In Uttar Pradesh, the Congress needs a new face, new vision and a new strategy. Priyanka Vadra may be the game-changer
Once again, there are speculations whether Congress scion Priyanka Vadra will come to active politics or not. This ‘will she, won’t she’ question has been dogging the Congress which has been facing an existential crisis. No one should be surprised at Priyanka Vadra’s entry as it had always been held that she would join politics at some time or the other. That ‘some time’ has finally come. The only question is: Will the dynastic face clickIJ
The Gandhi family has always held Priyanka Vadra as the trump card. It is clear that Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has not clicked even after 14 years because he is not keen on a 24/7 job. He could not prove to be a vote-catcher and did not find a solution to arrest the party’s decline. However, Priyanka Vadra might be fielded out of desperation now.
The million dollar question is: Can Priyanka Vadra help revive the CongressIJ As of now, there are talks of her stepping out of her family pocket boroughs Amethi and Rae Bareli to campaign for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh polls which is scheduled early next year. The Congress ranks number four or five in Uttar Pradesh, and has not ruled the State after 1989. In the 2012 Assembly polls, it came a cropper and in the 2014 lok Sabha polls it managed to get just Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi’s seats.
When Prashant Kishor, touted to be the man behind the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (in 2014 lok Sabha polls) and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar (in Bihar Assembly election 2015) was engaged by the Congress as its strategist for Punjab and Uttar Pradesh polls, he had suggested a Brahmin face as the chief ministerial candidate for Uttar Pradesh — either Priyanka Vadra or former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit.
Among all social groups, the Congress polls the highest percentage of votes from the Brahmins even now. Hence, the talk of Priyanka Vadra. There is urgency for these decisions as the polls are just a few months away. Insiders predict that in all probability Priyanka Vadra might take a direct plunge into electoral politics in the 2019 general election and, as a first step, aggressively campaign across Uttar Pradesh in next year’s Assembly election. A large part of her decision is also personal. The BJP’s relentless attacks on her husband Robert Vadra, accusing him of financial wrongdoings, too may have forced her to take the plunge.
Whether it’s her lineage or her connect with the people, Priyanka Vadra seems to be the ideal choice for the Congress, party insiders feel as it will help cement the family’s primacy in the party and also energise the rank and file, most of whom have greater faith in her pugnaciousness than her brother Rahul Gandhi. She has seen politics discussed in the dining table since her childhood. Besides, she also has a distinct style of personalised campaigning.
She has many plus points as she has a clean slate and comes from the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. She is young, pretty, connects with people and represents today’s youth. She might have no challengers in the party. She looks like former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. She is TV savvy, can charm the media and is articulate. She is good in Hindi and can be a good match to the BJP orators.
However, the minus points are also many. First, her husband Robert Vadra is her biggest baggage. Second, she has had no experience in hardcore politics and has so far indulged only in backroom politics. Third, she is untested and untried. All that we have seen of her is the occasional sound bites she provides on her forays into the Amethi Rae Bareli. Fourth, there is no statistical proof that she is the vote-catcher. Fifth, the Kishor strategy is a gamble. He had a winner when he strategised for ‘brand Modi’, and a tried-and-tested product in ‘Brand Nitish’ in 2015.
Sixth, it is doubtful whether the dynastic card will work in the present day situation when voters are aspirational. Seventh, it is not clear what will be Priyanka Vadra’s role in the party. As it is, there are two poles in the Congress and she will become a third pole for the disgruntled elements in the party. lastly, is it little too late to bring her nowIJ How can anyone expect her to deliver with actually no organisation in the State and no time to build itIJ
Despite all these, Priyanka Vadra may become a game-changer if she can energise the party. What the party needs is a new face, new vision, new ideas and new strategy. Kishor is depending on ‘face plus base’ strategy and hopes a pairing of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra can help the party. Only time will tell whether Vadra will be a game-changer.