‘Is Rahul Gandhi ashamed of ally IUML?’: Congress caught in a case of the missing flags in Kerala

The Congress caution stemmed from its 2019 experience when IUML flags at a similar roadshow held by Rahul, ahead of filing his nomination from Wayanad, had been dubbed by the BJP as “Pakistani flags”. The IUML flags are green in colour with a crescent. BJP president Amit Shah had said: “When a procession is taken out, you cannot make out whether it is in India or Pakistan.”

This time, the IUML and Congress workers at the Rahul roadshow only carried his photos and Tricolour balloons.

On Thursday, the CPI(M) and BJP both lectured the Congress on the “dignity” of a party’s flag and the “importance” of keeping it flying high.

The CPI(M) said the absence of the flags proved its point that the Congress – its main rival in the state – was too cowardly to take on the Sangh Parivar. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan added his weight to the attack, while pointing out that the Congress flag closely remembered the Tricolour.

“The Congress has stooped to such a level that it is afraid of the BJP. It is a demand of the Sangh Parivar that the Tricolour be abandoned (Opposition parties accuse the BJP of this as the RSS for a long time did not hoist the Tricolour at its headquarters). The Congress is yielding to that demand of the Sangh Parivar,” Vijayan said, adding that Kerala should vote for MPs with “strong political convictions”, “who do not hide their party flags due to fear of the BJP”.

Participated in public rallies in support of Com. Annie Raja, the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency. Massive crowds turned out, showcasing the significant progress of the LDF campaign. People of Wayand will unite behind the Left,… pic.twitter.com/UBhi2LYbpI

— Pinarayi Vijayan (@pinarayivijayan) April 1, 2024

BJP state president K Surendran posted on X how proud the party was of its own flag. “Unhesitatingly waving our lotus flag, chanting Bharat Mata ki jai. No one can stop us from waving our flag, and no one can deny it.”

He went on to share a visual of a BJP roadshow in Wayanad with hundreds of party flags.

Unhesitatingly waving our ‘lotus’ FLAG, chanting ‘Bharat Matha Ki Jai’. No one can stop us from waving our flag, and no one can deny it. Sharing a glimpse of today’s roadshow that electrified Wayanad! #WelcomeKSByeByeRaGa #PhirEkBaarModiSarkaar pic.twitter.com/Gu1YhIY2Wc

— K Surendran(മോദിയുടെ കുടുംബം) (@surendranbjp) April 4, 2024

Union minister Smriti Irani, who campaigned for the BJP in the constituency on Thursday, said if Rahul was “ashamed” of its ally IUML, he should reject their support.

While the Congress has not offered any official reason for not having flags at Rahul’s roadshow, its senior leader V D Satheesan said: “The CPI(M) need not give a class to the Congress on how to conduct a campaign. In the last elections, the BJP created a controversy. This time, the CPI(M) has stepped in to propitiate the BJP. Vijayan is attacking Rahul Gandhi at the behest of the BJP. We know how to conduct Rahul’s roadshow.”

The IUML, which had senior leaders such as P K Kunhalikutty attending Rahul’s road show, supported the Congress decision while attacking the CPI(M). Underlining the Left’s marginal presence outside Kerala and its alliance with the Congress elsewhere, Kunhalikutty, the IUML national general secretary, said: “Outside Kerala, the CPI(M) needs the flag of the Congress. In West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, the CPI(M)’s red flag needs the flag of the Congress. Beyond Wayanad, we see CPI(M) workers raising slogans for Rahul with Congress flags in their hands. Rahul is the leader of the INDIA bloc. He is fighting against the BJP and he should be supported, instead of picking up such issues.”

However, the Congress will be wary of the issue creating mistrust between it and the IUML at a time when the CPI(M) is trying to woo the outfit – with precisely the message that the Congress can’t take on the Sangh Parivar.

The IUML holds a huge sway in Wayanad, which has a large population of Muslims. In 2019, when Rahul lost from the family bastion of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, the IUML’s backing had partly ensured his record-setting win from Wayanad.

On Thursday, in a related development, the Congress officially turned down the unilateral support offered to it by the SDPI, the political wing of the banned right-wing Islamist outfit PFI. As the BJP had attacked it over the issue, the Congress had tried to dodge taking a stand on it.

During his media interaction in Wayanad, Irani also attacked Rahul over the SDPI support to the Congress.

Later, speaking in Thiruvananthapuram, Irani, who defeated Rahul from Amethi, said the Gandhi family had “defeated the people of Amethi” and now they want to “defeat the people of Wayanad”.