New Delhi: Every meeting of Congress leaders turns into a discussion on Rahul Gandhi quitting as the party president a month ago and refusing to retract on it despite its unanimous rejection by the Congress Working Committee (CWC).
It happened again on Wednesday when Sonia Gandhi had called a meeting of the party’s Lok Sabha members to discuss the parliamentary strategy.
Instead, what dominated was the concern over Rahul’s decision to quit as everybody felt the party will become weaker in his absence and he was required to lead the opposition forces more than ever before.
And, Rahul’s response remained the same. He refused to change his mind but assured the fellow MPs that he will perform minimal responsibilities for the upcoming elections as the Congress President until his successor is finalised.
Sources said Rahul had agreed to hold meetings with leaders of poll-bound states only because he didn’t want to be irresponsible till a new structure was put in place.
He will meet leaders from Haryana on Thursday, from Maharashtra on Friday, and from Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday. Leaders from Delhi are also expected to meet him to discuss the Delhi Assembly elections due in January next year.
While around ten MPs got to speak in the meeting chaired by Sonia Gandhi, there was a unanimous view that the party cannot afford to let Rahul go at this critical juncture. Sonia opted not to air her views.
Rahul felt this meeting was not the right occasion to discuss the leadership issue. He asserted that he was not going to change his decision. The party MPs wanted Sonia to advise Rahul, arguing how his continuation was essential for the revival of the party.
They said no single individual can take the blame for the election results and nobody thought he was responsible for the outcome. On the contrary, they said he provided exemplary leadership in difficult times.
Some MPs even argued that the Congress would fall into the BJP’s trap and the downslide would become irreversible if he stepped aside. But Rahul responded firmly by saying that he had decided much before the results that he would not continue if he failed. He said he had to take moral responsibility as he was leading the party in the battle.
The MPs, however, were in no mood to relent. While some of them wanted to pass a formal resolution, others felt there was no need for formality as the meeting unanimously resolved to continue under his leadership and his desire to quit stood rejected. The CWC had already rejected his resignation offer and on Wednesday the Congress Parliamentary Party also did the same.
Meanwhile, there was a demonstration too in front of Rahul’s residence on Wednesday morning as Youth Congress workers entreated him to stay as the party chief. Holding placards saying ‘Nation Needs You’,
Youth Congress members from across the country sat on a dharna outside his 12, Tughlaq Lane residence and shouted slogans seeking him to continue as the party chief.
Some placards read: Without you, we are nothing. The party workers also ran a social media campaign under the hashtag #MyLeaderRahulGandhi which trended for hours with over 40,000 retweets.
Many state chiefs also issued appeals for Rahul to continue. For instance, Gujarat unit chief Amit Chavda tweeted: "Rahul Gandhi ji has led the Congress from the front in most difficult times.
Instances of hatred, violence are on the rise across the country, the very idea of India is under threat. We need you Rahul ji now more than ever to guide us through these tough times."
Many senior Congress leaders separately debated this subject and the overwhelming sentiment was that the party will sink without the active guidance of Rahul and Sonia as they alone had nationwide acceptability.
Some leaders who felt Rahul had taken the right decision argued that this drastic step was required to shake the rotting machine that the Congress had become; particularly to convince the entrenched forces that a new structure was required to be raised.
But there is a consensus in the party that he was the best leader to steer the ship out of this unprecedented turbulence and he must remain at the helm of affairs and be deeply involved even if a new president is appointed to look after the nitty-gritty of the organisation.
