Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has found in his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra a skilled and able “charioteer” who looks determined to take him to his desired political destination. Priyanka has been able to create an impact among the common people by following her granny Indira Gandhi’s ‘soft-Hindutva’ strategy. Alarm bells are ringing for the BJP after its defeats in the Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka elections. The political experience of Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge is helping Rahul Gandhi in turning around the fortunes of the party. At the same time, Priyanka is connecting with common masses and broadening the support base for the Congress. Her popularity is gradually growing at the national level. She has established herself as a politically savvy leader. The AICC general secretary is therefore emerging as a big challenge for the BJP for the upcoming polls including the parliamentary elections of 2024.
After success in Himachal Pradesh, Congress’ victory in Karnataka has established Priyanka as the second most influential leader in the Congress. She has turned out to be a useful political advisor for Rahul. After Himachal, Priyanka’s charisma was seen in Karnataka. Every Congress candidate wished to have Priyanka’s rally in their constituencies. Undoubtedly, Priyanka successfully tried to directly connect with the public. She has been able to understand the pulse of the people.
After the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’, Rahul Gandhi no doubt emerged as a serious leader. And, Priyanka at the same time also got quite popular among common people.
Needless to say, Priyanka’s growing stature like this is worrying the BJP. The Congress managed to corner BJP in Karnataka in a display of political wisdom. Kharge targeted Prime Minister Narendra only on a couple of occasions. Rahul and Priyanka ensured that the campaign remained focussed on the local issues. In fact, it was the BJP that got into the Congress’ political trap. PM Modi and other BJP leaders continued to criticise Kharge’s statements and Congress’ manifesto. At the same time, Rahul and Priyanka along with local leaders focused on the guarantees and schemes promised by the party. They kept targeting the Bommai government over the alleged “40 per cent commission” issue. Congress worked on Priyanka’s strategy that was implemented in Himachal Pradesh. Learning from the past failures, Priyanka understood that the public wants to hear more about the issues that concern them. Targeting one person to achieve votes will not work. In fact, Priyanka had also worked on this particular strategy in UP. She focused on local issues and gave tickets to women in large numbers in Uttar Pradesh. But the caste-based and polarisation politics of the BJP stole the march over Priyanka’s issues. But the same politics of the Congress paid off in Himachal and Karnataka. The party succeeded in impressing the voters by properly showcasing Rajasthan government’s several schemes including OPS in Himachal and Karnataka. Priyanka also spoke a lot about these schemes which helped Congress woo the common voters.
Priyanka seems to be following in the footsteps of her grandmother Indira Gandhi. She frequently visited temples of various gods and goddesses in Himachal Pradesh. Her soft-Hindutva politics ultimately weakened BJP’s polarisation tactic. Priyanka continued to pursue her soft-Hindutva politics in Karnataka as well. She impressed a section of Hindus in the southern state. She was also successful in wooing women voters in Karnataka. In fact, the common people saw in Priyanka Gandhi Vadra the image of Indira Gandhi which benefited the Congress immensely.
