Congress leader Rahul Gandhi continued with his tirade against the Indian government, the latest before the British parliamentarians in the House of Parliament complex in London on Monday, where he spoke of how the functioning of microphones in the Lok Sabha is silenced against the Opposition. He even used a faulty microphone in the room to illustrate how the Opposition voices were being stifled in India. "Our mikes are not out of order, they are functioning, but you still can't switch them on," he lamented.
The Congress leader went on to explain how the Opposition was not allowed to discuss crucial decisions like demonetisation and the GST regime.
Last week while speaking at Cambridge University, Rahul spoke of the "threat to democracy" in India and how the basic structure is facing an attack. He stressed how protests are restrained and minorities attacked while stating that many politicians, including himself, were under surveillance.
Rahul is entitled to his opinion on India's democracy, no matter how grim it may sound, and the uproar and hate that is heaped in India only justifies the increasing intolerance towards dissent. Senior leaders in the BJP have not taken the criticism of the government too well and have called it an insult to India's democracy. By reacting the way the BJP did, the party leaders have only made their discomfort and embarrassment known.
While Rahul got the optics right and earned the brownie points he was eyeing, he still paints a grim picture back home, both as a mass leader and a probable face of the Opposition. The criticism of the Modi government has come when the BJP celebrated its win in the northeastern states of Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura, where the Congress had given up. The Congress has been losing its grip while the BJP pushes its way for its Congress-mukt India. Rahul's discourse in the UK and the electoral outcomes back home are in sharp contrast and do not back the narrative of reconnecting with the people; moreover, Congress is losing ground.
Politics is a different ball game; parties need hardened leaders and strategies to drive it. The Congress cannot expect the BJP to crumble in the face of such criticism. Crying hoarse in a foreign nation may, to a certain extent, cause some embarrassment to the Narendra Modi government, but that stands too petty to damage the larger-than-life global image that the PM has created.
Rahul's speech may not entirely be out of tune, but it does not merit an international intervention or discourse since it is India's internal matter. Instead, it is for Rahul as a frontline leader to slug it out and restore parity rather than claiming helplessness. The party faces monumental challenges, and mere banter will not help.
Rahul and Congress have an uphill task in bracing up for the 2024 Lok Sabha challenge. Very soon, the UK tour will be a forgotten chapter, and the leaders will have to move away from rhetoric and focus on serious political business. The party has much to prove now that the Bharat Jodo Yatra is projected as a unifying force for India.
