For whom the polls toll

The convulsions in the Congress are a pointer to the party's inability to hold an orderly organisational poll. Used as the party has been, ...

The convulsions in the Congress are a pointer to the party’s inability to hold an orderly organisational poll. Used as the party has been, of late, to nomination, rather than election, it seems to have forgotten the ways of conducting such a poll. Otherwise, there is no reason why within a few days of setting the election process in motion, the situation should worsen to such an extent that the observers sent to various states are finding the going tough. The worst experience so far has been that of Krishna Chandra Dev, who was sent to Kerala. When he realised that it was impossible to hold a fair election in that faction-ridden unit, he preferred to quit, rather than be pushed around by cantankerous leaders. The situation is much the same in other States like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. It is true that factionalism is as old as the Congress. However, the present problems of the party cannot be dismissed as just a manifestation of factionalism. In fact, a common feature of the troubles in the state units is an attempt by some influential leaders to hijack the polls. In Sitaram Kesri’s home state of Bihar, former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra has been crying hoarse over the attempts being made by Kesri’s supporters to capture all the organisational posts, much to the dismay of ordinary party workers.

Needless to say, such allegations do not redound to the credit of the party president. Further, they also undermine his authority to adjudicate disputes between warring state leaders. For instance, when Andhra MP Hanumantha Rao threatens to go on fast to protest against the malpractices employed by the well-entrenched Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy group, he will hardly be in a position to broker peace. Unfortunately, Kesri compromised his moral authority when he drew up the election schedule in such a way that his own interests, including re-election, were protected. It is the same self-interest that motivates leaders like K. Karunakaran and Jitendra Prasad to encourage their followers to win the election by means fair or foul. As there is nobody who has the requisite stature to ensure that the polls are held in a democratic manner, the Congress will soon land itself in the hands of those who are adept in electoral malpractices. The eventual lumpenisation of the Congress that this portends cannot but be a matter of serious concern to all those who believe that the Congress has a major role to play in Indian politics.

There can be no denying that if the Congress was given an option by the Election Commission, it would not have gone in for the election. This is not because the ordinary party worker does not want restoration of internal democracy in the Congress. It is the leaders who, having lost touch with the people, resist a free and fair poll. Far from relying on the people’s support to rejuvenate the party, the leadership has been busy courting dynastic elements in the party in the mistaken belief that charisma is what the Congress needs at this juncture. The election provides an opportunity to remove the deadwood and bring in a new leadership from the block to the AICC level. If this opportunity is forfeited, it will have disastrous consequences for the Congress’ future.