Commentary/Saisuresh Sivaswamy

Beyond the Congress polls

This week should see the consolidation of Sitaram Kesri's hold over the Congress party, but by no means will it mean the end of the battle for control of one of the largest political parties in the world. And the future of the party will depend, to a large extent, on how the contenders for power adjust to each other after the result are out, but in particular a lot will depend on the attitude taken by the front-runner, Kesri.

For, traditionally, the Congress has not been one to go in for a contest to elect its leader. Whatever may have been the compulsions that may have guided the stalwarts of the Congress party to eschew this concession to inner-party democracy, it was not what motivated the leadership after the split in the 1970s. For by then, its leader had come to believe in the dictum, Indira is India, and let her be the party's lucky mascot. So long as the Gandhi family was around to steer the Congress through thick and thin, no one else could think of the top post, which was the reason why polls were given the go-by.

But with the family not showing any inclination to revert to what many in the party think is its rightful place, the top slot has lost its sanctity, and it is up to anyone to aspire for the same. Ergo, one sees not two but three contenders, all with visions of leading the party out of its stupor.

Is Kesri the right man for the job is a question that could be debated till kingdom come. Frankly, he does not seem like someone who can lead himself out of a dark room, forget the party which he is hoping to lead to electoral revival. But then, competence and capability are not factors that always swing the results in an election. If they were, more than half our elected representatives will find themselves out of a job.

What matters more is the ability to convince those casting the ballot that among the available lot, s/he is the best bet going. And especially in an organisational poll of the kind that the Congress is facing, it is a truism that the incumbent often starts off in the race with a huge advantage by virtue of holding the office to which he is seeking election.

It need not be anyone's contention that Kesri represents the best bet for the Congress party, but to the large section of the electoral college that will be casting its vote a couple of days from now, he appears to be the best bet, given that the other two are Sharad Pawar and Rajesh Pilot.

Frankly, Pawar does not have much to speak for him. He faces the dubious distinction of having been unable to wrest the state from the clutches of the saffron brigade, and it is not something that a contender for power can expect to be glossed over. To make things worse for him, he is in the organisation led by Indira Gandhi when she was in the political wilderness during the Janata experiment. Add to it his perceived proximity to big business, and his alleged dalliance with antisocial elements, his was a fight that was lost even before his nomination papers were filed. But these are not factors that impede Rajesh Pilot. What does is something different altogether. For he is a man who has willy-nilly donned the garb of a rebel without a pause, and that is not an endearing qualification in a conservative party like the Congress.

So more than his own credentials, it may well be his opponents's drawbacks that will bring in the votes for Sitaram Kesri, who is sitting pretty in the knowledge that the sun will shine on his right side on Monday.

But, to an organisation unaccustomed to seeing a contest for the top job, it will not be the end of the matter. After all, the run-up to the elections has seen acrimony exchanges, and in some cases the free use of hands and legs as well. For someone as astute as Pawar, the elections has also given him a chance to articulate what, in his opinion, the party should be doing and where it went wrong. After having said these things, especially after having maintained a studied silence on controversial topics such as these, he cannot be expected to quietly sit back and watch the slide continue.

Nor for the matter can Kesri be expected to behave as if nothing was said and done these past few weeks by those opposing his leadership.

It must have been fears over the acrimony that such contests engender that forced the hands of the Congress stalwarts to plumb in favour of consensus.

Alas, the clock is not something that can be set back, nor can words and sentiments be forgotten. The last time the Congress party faced a contest for the top job it also witnessed a split between the two opposing factions, and it is up to the present contestants to ensure that history does not repeat itself.

The importance of Pawar and Pilot being the fray is that they have managed to bring to the fore the issues that they know are of interest to Congressmen. These issues may not be something that the incumbent may be aware of; or if he is, of their seriousness. Once the elections are over, the sane -- not to mention sage -- thing for Kesri to do will be to involve his adversaries in the decision-making process, by which he will actually be strengthening the organisation.

It is far simpler to sideline them, of course, especially Pawar who has for the first time in his political career spoken what is on his mind, but that will mean that Kesri will have only won the battle. The war is what is looming before the Congress, and to be able to win it Kesri will need to marshall all the available help. Even if it is from Pawar and Pilot.

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