On a day Shashi Tharoor thanked apolitical outsiders — from image consultant to student — for trying hard to make him the Congress president, Mallikarjun Kharge addressed a massive public rally at Bellary with party stalwarts, including Rahul Gandhi, Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Baghel, Digvijaya Singh, K.C. Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, Randeep Surjewala, D.K. Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah.
Images are at times more powerful than words, and the seasoned Kharge appears to know this better than the flamboyant Tharoor. Two days before the election for Congress president, Kharge not only addressed the first public rally of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, he also walked with Rahul in the morning, sending a subtle message to the voters who have already indicated their preference in more ways than one.
Kharge was introduced at the rally as a national leader by Surjewala — an oblique hint at the bigger role he would play after October 19 when the results will be declared. That the Congress attached great significance to this rally was evident when chief ministers Gehlot and Baghel arrived in Karnataka solely to attend it. Kharge too came to Bellary instead of carrying on with his campaign across states.
The implicit message was of Kharge’s wider acceptability in the party. Tharoor’s reliance on admirers from outside the Congress against this powerful spectacle from the Bharat Jodo Yatra bears testimony to his cry in the wilderness.
Apart from thanking boys and girls for trying hard even as they aren’t voters in this election, Tharoor had to insulate himself from support from another unexpected quarter – BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya.
Malviya had tweeted: “It is finally dawning on Tharoor that the Congress president’s election no level-playing field, is a farce. He hasn’t been provided a list of delegates with proper details. State presidents are enthusiastic about Kharge but don’t even turn up for him! Gandhis will soon have MMS (Manmohan Singh) 2.0 version.”
Tharoor anticipated that sympathy from Malviya would antagonise the Congress workers further and promptly responded: “We are perfectly capable of resolving our own internal differences within the Congress, Amit Malviya. We don’t need your involvement in our party’s election. Try to hold one of your own first.”
J.P. Nadda recently got an extension as the BJP president, with no election held.
Tharoor, however, did create an impression that there was no level playing field in the Congress election, arguing that delegates avoided him in most states while Kharge received a warm welcome. He was particularly upset when Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot issued an open appeal, pointing out that no office-bearer was supposed to take sides.
Tharoor appears to believe delegates would be afraid to vote for him because of the subtle messaging of preference for Kharge from the entrenched forces. This was reflected when he re-tweeted Karti Chidambaram’s tweet which said: “For all those in the Congress who are concerned about the secrecy of their vote, please be assured that it’s a secret ballot and randomized counting. There will be no trace back on how you voted.”
