Once known for its one-party dominance in the country, Congress' fate is looming in darkness after 2019 Lok Sabha Election debacle. Amid leadership crisis in Congress, Party General Secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia and the party's Mumbai President Milind Deora tendered their resignations on Sunday, days after Rahul Gandhi stepped down as Congress President taking responsibility for the party's drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls.
The two leaders' departure comes at a time when the Congress is struggling to keep its house in order to save the 13-month-old Congress-Janata Dal-Secular government in Karnataka following the resignation of 11 MLAs on Saturday. Rahul Gandhi's stepping down has already triggered a wave of protests and resignations by party functionaries from across the country. Most of the resignations the Congress is witnessing are from the members of team Rahul Gandhi, be it AICC secretaries or a range of state chiefs he positioned in different regions. Seems like no one’s interested in reviving the grand old party and seem content stepping away taking moral responsibility for the loss.
The ongoing crisis is just the latest flashpoint in Karnataka's power struggle which has become murkier over the past year. For the Congress, the timing could not have been worse. It comes after the humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha elections and at a time when the party is grappling with a leadership vacuum at the topmost level.
Lack of leadership face and organisational structure
The Congress drew a blank in 17 states and union territories in the 2019 elections, signalling that the party lacks a strong leadership face and organisational structure. The Congress even badly failed in three Hindi heartland states – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan – where it had won Assembly elections in December 2018.
Besides this, the Congress has witnessed infighting in states like Punjab and Karnataka and Haryana. In Punjab, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and Navjot Singh Sidhu have been at loggerheads over several issues, including Sidhu's visit to Pakistan. On the other hand, former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda demanded the removal of state party chief Ashok Tanwar, signalling a divide within the party.
Way ahead
As the elections in three states – Jharkhand, Haryana and Maharashtra – are due towards the end of this year, Congress needs to work to make its organisational structure strong by bringing forward the young blood. Apart from this, the party also needs to set its agendas right. Rahul Gandhi's 'Chowkidar chor hai' jibe against Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have backfired. The party's manifesto also mentioned scrapping of sedition law and review of AFSPA in Kashmir which seem to have cost it dearly in the general elections.
Here's a list of prominent Congress faces who have resigned after Lok Sabha elections:
Milind Deora: Mumbai Congress president Milind Deora on Sunday announced his resignation from the post and said he was looking forward to play a role at the national level to help stabilise the party. Deora quit as the Congress' Mumbai chief, barely three months before the crucial Maharashtra Assembly elections.
Jyotiraditya Scindia: Congress leader and former Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Sunday announced resignation from the post of party general secretary. Scindia's resignation comes at a time when the party leaders from several states are offering their resignation or have resigned as an expression of solidarity with Rahul Gandhi, who recently quit as the party president.
Kamal Nath: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath resigned as Madhya Pradesh Congress chief. The Congress party had suffered a drubbing even in the Hindi heartland states where only last year it had ousted the BJP from power in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.
Raj Babbar: He resigned as Uttar Pradesh Congress president after the poll debacle. And days after Babbar resigned from the party post owing to party’s poor performance in the state in recently concluded Lok Sabha Elections 2019, 35 office-bearers of state unit quit on Saturday continuing the spate of resignations in the grand old party.
Harish Rawat: Former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat announced his resignation as the Congress general secretary in-charge of Assam. He took moral responsibility of the party's poor show in the north-eastern state in the recently-concluded Lok Sabha polls.
Vivek Tankha: Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha stepped down from all party positions with immediate effect. He said was doing this to allow Congress president Rahul Gandhi to choose his team freely.
Dipak Babaria: Congress Gujarat leader Babaria resigned as party general secretary in charge of Madhya Pradesh to show solidarity with party Chief Rahul Gandhi. Meanwhile, the Gujarat Congress leaders offered to dissolve the body, and are waiting for the high command's decision in the matter.
Girish Chodankar: Goa Congress President Girish Chodankar resigned claiming the party's national President Rahul Gandhi's "firm decision not to withdraw his resignation" made it a moral binding on him to step down too, following the party's poor showing in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.
Poonam Prabhakar: Taking responsibility for the Lok Sabha election defeat, Former MP Poonam Prabhakar resigned as the working president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC).
Rajesh Lilothia: Rajesh Lilothia, who was also a party candidate from North West Delhi, resigned as the Delhi Congress Working President.
Virendra Rathore: Rathore resigned as Congress in-charge for Bihar. He took the responsibility for the party's defeat in the recently held Lok Sabha polls.
Nana Patole: Congress’ farmer wing leader from Maharashtra Nana Patole too quit as the Kisan Congress chief. In the Lok Sabha elections, Patole had lost to BJP’s Nitin Gadkari from Nagpur seat.
