Why is the Congress party continuing to accept Rahul Gandhi as its prime leader, and supporting his outlandish political strategy? Do party members agree with his continued attack on India’s most respected institutions? He is working hard on ‘exposing’ what he believes to be the shortcomings of the Election Commission, completely unconcerned about its track record of improved functioning since Independence. Nobody claims that the system is perfect, but it is without a doubt better functioning than other institutions that are at the foundations of Indian democracy. The latest allegations made by him about fake voters in the Haryana electoral rolls is exactly why the Election Commission is conducting its SIR presently in 12 states, which is ultimately to be extended to the entire country in the near future.
All he is exposing is the dysfunctionality of the Congress party at the grassroots, which lacks the cadre to keep track of voter lists at the booth level in the various constituencies. At this level, party workers are expected to personally know the voters and be able to detect fake ones on the ground. And, indeed, every election does witness such issues being brought to the attention of the authorities by the political parties.
Another respected institution Rahul Gandhi has recently targeted again is the Armed Forces by claiming that these are dominated by the ‘upper castes’, as though there is a conspiracy to keep out the others. He has said this in the context of employment opportunities for the nation’s youth. He should realise that joining the Armed Forces is not employment in the general sense, but primarily service of the nation with a willingness to even sacrifice one’s life if necessary. Pushing out ‘over-represented’ communities would be disrespecting the contribution of minorities like the Sikhs and Gurkhas which has been disproportionate to their numbers. He is only a step away from seeking reservations in India’s sports teams on the basis of caste. (It may be noted in this context that the policies regarding talent promotion in sports have led to increased representation of the most disadvantaged sections. The background stories of the Women’s Cricket World Cup winners are a telling example.)
The people of Uttarakhand take great pride in serving the Armed Forces, generation after generation. How will the Congress unit in the state communicate Rahul Gandhi’s demand to exclude the recruits from here because they belong to the castes he has targeted? How far will the devotion to the Nehru-Gandhi family take Congress supporters before they realise they have become irrelevant?
