Is Raghuram Rajan the credible face that Congress is scouting for?

Bharat Jodo Yatra: Raghuram Rajan joined Rahul Gandhi in Sawai Madhopur district in Rajasthan.

Just as Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra was beginning to lose its sheen, there was renewed interest in the foot march when former governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Raghuram Rajan walked alongside the Congress leader from Sawai Madhopur to Dausa in Rajasthan.

After a brief lull, the yatra was back in the news. A number of celebrities, activists, politicians and academics have joined the yatra since it was flagged off from Kanyakumari a hundred days ago. But Rajan’s presence clearly grabbed maximum attention. It hit the headlines, was the subject of animated prime-time debates on news channels and was trending on Twitter for two days. It also revived speculation that Rajan was preparing to enter politics.

Never a favourite with the Narendra Modi government, Rajan came in for a sharp attack from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which got a fresh opportunity to accuse him of being biased towards the Congress, leading to a wordy duel with its chief political adversary.

On its part, Congress exulted that a world-renowned economist had joined the yatra. The former RBI chief’s participation lifted the profile of the foot march, giving it greater heft and publicity. At the same time, it provided a perfect opening for Rahul Gandhi to take advantage of Rajan’s credibility and international standing to focus attention on the Modi government’s poor handling of the economy.

Speculation Revived

The Nehru-Gandhi scion took some time off from his walkabout to engage Rajan in a lengthy informal conversation about the country’s economic scenario, what the future holds for India and the world as well as the corrective measures which should be put in place to provide succour to the people who are suffering because of growing unemployment and rising prices.

While the Congress succeeded, to a large extent, in garnering publicity for the yatra and keeping alive the debate on the economy, Rajan’s 10-km day-long walk with Rahul Gandhi also revived speculation that the renowned economist could be drafted by the Congress for a political role.

In fact, it was the BJP’s IT cell chief Amit Malviya’s angry reaction to Rajan’s participation in the Bharat Jodo Yatra which gave voice to what was being discussed in private conversations by Congress leaders.

Hitting out at the former RBI chief, Malviya tweeted: “Raghuram Rajan, former RBI Governor, a Congress appointee, joining Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra is not a surprise. He fancies himself as the next Manmohan Singh. Just that his commentary on India’s economy should be discarded with disdain. It is coloured and opportunistic.”

Though Malviya’s was a passing reference to Rajan’s political ambitions, it is not the first time that Rajan’s name has been mentioned as a possible future finance minister and, sometimes, even as a Prime Ministerial candidate. Before he left his post as RBI chief six years ago, there had been murmurs that the Congress was keen on persuading Rajan to switch from academics to politics.

The Congress was not the only party which wanted Rajan on its side. The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party is said to have offered him a Rajya Sabha seat but he turned it down.

A Perfect Candidate

At a time when the Congress is scouting around for credible faces, Rajan is a perfect candidate. He enjoys a formidable reputation in international academic circles, has a deep understanding of economic issues and has a large fan following among the youth. But, more importantly for the Congress, Rajan is on the same side of the ideological divide and shares the same views on economic matters.

Even while serving as RBI governor in the Modi government, Rajan often disagreed with its economic policies and was equally vocal on the BJP’s social agenda. For instance, it is no secret that Rajan had told the government that Prime Minister Modi’s decision to demonetise high-value currency notes would not work and that it would lead to job losses. His advice was ignored as it was not expected of the RBI governor to disagree with the government.

Rajan also earned the current dispensation’s wrath when he didn’t always focus on economic issues while speaking at various fora. He often highlighted the importance of safeguarding secularism, the value of tolerance and the urgent need for maintaining peace and harmony among different communities which, he said, were necessary for a prosperous economy. This was seen as an indirect attack on the BJP’s majoritarian agenda and its crackdown on dissent. Given his policy differences with the government and his penchant for speaking on matters considered beyond the RBI governor’s “remit”, it was not surprising that Rajan stepped down from his post in 2016.

It is six years since Rajan returned to the world of academia but he has not vanished completely from the public eye. He continues to air his views on the global economy and other matters at various speaking engagements. But his participation in the Congress-led Bharat Jodo Yatra is perhaps his most “political” move, putting him openly in the opposition camp. But will it lead to a career move? It is perhaps too early to predict.

Anita Katyal is a senior journalist. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.