Rajasthan win of bypolls elates Cong cadres

Congress is elated by the Rajasthan win of all the three seats in bypolls results of which were declared yesterday. Its cadres now feel that the party is now on a revival mode. The win has also improved to some extent the image of AICC president Rahul as all eyes are now set on him to see him performing better. He has always been on the target of BJP and some other political parties for the 'poor' content of his speeches but Congress has never come forward strongly with answers to these accusations. Rather the party 'think-tanks' never bothered to counter such allegations against their leader and project him as a man of vision and wisdom. Instead the party was fulsome in its praise for him. This party strategy neither helped Rahul nor Congress and ultimately led to the party's debacle in the last Lok Sabha polls. The party of course needs someone of the stature of Narendra Modi to take on its political rivals, and not Rahul, who according to the party insiders, was still not ripe for the top job. They feel that he should first gain political maturity while working under the party elders and then lead the party from the front. Though success in politics is broadly the result of team work, the leader has to be a visionary and acceptable to the masses and the party cadres as well. Rahul still has a long distance to cover, they feel. He, however, proved them wrong by his improved performance and to some extent the balanced use of words in Gujarat polls. And, now the results of bypolls in Rajasthan have come as a shot in the arm for BJP. Rahul Gandhi has now to be careful while making public utterances. People, his own party leaders, opposition and political pundits would analyse every bit of his speeches to see if he delivers the quality stuff to the countrymen or not. Even as he has given a tough fight to BJP in the recent Gujarat polls, he is still not taken seriously even by his party men who feel he is 'unimpressive'.

Everyone feels that he hasn't much to offer to the people except for criticising prime minister Narendra Modi, his policies and the Saffron Brigade. People now realise that this criticism is for the sake of criticism only as its lacks logic. All this compels one to think if he needs more exposure and grinding to become ripe for giving direction to his party and the country, especially when there is no one in Congress who can even think of tutoring or mentoring him.

He is often accused by the party elders of stubbornness and lack of motivation to become a leader. Of course, he has Sonia Gandhi behind him but she can't be Indira Gandhi as she herself is dependent on a 'select' group of party leaders who guide her on various issues facing the country. Rahul, however, with all the party backing, should now focus on establishing himself as a leader of masses.