The 80-year-old Mallikarjun Kharge is set to become the next Congress president as solitary challenger Shashi Tharoor has been abandoned even by the group of discontented reformists called G23 that he was part of.
Although the Congress had claimed there was no “official” candidate, the kind of support Kharge received while filing his nomination on Friday left no doubt about the party’s collective will. There was not a single senior leader present when Tharoor submitted his nomination papers, but the entire leadership packed the room when Kharge arrived to complete the formalities.
Although Tharoor exudes charisma and talent, Kharge’s seniority and experience come laden with Dalit symbolism and the trust of the Nehru-Gandhi family. What Kharge’s candidature instantly achieved was the dissolution of the G23, as all the key architects of the group — Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari and Mukul Wasnik — were present in the show of solidarity.
Besides, those who proposed Kharge’s candidature included A.K. Antony, Ashok Gehlot, Digvijaya Singh, Ambika Soni, Anand Sharma, Wasnik, Tariq Anwar, Ajay Maken, Bhupinder Hooda, Salman Khurshid, Avinash Pande, Pramod Tewari, Abhishek Singhvi, P.L. Punia, Deepender Hooda, Rajeev Shukla, Naseer Hussain, Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Manish Tewari, Raghuveer Meena and Prithviraj Chavan.
This symbolises the Congress structure — more than 95 per cent of the party in terms of representative value. Contrast this with Tharoor’s desolate attempt, which included barely a few recognisable names such as Saifuddin Soz, Karti Chidambaram, Sandeep Dikshit and Pradyut Bordoloi. If Tharoor’s candidature appeared animated by grudge and ambition, Kharge’s was a celebration of the party’s collective might.
There was speculation about a separate candidate from G23, or the possibility of extending support to Tharoor, but they all rallied behind Kharge, arguing that the time had come to collectively strengthen the party.
Manish Tewari tweeted: “Leadership, ideological clarity, narrative and transparent access to resources are pillars of a political party. Given recent unfortunate events, it’s time to close ranks and strengthen the Congress and work for a consensus and effective presidency.”
Recalling the “wise words of Pranab Mukherjee”, Tewari quoted from the former Congress veteran and Indian President’s memoirs: “Certain offices should not be sought. They should be offered. Congress presidency to be one such office. The old practice of inviting an eminent person to preside over the annual session of the Congress and that person holding office till the next annual session was remarkable. My efforts were always focused at having a unanimously chosen or consensus candidate for the office of Congress president.”
Tewari appealed to Tharoor to withdraw from the race. The unity of purpose that Kharge’s candidature has achieved is no mean feat. Everybody knows the Congress will take on the Narendra Modi juggernaut under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, which is bound to spring anew after the exceptional response so far to the Bharat Jodo Yatra, and the party only expects Kharge’s seniority and consensual approach to bring order to the organisation.
Karnataka is a political challenge for the Congress, which hopes to wrest the state from the BJP in next year’s Assembly polls and turn the political tide before the elections in states such as Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana. Kharge being a senior leader from Karnataka, a nine-term MLA and two-term MP, his elevation to the post of party president is expected to bolster the Congress’s prospects in the state.
The majority opinion in the Congress rank and file has been positive after the dramatic twists and turns over the past few days that pushed two main contenders — Gehlot and Digvijaya — out of the frame.
As Kharge’s name cropped up on Friday morning, Digvijaya, who had made all preparations to file his nomination, went to meet the veteran leader. Digvijaya said: “I had asked Kharge yesterday whether he was filing his nomination. He had said, ‘No’. But today when he said he would contest, I decided to pull out. I can’t even think of fighting against him.”
It was clear from the beginning that Digvijaya would not go against any candidate who appears to enjoy consensus. Kharge is a known Gandhi family loyalist and the likes of Antony, Gehlot and K.C. Venugopal backing him made it clear that he enjoyed the blessings of Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Digvijaya, who might appear to have lost out at the moment, may ultimately gain by succeeding Kharge as leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha because of his graceful exit from the race.
Tharoor, whose campaign tagline “Think Tomorrow Think Tharoor” indicates his emphasis on youth, lacks the organisational muscle to challenge the entrenched forces. But he was praised on Friday for his courage to join the fray despite the G23’s somersault. Tharoor did his best by not adopting an antagonistic posture — he paid homage at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial at Rajghat and Rajiv Gandhi’s memorial at Veer Bhumi and thanked Sonia for her guidance.
This gesture prompted a strong Kharge supporter to say: “While Kharge’s experience and seniority cannot be ignored, Tharoor is a brilliant candidate who enhances the value of the Congress. We have shown our talent pool — how many senior and younger leaders are ready to lead the party even as the Gandhi family stepped aside and two of our best — Gehlot and Digvijaya — chose not to contest.”
If the Bharat Jodo Yatra, spearheaded by Rahul, is a unique political project in India’s history that the Congress is expected to gain from, the vibrant presidential contest, not least its dramatic twists and turns, will only bolster the party’s democratic credentials in a country where other parties silently choose their presidents without even a debate.