Rahul Gandhi's 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' gives Congress visibility — but Bihar revival still a long shot

The INDIA bloc;s ' 14-day, 1300-km-long 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' will conclude in Bihar's capital Patna on Monday

The Opposition's 14-day, 1,300-km-long 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' that spanned 25 districts cutting across 110 Assembly constituencies concluded in Bihar's capital Patna on Monday, with several INDIA bloc leaders joining Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, in a procession marking the culmination of the political programme that gained significance ahead of the assembly polls due to be held this year in the state.

Among those participating in the 'Gandhi se Ambedkar' march are Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, CPI general secretary D Raja, CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, NCP working president Supriya Sule, and TMC leaders Yusuf Pathan and Lalitesh Tripathi.

Much of the credit for this mobilisation of Opposition leaders and the people's sentiment on the issue of "vote-chori" against the Election Commission of India's Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls exercise goes to the Congress.

Several Opposition leaders who participated in the Yatra, including Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, did so at the request of Rahul and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who also camped in Bihar for two days.

While the yatra, for all practical purposes, was a united Opposition show, it appeared strategically aimed at reviving the Congress in Bihar where it has failed to make a mark, even facing barbs of being a liability within the Mahagathbandhan led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal.

Experts agree that the Congress has managed to gain significant ground through the Voter Adhikar Yatra in the state citing huge crowds that Rahul Gandhi managed to draw as he criss-crossed through the state. They also believe that through the Yatra, the Congress has managed to bring the issue of the Bihar SIR into discourse among the people ahead of polls.

The optimism around the Congress's revival in Bihar being a likely outcome of Rahul's yatra, however, may be a case of jumping the gun. With the announcement of elections still at least a month away, the first challenge for the Congress would not only be to keep the momentum going on the SIR issue in Bihar, but also to convert the huge crowds witnessed during the Yatra into votes.

The dynamics within the alliance are a separate factor to look at. The RJD, for one, wouldn't be too pleased with the Congress attempting to step out of its shadows and create a space for itself. Many believe that while the Congress may accept RJD's Tejashwi Yadav as the chief ministerial face for now, it may be positioning itself to take the driver's seat in the next Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.

The messaging hasn't been lost on the RJD either. On the first day of the Yatra in Sasaram, Tejashwi alluded to Lord Krishna as he posted a photograph showing himself at the wheel of a jeep with Rahul and others standing behind.

"Yatra agar yudhbhumi ki ho to yaad rakhna, sarthi hamesha koi ahir hoga… since Dwapar (if the journey is for a battlefield, remember that a Yadav will be the charioteer... since Dwapar)," he said, positioning himself as the leader, and the natural chief ministerial face, of the alliance.

By the time the yatra reached Ara, Tejashwi had to virtually "declare" himself as the CM face. Slamming Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and calling him a “copycat CM" who was just copying his policies and making announcements, Tejashwi then asked: “Do you want an original Chief Minister or a duplicate?"

The assertion came amid the Congress, and Rahul Gandhi's, continued silence on the CM face of the Grand Alliance. Questioned on the issue at a press conference, Rahul sidestepped the issue, saying that he was enjoying the way the coalition was working "like a well-oiled machine".

The Congress had already ticked off RJD by sending Krishna Allavaru as Bihar in-charge, followed by replacing Akhilesh Prasad Singh with a Dalit leader as the state president. The party's attempt to claim spotlight through the Yatra could become another stricking issue in the alliance.

With formal talks to finalise the seat-sharing arrangement within the Mahagathbandhan set to kick off soon, the Congress is likely to push for a higher number of seats, citing the success of the Voter Adhikar Yatra that was organized and managed by the Congress.

The RJD, however, may not yield to the Congress' demands and cite its performance in the last Assembly election to offer fewer seats. In the 2020 Assembly polls, the Congress could only win 19 of the 70 seats it contested.

With the Vikashsheel Insan Party of Mukesh Sahni having crossed over to the Mahagathbandhan this time, the RJD is learnt to be keen on accommodating 20 seats for it from the Congress' quota of 70 from the last election. The grand old party, on the other hand, wants RJD to spare 10 seats from its quota while also demanding 3 Deputy CM posts - one each for the Congress, RJD and a Muslim or Dalit candidate.