Broad sweep

The Chhattisgarh PCC chiefs comment belongs to a long tradition of sycophancy

The Chhattisgarh PCC chiefs comment belongs to a long tradition of sycophancy

Sir Walter Raleigh,who famously laid out his cloak for Elizabeth I,would have been put to shame. Charan Das Mahant,presumably overjoyed by his appointment as Chhattisgarh PCC chief,has professed his willingness to sweep the party office if Sonia Gandhi so desired. Over the years,Congress members have finessed a lavish courtly culture around the partys so-called first family. No Congressman worth his salt will ever forget his tehzeeb at party durbars,neither will he present himself without a word of taareef on his lips.

Mahant could have been quoting Giani Zail Singh,former president of India,who had expressed the same sentiments about Indira Gandhi. The tradition of intemperate praise is long. Remember Dev Kant Baruah,Congress party president in the 1970s,who had declared Indira is India and India is Indira. Indira Gandhis brand of personalised power may have been somewhat diluted after her death,but certain practices endure. In true durbari tradition,most appointments,even at the state level,are decided by the party high command. At least two serving governors have announced,with devastating candour,that their loyalty to Sonia Gandhi has been rewarded.

Occasionally,the first family protests. The convenor of the UP Kisan Congress was handed a suspension notice this year after he displayed posters of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi at the Kumbh Mela,depicting her as Rani Laxmibai and him as Lord Shiva. But this squeamishness might have had more to do with the use of religious imagery. The BJP,meanwhile,seems to have no such qualms. Once proud of flaunting its inner-party democracy,the BJP now sports posters of Narendra Modi dressed as Lord Krishna,accompanied by chants of NaMo,NaMo. So on one count,voters may be certain. Never mind who wins in 2014,the durbar will continue to thrive.

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