The Congress seems content to let the impression gain ground that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may continue for a third term
Even as the confused Congress workers mull over the conflicting statements of some senior party leaders, including Gandhi-scion Rahul Gandhi, Congress media cell chairperson Janardan Dwivedi has triggered yet another debate by insisting that the present model of ‘power sharing’ between Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may continue in future.
Interestingly, not just the clueless Congress workers but even the party leaders are confused about the future. There are questions galore: Will Rahul magic work in the 2014 electionIJ Will he lead the partymen or prefer back-seat driving like his mother Sonia GandhiIJ Will Prime Minister Manmohan Singh head the Government if the Congress returns to power for a third term or will someone else be the mother-son duo’s choiceIJ Though there is no clarity on these issues, some Congress leaders think is a calculated strategy adopted by the party leadership. First, it was Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi who stated that becoming the Prime Minister was not his priority; he wanted to develop leadership in the State.
Next were statements from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, while returning from Durban recently, wherein he did not rule out a third term for himself. The Prime Minister is not one to make such statements unless he is sure of himself.
This was followed by the criticism of the ‘dual power centre’ that presently exists, by AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh who suggested that there should be only one power centre and the Prime Minister should have all the authority to function, implying that the present arrangement between Mr Singh and Ms Gandhi has not worked well.
And Mr Dwivedi’s official statement has made it even more confusing. In his effort to snub Mr Digvijaya Singh, did Mr Dwivedi mean that the Congress plans to continue the same power-sharing arrangement in the futureIJ That being the official line, will Rahul Gandhi also find a Manmohan Singh of his choice like his mother did in 2004IJ
Why is the Congress adopting this strategyIJ One interpretation could be the Modi factor. With Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi nursing national ambitions, there are expectations that he may be declared BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. Both the Congress as well as Mr Gandhi shy from a ‘Modi versus Rahul’ contest.
The whole campaign could be built around the Manmohan Singh-led UPA Government’s achievements, including the proposed Food Security Bill; cash transfer scheme and other welfare measures. Mr Singh is not a novice and could take on Mr Modi with his clean image and middle class constituency.
The Muslim factor may also work with the minorities returning to the Congress fearing a Modi rule. On the other hand if this fails, the blame would be on Mr Singh, the anti-incumbency factor, and not on Mr Gandhi who may continue to lead the party.
If the campaign is built around the Mr Gandhi and his magic fails, then his future would be at stake. Moreover, alliance leaders like Nationalist Congress Party’s Sharad Pawar, RJD’s lalu Prasad and lok Janshakti Party leader Ram Vilas Paswan may not like to work under Mr Gandhi, and the continuance of Mr Singh may suit them.
It could be that Mr Gandhi does not want the Prime Minister’s post and would prefer to continue his mother’s experiment — enjoy absolute power without taking any responsibility. If this is so, it will not be a desirable experiment. Mr Digvijaya Singh was right when he said that the power sharing experiment between Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh has failed. This was the view of many when scam after scam began to emerge in the UPA2 regime.
The Congress did adopt a one-man one-post policy until Indira Gandhi began to occupy the posts of Congress president and that of the Prime Minister. But there was one difference — the Prime Minister was more powerful than the party president and the party acknowledged this fact because of strong Prime Ministers like Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi. It will not be good for a democracy to have too many power centres — in this case Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.
It is possible that neither the Congress nor the BJP may announce its respective prime ministerial candidate, as both face some problems. The next best thing would be to appoint a prominent person as the campaign committee chairman. Mr Gandhi is heading the Congress poll coordination committee and Mr Modi may be heading the BJP campaign committee soon.