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Congress’ faith in Rahul: Will he sail or sink?

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, along with other younger brigade of Congress, has always been full of praises for Rahul. Today was no different.

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, along with other younger brigade of Congress, has always been full of praises for Rahul. Today was no different.

Addressing a press conference in Bhopal, he said, if Rahul Gandhi leads the country there would be development of all sections of the society. “I believe and have full faith and hope, that if Rahul Gandhi leads the country then it will benefit all sections of the country as he (Rahul), unlike others, always thinks about the nation and for the poor and development,” he reportedly declared.

Earlier in Delhi, home minister Sushilkumar Shinde had damned the BJP leadership before their parliamentary board meeting, saying in the media that “anybody was free to declare their leader” and that “Rahul Gandhi is our candidate for the prime minister’s post”.

In fact, Congress has been ever ready to “serve” under their prince and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi, as Prime Minister Manmohan Sigh too confirmed it onboard Air India a few days ago. He had said that he was “ready to work under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership”. “I have always maintained that Rahul Gandhiji would be an ideal choice for prime minister’s post after 2014 election,” he had further added.

But Rahul baba has always put him behind the party leadership. In last general elections too, his policy was evasive and Singh had to take over the second term after later was declared a leader by Rahul himself.

Even if he assumes the charge of party leader for next general elections, it is hard to say whether his tactics would work on public. His track record is already bad with the loss of assembly elections in many states this year by Congress whose charge was on him.

To be an able speaker as against Modi is another problem. Last time when he was heard delivering a public speech, he was telling the public to “eat roti and vote for Congress” in a tribal dominated Udaipur region in Rajasthan to be precise. He was endorsing the voice of Congress’s critics that the food bill was devised just in time before the general elections to gain votes.

He was in fact smart in mentioning the MNREGA scheme subtly (“100 din kaam karenge”) which has reaped benefits for the UPA government.

He was in full throttle mentioning all the welfare schemes that his party has just pushed through parliament also accusing the opposition of being anti-poor.

“The opposition wants that infrastructure should be developed – roads and airports should be developed…we say that infrastructure should be built, but the country will only progress when labourers and people contributing towards development have sufficient food to eat,” he said.

“One person came and made fun (of us)… No matter how much you criticise us, we won’t accept it… we are fighting for the poor people in the country. I want to crush my dreams and make your dreams mine,” he added without naming Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

He had been playing the sentimental card his family is well known for. In Delhi, he asked the public during his speech if providing food to the poor was wastage of money.

But the more he talks about it, the more he sounds like a complaining boy having been beaten by the opposition.

He is not revealing the truth to the masses. He is not telling them that the country’s economy is badly affected due to the bad governance and policies of his government which in turn has inflated the prices and is resulting in less food for the poor. He is not giving them skills and is buying votes by the cash schemes of his government.

Although his ascendancy undoubtedly will result in a young leadership after his father and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi for India, but we all know what kind of governance Rajiv Gandhi provided. And it will also be foolish to expect good governance from Rahul because he will have the same band of workers from Congress who are involved neck deep in a number of scams.

But however meek he may sound, we know he is a cunning shark who made an intelligent comment saying “if India is a computer, Congress is its default programme”. Now it is only for time to tell whether he sinks the boat or leads it to the shore.

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