Rahul Gandhi: A year after he took over as party president

2018 may have been kind to him, but Congress president Rahul Gandhi says it was 2014 that was the “best thing” to have happened in his life. 

A year ago on this day, Rahul Gandhi was nominated the party president and he took over from his mother Sonia Gandhi — the party’s longest serving head who revived the party from three states to fifteen. For Rahul, the job was difficult especially in the face of the BJP’s electoral sweep in 2014 and in the states after that. 

After the result trends came in, Rahul said the past year has taught him humility. “Arrogance is fatal for a politician,” he said. 

His debut in the party’s top job came with the Congress closing in on a tight fight in the BJP’s home turf Gujarat. In May this year, Karnataka elections saw the electoral fate see-saw from the BJP to the Congress-JD(S) combine. With Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and possibly MP, the Congress is back in the game under the leadership of Gandhi. 

Gandhi thanked the party’s workers, whom he called “babbar shers” who stood by the party in difficult times, and stressed several times on the youth, farmers and small businessmen in the states where the party won. 

“Mr Modi has taught me what not to do. He refused to listen to youngsters and farmers. I think with a resurgent Congress party in the states and in other states where the BJP is ruling and a combined opposition is going to become very difficult for the Prime Minister and the BJP to win the election,” Gandhi said. 

A Congress revival in the heartland may not necessarily mean that the Congress has an easy job in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, which will be a tougher test for him. Rafale being the mainstay, the issues on which the elections will be fought under him, Gandhi says, are employment, farmers distress and corruption. 

If results were to indicate anything, the actual challenge has just begun for Gandhi. Will it need regional players to help its chances, or like in Telangana, will regional players cut away into the party’s chances. With the Samajwadi party and the Bahujan Samaj Party choosing to stay away from the all-party meet on Monday, Gandhi could be tip-toeing on eggshells as far as alliances are concerned.

“We come from the same ideology, and the talks are going on at all times. We have been open and flexible, and will remain so,” said Gandhi.