How must the Congress resuscitate itself?

 

The question must surely have crossed your mind, like mine. After all aren’t we all a Prashant Kishor in varying degrees? Middleclass, status-quoist, armchair idlers with bulging political opinions even if based on the trash (I avoid a more apt 4-letter word) we splurge on, served hot on social media outlets and cacophonous TV channels that shout more and inform the least. A self-conceited member of this very elite club, I proffer my own take on this subject, trite though it may sound:

As it stands now, this shipwreck of a behemoth, the Congress, perhaps needs nothing short of Garuda’s wings and ambrosia from the very heavens as the magic fuel to make it afloat and navigate the grey, gravid, ponderous skies of Indian politics. An 86-slide PPP by Prashant might have given it breaths of hope but is that enough?

I feel that time is nigh for the Congress to go all Gandhian: Gandhian in man, vachan and karam.  That means that it should shed its aggressive posturing and adopt a non-violent, persuasive, gentle approach a la Gandhiji. It needs to jettison its soft Hindutva mantle that it wore during Rajiv Gandhi era and adorns still. In other words it should dump its pseudo-secular mask and instead become secular to the core: in right earnest. Earlier it followed a disgusting, hypocritical policy of minority appeasement (remember the shameful Shah Bano case?) while flaunting its secular credentials – but “public knows all” and it saw through its doublespeak.

Let’s consider what were Gandhiji’s matchless weapons that took the wind out of our rulers’ sails; and made the whole apathetic world sit up with a silent sigh of admiration and wonder: no bullet, tongue-lashing and animosity but the magical, impeccable ‘brahamastra’ of love and non-violence; of being one with the masses: and not just for photo-ops (a meal in a Dalit house during elections) but in letter and spirit. He breathed, ate, spoke, slept, awoke, lived an aam aadmi, unlike the crorepati hypocrites we have today. He felt the pain and deprivation suffered by the underprivileged, took a principled stand, went on fasts and risked his life to restore peace when the British-devised communal riots broke out. Therefore, people transcending the communal divide, trusted him and followed him in hordes in the unprecedented, non-violent ‘war’ for freedom. And how he conversed and communicated even with the rulers/adversaries? Sans hatred, rancour, anger, he was soft, persuasive, gentle but firm: speaking like a humble village commoner.

Can the Congress imbibe some of this spirit, this philosophy of his? Can it wear his cloak with conviction, shed its ennui, its political humbug and chicanery, and come out with a brilliant new agenda of inclusivity, communal harmony and ‘green’ development; rid of the virus of bigotry, obscurantism and authoritarianism? Agenda to foster the spirit of individual liberty/freedom, justice, scientific ethos, reverence for our wonderful Constitution? Committed to making our democratic institutions, yes, robust, but also impervious to the insidious forces of erosion, enfeeblement and gradual destruction; restore/elevate (trivialized) religion(s) to pristine sublimity?

And lastly, next time when Rahulji speaks, he must not blunder by being threatening, croaky and loud. Please sir, go gentle, persuasive and earnest, and speak the voice of a common man: of love, empathy and peace – Gandhiji style, to beat the boom and bluster of your opponents.

Ah! Have pontificated enough! Well, let’s keep fingers crossed about the ‘brew’ the ongoing ‘Chintin Shivir’ churns out, while I serve you these lines:

 “कल सियासत में भी मोहब्बत थी”

 अब मोहब्बत में भी सियासत है I”

                                     - ख़्वाजा साजिद