The Insecurity of Congressmen

The new Congress President

I longed to see Dr Shashi Tharoor as the new President of Indian National Congress [INC]. But I knew that he stood little chance to win the election. Most Congressmen, like their counterparts in the other political parties in India, are puny-minded people who won’t be able to accept the scholarliness and profundity of a man like Dr Tharoor. As Dr Samuel Johnson put it bluntly, “Politics is the last refuge of the scoundrel.” Tharoor is an odd man out in that arena.

As a Malayalam weekly [Kalakaumudi] put it rather saucily, “given a choice between a kitchen man and a global citizen, INC will choose the former merely out of jealousy.” India’s grand old party has now chosen as the president for themselves a man who cannot climb up/down steps without another person’s help. What is this grand old man expected to do to take INC beyond a rival who brings live cheetahs from Namibia and releases them personally in a national park? 

The gallantry displayed by Dr Tharoor after his defeat is admirable. He praised the winner and appreciated “the ample leadership and experience” he brought with him to head the party. He also thanked Sonia Gandhi for her contributions to the party as its president. Such courtesy is not seen generally among Indian politicians who are bundles of all possible cardinal sins.

The Congressmen of Dr Tharoor’s home state [Kerala] went out of their way to defeat him. One of these men from Kerala had declared on a social media that his love was for Tharoor but his vote was for Kharge. He was trolled by someone that it was like giving his love to his wife and his orgasm to his neighbour-woman.

Mallikarjun Kharge was the discovery of another Congressman from Kerala: A K Antony who is one year older than Kharge. The grand old party of India will continue to be led by grand old men who will remain puppets in the hands of the remaining Gandhis none of whom has the potential to take on the political acumen of Modi-Shah duo.

During Vajpayee’s time, when Dr P C Alexander’s name was suggested for the President of India, this same A K Antony pulled the strings and jettisoned Alexander’s chance merely out of jealousy. Something similar is believed to have happened with P J Kurien’s chance of becoming the Vice President during Modi’s time.

What the INC should do first of all is to clean their own hearts as far as that is possible for politicians. The kind of drama being enacted by Rahul Gandhi by undertaking a yatra with the luxury of 65 caravans escorting him for all of the 150 days will turn out to be nothing more than a proof of Rahul’s good health.

Dr Tharoor would have been the ideal successor to the legacy of Jawaharlal Nehru. In spite of the limitations they may both have as intellectuals rather than hardcore politicians. We know what shrewd politicians have done and are still doing to the country. It is high time to try out something different from shrewdness.