Clueless boss

The Congressmen's confidence to face the elections seems to have evaporated into thin air. In fact, at the rate at which its leaders are le...

The Congressmen8217;s confidence to face the elections seems to have evaporated into thin air. In fact, at the rate at which its leaders are leaving the party in search of greener pastures, it is indeed doubtful whether it will be able to put up a fight in the coming elections. Clueless as usual is the party chief who is not confident enough to project anyone as the Congress8217; prime ministerial candidate. Sitaram Kesri believes that if the party is able to win a majority of seats on its own or with the help of its allies, the Congress Parliamentary Party is bound to choose him as its leader. Whether he realises it or not, the inability to project the party8217;s prime ministerial candidate is a handicap, more so when it always prided itself on its leader. Kesri8217;s hesitation to project himself stems from his apprehension that it may put off some sections of the voters. However, such vacillation on his part can prove costly to the Congress as has been borne out by his inability to strike a deal with the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. Realisation should have dawned upon him that the Congress needs the crutch of one of the Dravidian parties to put up a good show in the State. And to rub salt into his wounds, Vazhapadi Ramamurthy has engineered a split depriving the Tamil Nadu unit of whatever little bargaining power it had.

Even on his home turf, Bihar, the Congress has been reduced to a non-entity with senior leaders having migrated en masse to the Samata Party. Laloo Prasad Yadav, aware of the Congress8217; weakness, is unlikely to concede many seats to the party. In Uttar Pradesh, Kesri8217;s plans seem to have come unstuck with the BSP deciding to contest all the seats and Mulayam Singh Yadav refusing to part company with the United Front. Hopes of engaging the BJP-Shiv Sena combine in a one-to-one contest in Maharashtra have been dashed to the ground with the United Front-Left parties intending to try their luck. The Congress also failed to enter into a partnership with the Biju Janata Dal. Thus, whatever headstart the BJP has obtained in this election is primarily on account of Kesri8217;s failure to take timely decisions. The impression that the party is led by a weakling, who is unsure of himself, will prove detrimental to its interests. Needless to say, his detractors will exploit the situation to their advantage.

The manner in which Sonia Gandhi intervened to avert a showdown in the West Bengal unit was a telling comment on Kesri8217;s ineffectiveness. That, despite her intervention, Mamata Banerjee is not prepared to wind up her Trinamul Congress is an altogether different matter. But the very fact that she was able to call him names and nearly get away with it showed his position in poor light. By the time he took action against her, it was too late as Banerjee had made up her mind to leave the party and join hands with the BJP. In Kesri8217;s case, it was with an overwhelming majority that the partymen elected him to his post. Surely, they knew what kind of leadership they could expect from him. Then why should it bother Kesri that he always fought shy of facing elections and was never known as a grassroots leader? Congressmen gave two hoots to such considerations when they gave Kesri a massive mandate. They have got the leader they deserve. It is pointless to complain now.