Mallikarjun Kharge’s steadying hand ends Congress’s post-2019 disarray

Mallikarjun Kharge faced the delicate tasks of establishing his authority in the party and of winning elections but without taking credit for it.

As Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge completes a year in office, an evaluation of the past twelve months shows that three Cs have stood him in good stead: caste, consensus-building and commitment.

Kharge’s Dalit identity, his success in brokering peace in faction-ridden state units, and his loyalty to the Congress and the Gandhi family have all combined to ensure a trouble-free run for him as party chief.

It must be remembered that Kharge was not the first choice of the Gandhi family for the party’s premiership. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot was the chosen one but his refusal to move from his home state and the rebellion by his supporters nixed his chances.

Though senior leader Digvijaya Singh was also considered for this post, it was Kharge who finally won the crown. The Karnataka leader’s caste, seniority and fluency in Hindi made him the right choice for the job. More importantly, he was seen to be faithful to the party and  to the Gandhi family.

Dispelling Congress’s Disarray 

It has not been an easy assignment for the 81-year-old leader, the first non-Gandhi to head the party in 25 years. He inherited a proverbial crown of thorns as the Congress was virtually adrift when he took charge last year. The prolonged leadership vacuum and a series of electoral defeats had demoralised party workers while infighting in state units was rampant and the organisation was wearing thin.

Kharge faced the delicate tasks of establishing his authority in the party but without overreaching himself, of energising the cadres, and of winning elections but without taking credit for it.

A year later, the general verdict is that Kharge has done well for himself and the Congress. The division of labour that has evolved between him and Rahul Gandhi is working well: Kharge has been left to strengthen the party organisation and sort out everyday internal problems while the Nehru-Gandhi scion is the public face of the Congress party.

On The Right Side Of The Gandhis 

Perhaps Kharge’s biggest achievement has been that he has not been embroiled in any controversy so far. The clever and experienced politician that he is, Kharge has clearly drawn lessons from the experience of the late Sitaram Kesri who took on the Gandhi family after his ascension as Congress president and ended up paying the price for it. He was booted out unceremoniously.

Though former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not suffer the same fate as Kesri, family loyalists lost no time in undermining his authority in his second term as PM after it was publicly acknowledged that Singh’s popularity with the middle classes had contributed handsomely to the Congress party’s improved Lok Sabha tally in 2009.

On his part, Kharge has gone about his work, making sure he does not overshadow or antagonise Sonia or Rahul Gandhi. For instance, the  Congress Working Committee reconstituted by Kharge was a long time coming.

But the wait was worth it as eventually he managed to unveil a “please-all” team, giving representation to all sections and factions. Gandhi family loyalists were duly accommodated while members of the G-23 leaders also found a place in the new team.

Consensus Builder 

Shashi Tharoor, who contested against Kharge for the party president’s post, was given a seat at the high table. The result: the composition of the new team failed to evoke angry complaints,  a fairly common occurrence in the past.

Kharge has also proved to be an able consensus-builder as seen in the  troubled states of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh and the manner in which he sorted out  the leadership crisis in Karnataka between rivals Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar.  The long drawn-out battle between Ashok Gehlot and his bete noire Sachin Pilot was brought to an end with Kharge sitting them down and telling them, in no uncertain terms, that they have to set aside their egos and work unitedly.

He took a swipe at Gehlot and also ticked off Pilot during this meeting in the presence of Rahul Gandhi, even though the two younger leaders are known for their proximity to each other. Kharge never fails to  remind disgruntled leaders about how he continued to work selflessly for the party even when he was overlooked for the post of Karnataka chief minister twice.

An Accessible Congress President 

The new Congress president has, over the past year, made serious attempts to revitalise the moribund party organisation. A series of meetings have been convened  with different state leaders  to redress their grievances and also to give them a pep talk about the need for putting their house in order.

The rank and file have reason to be happy as Kharge is far more accessible than Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. The workers who travel to Delhi with their complaints and petitions are happy to get an audience with the party chief even if their problems are not resolved immediately.

The Congress winning Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh assembly polls under Kharge’s watch has enthused cadres who have regained their self-belief and confidence. The forthcoming assembly polls in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana are the next big test for the Congress in general and Kharge in particular.

Potential Opposition PM Face

Kharge’s image will get a big boost if the Congress registers a victory in these elections. The Congress will then rightfully claim its position as the lead player of the newly-formed opposition bloc, INDIA, while Kharge could emerge as this grouping’s Prime Ministerial face in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The other opposition leaders could be persuaded to go along with such a move as Kharge has established a good rapport with them following their floor coordination meetings in Parliament. With the Congress and other opposition parties openly playing the caste card, Kharge’s Dalit identity could prove to be a major plus for him personally and the party.

But that’s for later. Today, Kharge is comfortably ensconced as a non-Gandhi Congress president with the possibility of lasting out his full term provided he continues to play his cards well.

Anita Katyal is a Delhi-based independent journalist. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication.