Post a massive electoral debacle, the Congress is directionless, clueless and leaderless. Problems are mounting with power struggles between the old and new guard deepening every passing day. The grand old party needs to come up with a revival plan

An intense power struggle is on between the old guard and the young Turks in the Congress even as the party is struggling with an unprecedented leadership crisis after a humiliating defeat in the recent Lok Sabha polls. Congress president Rahul Gandhi has plunged the party into further crisis by resigning and sticking to his decision so far.

The younger lot feels that Rahul Gandhi’s hands need consolidation for him to purge several from the old guard to restructure the party. However, those in the old guard argue that the Congress scion had led the party’s campaign from the front and most of the decisions were his. They are unwilling to own up responsibility for the debacle despite media statements from Rahul like: “I cannot ask others to resign, too. It is up to them if they want to take responsibility.” Interestingly, after the electoral drubbing, while Rahul Gandhi blamed the senior leaders for not supporting his campaign, AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra blamed the workers for the poor show. So the blame-game goes on.

The young Turks have seized the opportunity to demand the removal of an incompetent old guard. To force their hands, over 140 leaders have resigned en masse with more resignations in the pipeline. The resignations were ostensibly to give a free hand to Rahul Gandhi to restructure the party. The spree began last week with young leaders, including vice chairman of AICC foreign affairs department Pratap Singh Bajwa, senior Congress leader and advocate Vivek Tankha, AICC secretary and Rajasthan co-incharge Tarun Kumar and Congress Legislature Party leader in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council Deepak Singh. Their main demand is that the present Congress Working Committee (CWC)  be disbanded and that the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) presidents of the 17 States, where the party failed to win a single Lok Sabha seat, should step down. They also hope that mass resignations will convince Rahul Gandhi to take back his resignation. All these at a time when the party chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala has been claiming, “Rahul Gandhi was, is and will remain the Congress president.”

In a counter move, the old guard, which is not willing to give up its hold on the party, has floated the names of three senior party loyalists as the new party president if Rahul Gandhi is determined to quit. Leaders include Union minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, former Congress party leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. All three leaders will vacate their seat whenever the family wants to take back the chair. Shinde seems to have an edge over the others. It is clear that the family will not give up its hold on the party easily with three Gandhis at the top level.

The Congress is certainly going through a rough patch but the leadership problem is something that should be resolved soon. The morale of the workers is low as the party has suffered two successive electoral defeats.  Technically, Rahul Gandhi is in-charge as the CWC has rejected his resignation. He has thoughtlessly plunged the party into a chaos without providing for an alternative leadership. Even many senior leaders have no clue whether Rahul will remain or go.

The party is directionless, clueless and leaderless. As a result, factional fights have broken out in several States including Karnataka, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. At the national headquarters, the tussle between the old guard and the young Turks has broken out. In Telangana and Maharashtra, the grand old party is facing erosion. The Congress-ruled Karnataka, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh State Governments look precarious.

So, the first priority for the party must be to decide on the leadership issue. It’s been almost a month since Rahul Gandhi offered to quit. If he insists on the same, the party should waste no time and look for someone to replace him. There were even talks of a collegium to run the party while Rahul goes on a countrywide pad yatra.   There is urgency because Assembly elections are due in some States like Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand.

Second, the organisation needs a thorough overhaul at all levels and the CWC has already authorised Rahul Gandhi to address this. People with mass base should be made in-charge of election-bound States.

Third, the communication strategy of the party needs to be improved.   Fourth, the party should also improve its social engineering and alliance strategy. Where the Congress is in a position to give a direct fight to the BJP, local leadership should be encouraged. Above all, the party should introspect and take corrective steps soon.

In a democracy, there is need for an effective Opposition and the Congress, being the main national party, should lead the Opposition in Parliament and outside. Restoration of the party’s health is very important for the grand old party’s survival.

(The writer is a senior political commentator and syndicated columnist)