Ahmed Patel was without any doubt the most powerful functionary of the Congress in this century. On his first death anniversary on Thursday, several top leaders paid tributes to him, recalling his pronounced role during the presidentship of Sonia Gandhi without mentioning that in fact, he was the de facto chief of the grand old party. This is not an exaggeration that he wielded more influence on the central leadership than anyone before him. Some veterans try and compare his understated but exalted position with that of R.K.Dhawan and Makhan Lal Fotedar, but Ahmed Patel had a much larger say in political matters for a considerable long period. His opponents accused him of being responsible for the decline of the Congress and often claimed that Sonia Gandhi had outsourced the party to him for day-to-day affairs and he did what he pleased, sometimes without the knowledge of the High Command. Ahmed’s grip over the organization started loosening once Rahul Gandhi came on to the political scene and though the entire Gandhi family paid homage to him on his anniversary, it was an open secret that Rahul wanted his role to diminish. The astute and perceptive former political secretary realized this and had shifted his strategy to maintain an extremely low profile while getting his way in crucial matters. In the recent past, the appointment of D.K.Shiv Kumar as the Karnataka State president was engineered by him even though Rahul was not in his favour and because the Vokkaliga community to which he belongs is essentially with H.D.Deva Gowda. Shiv Kumar got the job because he had facilitated the stay of Congress MLAs from Gujarat when Ahmed was contesting for a Rajya Sabha seat facing stiff competition from the BJP whose strategy was designed by Amit Shah. Ahmed was victorious and till this day, some questions have been raised on who was responsible for giving him the additional two votes which he required to retain the seat. These are untold stories of politics. Ahmed also played the most significant part when the Maharashtra government was formed after an alliance between the Congress, NCP, and the Shiv Sena. Like most things good or not so good done by him, he never took credit and allowed others to boast about their achievements.
Ahmed’s USP was that enjoyed cordial relations with top leaders of other parties as well and it was not surprising that after his demise, Prime Minister Narendra Modi allowed his family to occupy his official residence, 23 Willingdon Crescent for as long as they wished. They finally moved out in July. In sharp contrast, the Congress High Command did not hold even a single prayer meeting for him in the national capital, and according to the political buzz conveyed to the family that there was no need for this in the capital since condolence gatherings had taken place in Karnataka, Maharashtra and some other places.
The problem in Congress is that the leadership has not been able to find a suitable replacement for him. There is nobody close to the Gandhis who is accessible and thus in any position to address the grievances of state functionaries and ordinary workers. There is nobody to even speak to established leaders. Thus, this vacuum is hurting the party which should have by this time given greater responsibility to the likes of Kamal Nath, Ashok Gehlot, and Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Ahmed Patel like everyone else had his fault lines as well, but no one can doubt that Sonia Gandhi’s dependence on him was absolute and he was perhaps the only one who could get his way through the complicated decision-making process in the party. The erosion of the Congress started during his lifetime but the party is grappling with its worst phase with no one there to oversee the political road map and its implementation.