Amid a dominant view about BJP’s strong position before the 2024 election, several references were made to the future of Congress and Rahul Gandhi during discussions on the opening day of the three-day event, Manch 2023, organised by ITV Network, here on Wednesday, with some speakers even suggesting that Rahul should make way for Priyanka as the face of the party and united Opposition.
While Acharya Pramod Krishnam suggested to his party leader Rahul Gandhi to plan for the party’s fight alone in the Lok Sabha election, psephologist Pawan Verma said Gandhi needed to take a realistic look at his own capabilities.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur also referred to Rahul Gandhi, without naming him, and said the arrogance of tearing an ordinance was an outcome of the leader’s attempt to show that the family was above the government.
Krishnam said “politics of hate” against Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not be pursued by the Congress and called upon Gandhi for seriously introspecting on the relevance of INDIA Alliance.
He also said his partymen don’t welcome his suggestions but he keeps reiterating that the Congress would gain if it makes Priyanka as its face in place of Rahul.
Verma said he was not against Rahul entering politics as even Biju Patnaik of BJD and Hemant Soren of JMM have carried forward the political legacy of their fathers.
“However, one needs to also have the capability to succeed in politics. You may be a good person but if you lack the capability you may not be able to succeed in politics,” he said, adding that the Congress leader and the INDIA block seem to have missed the bus for building a strong narrative against the NDA. “The opposition lacks a pan-India narrative to impact voters at the national level,” said Verma, adding that the Congress as an organisation has crumbled due to neglect of the party set up at the ground level.
Yashwant Deshmukh, the psephologist, said he did not believe that there is scope for the TINA factor – “there is no alternative” in democracy. “It is just that people need to be convinced that the alternative before them is better and reliable,” he said.
Deshmukh also said the only good news for the INDIA bloc can come when Modi himself decides to declare his innings.
Congress leader Imran Pratapgarhi said despite a poor outcome in the Assembly elections in the heartland states the INDIA block will pose a tough challenge to the NDA I 2024.
He dismissed the talk of frictions within the alliance and said differences exist even within the NDA. “For saving the democracy and constitution we need to get over minor distractions,” he said.
Psephologist Sanjay Kumar offered a suggestion to Rahul Gandhi and the India bloc to come up with a common minimum programme and pick a convenor.
He suggested that fighting Modi cannot be the driving force of the INDIA bloc. “Voters need to be told about the change that the bloc can bring about in their lives,” he said.