As BJP takes credit for GST, it's time for Congress to change their game plan or perish

The GST function at Central Hall should stand as a reminder to the Congress that positive agendas pay far better dividends than boycott approach which it has adopted. Not only did the GST function break Opposition unity, it also allowed BJP to walk away with the credit for something in which Congress played a major role.

This emanates from the desire to prevent BJP from winning elections, rather than building the party. BJP had to build itself from scratch when it was left alliance-less in 2009, when Rahul Gandhi had famously said that UPA exists but NDA has crumbled.

The exact opposite is happening today with Congress which is going to have far-reaching consequences in national politics.

It was imagined that Congress would spend time in the Opposition rebuilding the party by redefining its economic, political and social policies. Instead of going into the detail of the fractured edifice, Congress has rushed in building unstable and opportunistic alliances with regional leaders for short-term electoral gains.

Unfortunately, today’s Congress reminds one of the Opposition of the 80s and 90s which formed alliances with ideologically-opposed parties to prevent Congress from coming to power.

Today Congress is courting TMC and the Left and SP and BSP together on multiple issues. Barring DMK which is still of some consequence, other regional parties are dictating terms to the Congress whereas BJP state units are breathing down their necks.

These are the same parties which did incredible damage not only to personal reputation of Dr Manmohan Singh but also UPA. It is as if Congress has developed amnesia.

Mamata Banerjee did not allow Manmohan Singh to resolve the river issue with Bangladesh which eventually Narendra Modi did under his tenure.

Congress seemed to have forgotten the way Mamata Banerjee got Mukul Roy sworn in as the new Railway Minister after sacking Dinesh Trivedi damaging PM’s authority forever. DMK too created a huge fuss first on the Ram Setu issue and then not letting Prime Minister go to Colombo for the Commonwealth Summit.

 The Left after the nuclear deal episode parted ways but opposed GST throughout UPA-2. All this contributed in weakening the PM and ultimately BJP succeeded in projecting the image that Manmohan Singh was just a face and Sonia was the real power behind the throne.

Today when the Congress is in Opposition, it is still running after regional parties for minimum electoral gains at the cost of the organisation. This is best elaborated by the results of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. It happened because Congress deluded itself by believing that peculiar circumstances of Bihar experience could be repeated all over India. West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh are shining examples that is not feasible.

For the first time, even the narrative of the Opposition is slipping out of Congress’s hand. Though it may have succeeded in getting Meira Kumar’s name as the Opposition’s presidential candidate, it still cannot count on the fact that those who went with her for nomination would actually end up voting for Meira Kumar. Congress must stop making cheap electoral compromises and come out with its own agenda.

The farmer crisis, lynching and atrocities against Dalits are ugly realities which Congress needs to give fight but today it is being perceived from jumping from one issue to another. It must come out with its economic or social charter.

It needs to create a vision which can be tied to an individual. Whether it is Rahul Gandhi or some other person, he needs to hold the vision to the people to offer an alternative to Modi. All modern elections are presidential in nature and the people leading it must owe the vision. Whether it is through Facebook posts, letters, radio message or articles, the message needs to come through frequently and consistently.

Today, all what is audible is the cacophony of regional parties which Congress is trying to placate to be relevant inside Parliament or for elections. It forgets that the game has just begun and the challenge for it lies in the street and not in the institution it has lost. Unless and until Congress reoccupies the imagination of the street it will never be able to come back to power.

Congress has time on its hand and many young leaders. It is time, they take charge and leave behind the fascination for regional parties which not only corroded the Congress but also compromised one of its most iconic figure Dr Manmohan Singh. What worked in 2004 may not work in 2019. If the alliance was the buzzword of the past then reliance on one’s on core vote is becoming the norm.

Congress must seize this opportunity with change of leadership which is expected in October with Rahul Gandhi taking over as the President of the party. If it doesn’t, then rest assured India will end up with a damp squib of an election which it doesn’t deserve.