin not being accommodated. Former chief minister SM Krishna���s return to active politics from Maharashtra���s Raj Bhawan also triggered intense factionalism. Mr Krishna, who accepted moral responsibility for the Congress��� defeat as chief campaign manager, hinted that things might have been different if there had not been so much resistance to his return to state politics.
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The Congress leans heavily on the charisma of the Gandhis to power to electoral comfort. The Congress president herself, anticipating the Opposition���s keenness to hit out at instances of her waning influence, had said that neither she nor Rahul had a ���magic wand��� and that the party collectively would have to do the vote catching. She might have seen the writing on the wall, but a party so used to piggybacking on the Nehru-Gandhi name continues to place all its bets on the family. In the absence of a strong second-rung leadership, Ms Gandhi���s charisma remains its trump card. It is time the Congress came up with plan ���C��� now that even plan ���B���, which is ���UPA���s achievements���, has been overshadowed by price rise.
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