Opinion Congress vs Congress

The Congress party has been quick and fierce in rebuking Janardan Dwivedi and distancing itself from his recent remarks on Narendra Modi — in comments made to news portal, Rediff.com, Dwivedi allegedly praised Modi and ascribed his Lok Sabha victory to a higher quotient of “Bharatiyata” or Indianness. This may have been the only moment in recent memory, however, when the Congress has appeared to be quick on the draw. The aggression and agility shown by the party in coming down on its veteran has had the unintended effect, therefore, of underlining its blunted political reflexes otherwise. The Dwivedi episode also points to a thin-skinned party, which eight months later, continues to wallow in denial of Modi’s victory and its own drubbing.

Ever since its May 2014 rout, the Congress has seemed to progressively recede from public political argument. If the Modi government looked discomfited in the winter session of Parliament, it was not because the Congress succeeded in putting it on the mat, but because members of its own parivar struck discordant notes, be it on conversions or Godse. Even in the Rajya Sabha, where the Opposition is better placed, it was the Trinamool Congress, not the Congress, which appeared to lead the daily charge against the government. A similar lassitude has been visible in Congress quarters in poll-bound Delhi, with the party being the last to get its campaign off the ground in a state it has ruled for three successive terms.

Advertisement

In this backdrop, the party has ended up shining unflattering light on itself with its diatribe against its veteran and its huffy lecturing on the real “Bharatiyata”. Whatever be Dwivedi’s motivations — he has been in trouble earlier as well for apparently speaking out of turn, when he proposed a “retirement age” for politicians or criticised caste-based reservations — his comments showed him to be a step ahead of his party on a crucial count. Dwivedi suggested that the Congress was responsible for its own rout, that it needs to face up to the reasons why Modi appealed to the people and won the mandate. The Congress, on the other hand, has shown no signs so far that it has either the humility to confront its setback, or the resilience to learn from it.