The much-touted Congress rally at Ramlila Ground failed to enthuse people, especially the farmers. It was quite visible as the farmers and workers, who were brought from all parts of the country, appeared least interested in listening to their leaders.
The crowd-connect was missing as Rahul Gandhi failed to strike a chord with them. The farmers and labourers, who came to attend the rally on Sunday, were more interested in cheering their regional leaders than the Central leadership.
In what seemed like a stage-managed appearance, Rahul spoke to thousands of villagers brought to New Delhi on special trains and buses, vowing to block Modi’s plan to make it easier for the business community by forcibly acquiring lands from the farmers.
If the rally was aimed at relaunching the Gandhi scion on the national political scenario, it failed to do so. Those present at Ramlila Maidan were more impressed with the speech of Congress president Sonia Gandhi than her son Rahul Gandhi.
Not just that, the internal factors of the party came to fore as the pink turbaned supporters of former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda booed Ashok Tanwar, the Haryana Congress president. Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot’s supporters wore Rajasthani turbans as if to show to the high command that they were there for Pilot.
Though the mother-son duo spoke together for an hour, it was Sonia’s speech which received more applause from the crowd than Rahul’s, who made his first public appearance after a 56-day sabbatical. Only a section of the crowd drawn from NSUI behind the media stand cheered whenever the Gandhi scion made a point.
The party’s Sewa Dal unit placed at certain blocks used to initiate the clapping thereafter followed by others to set the temper of the gathering during Rahul’s speech, which is considered to be the Gandhi scion’s relaunch.
While wit was largely absent from his speech, comments swept across on the change within him after a two-month long break. Rahul however, limited use of his pet word Bhaiyya.
On the other hand, Sonia tried to put forth the point more aggressively and the gathering was able to catch on to her heavily-accented diction, pausing every time she referred to Modi, NDA’s policies and achievements of the Congress.
“Sonia’s speech was more inspiring than Rahul’s. We had expected a new kind of aggression from Rahul after his self-introspection. But I think he failed to rise to the occasion,” said Ranbeer Jhangra from Sonepat, who was there to attend the rally.
The Congress had pulled out all the stops to mobilise support for the mass protest, which is being seen as a springboard for the 44-year-old Gandhi to relaunch himself as a strong party leader. His inexplicable absence from the political arena has invited trenchant criticism from the Opposition, especially ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the rally was tailored to suit his return to active politics.
To ensure the anti-land law rally’s success, Congress sources said former MlAs and other farmer leaders were asked by the party’s leaders to bring more and more people to Ramlila Ground on Sunday. A former MlA said that he was assigned to bring 10 buses to the rally. “We have ensured food and money to those going for the rally,” said a Congress leader who did not wish to be named.
Even Congress leaders of Delhi were not impressed with the way Rahul Gandhi delivered his speech at Kisan-Khet Mazdoor rally. “He didn’t say anything new. Content was poor,” said a Congress worker, who did not wish to be named.
A group of farmers listening to Rahul’s address along with a few Congress workers from Rohtak said that he (Rahul Gandhi) didn’t roll up the sleeves of his kurta in an aggressive gesture that he would display often during the election rallies. “The pause between his sentences too was much briefer than in the past,” they added.
A farmer from Rohtak said that he felt let down by Rahul Gandhi’s speech. “It seems nothing has changed in Rahul Gandhi,” he said “We are not against land acquisition, but this should happen with the consent of farmers at a good price,” said Muktar Singh, a 66-year old farmer, who came from Jhajjar district of Haryana.