Politics is much more than winning elections, reminds Rahul Gandhi, the last man standing

I like her. I like her seriousness about journalistic ethics. I like that she takes pride in being a ‘Liberal’ and wrote a book about it. I like the fact that she is not lackadaisical about asking hard-hitting questions. I like contrarian points of view, because they provide fresh opportunities for argumentative Indians to engage in constructive debates, thereby strengthening the foundations of democracy.

Ignoring the fact that a few months back she was trying to persuade Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal via Twitter to open plush salons in Delhi amid the Corona scare, so that she could get rid of her ‘hairy problem’, I would even take her jibes at Rahul Gandhi for doing ‘online discussions’ with ‘VIPs’ on the COVID-19 mess, very seriously.

She is certainly entitled to her opinion when she tries to chastise Rahul Gandhi for not realising that politics is more about ‘winning votes, getting elected’ than virtual deliberations, or advises him to let the party be led by a ‘sharp and canny politician’ or claims that he is ‘politically far too weak to fight the Modi-led BJP’.

But then so am I entitled to rebut what I see as her lame logic.

I find all attempts to indict Rahul Gandhi for merely searching for viable solutions misplaced. If he decided to conduct a public conversation with experts to find some solution to economic challenges and crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, it defies reason why that should generate hostility.

Unlike the Prime Minister of our country, Rahul Gandhi not just engaged in a consultative process of problem solving but braved hundreds of questions from the large number of journalists, again unlike the Prime Minister who is clearly incapable of facing unscripted questions.

I also find it strange that her definition of ‘VIPs’ include intellectuals, economists, public health experts and workers. But what is much more problematic for me is the attempt by the ‘liberal’ journalist to reduce the complex dynamics of politics to just winning votes, getting elected and forming governments at any cost. Of course, winning is important, but when a deadly humanitarian crisis escalates, priority should be to win lives, not votes.

By the logic of restricting ‘politics’ to only about winning’ elections, the Home Minister (who conveniently remained out of public view for almost the entire duration of four lockdowns) addressing virtual political rallies (using 72,000 LED screens) would be justified no doubt. No wonder we see the media justify attempts to topple state governments and engineer defections at a time when people are sliding into poverty and the nation going through multiple crises.

This line of thinking, which not only justifies ‘by hook or by crook’ style of politics but also trashes Jawaharlal Nehru’s admonition that“success does not lie in winning an election by lowering our standards but by displaying that we adhere to our ideals, whatever the consequence” (“Full Steam Ahead”, Bombay chronicle, 1936).

Such comments and criticism in the media seem to be a reflection of confused ideological and ethical moorings. Even in Gandhi’s scheme of things, the end never justified the means. He called ‘politics without principles’ the deadliest sin. Obviously, one cannot expect the Prime Minister of our country, for whom Gandhi’s spectacles are more important than his vision, to understand the nuances of political morality. But I certainly expected better wisdom from representatives of the fourth pillar of democracy.

‘Sharp and canny’ politicians have made ‘New India’ a place,where the mind is never without fear, where communal killings and lynchings are normal, where the tyranny of the state is hell-bent to silence defenders of liberty and suppress all differences of opinion.

At a time like this, I would rather bet the life blood of democracy on a ‘decent and humane’ leader who fearlessly stands “with the last person in the line…the exploited, the marginalised and the persecuted…(to) seek out those in pain and embrace them.” For the true defenders of the Nehruvian ‘Idea of India’, this approach to politics is much closer to the spirit of democracy, its processes and its ultimate aim of wiping every tear from every eye (despite losing a few elections) than divisive maneuverings to get numbers.

The extent of the lady’s understanding of political nuances is exposed by the fact that the two Congress stalwarts, most preferred by her for Congress Presidentship, chose to destabilise their own governments, putting personal ambition over ideological commitment and party allegiance, despite having had a rewarding run within the Congress.

Unfortunately, Modi detractors and critics are in so much of a hurry to see him humbled that they overlook the fact that principled ideological battles tend to be tedious and long. The General elections of 2014 and 2019 have proven that political parties cannot circumvent their founding ideology to find a short cut to electoral success.

The only leader, who continues to contest the singularity of Indian identity, assert the importance of relegating religion to private space and sees democracy and pluralism as fundamental principles of Indian polity, is Rahul Gandhi. I believe only he can enthuse the cadres and provide the ideological moorings that make the foot soldiers of the party toil hard. For the believers of an inclusive and progressive India, his leadership remains the best bet.

Today, it is extremely important to challenge the dangerous blend of aggressive religious assertion, brute authoritarianism and unbridled coercive power of the state. That is why it is extremely important not to make an easy target of the only leader who has relentlessly strived against communal politics ever ready to crush political dissent, constitutional rights, and critical thinking.

He is the last man standing for freedom, public debates, discussion and a vision of civil libertarian nation on an amicable footing with its neighbours. Even amidst the gloom of Corona and the border crisis, he has left no stone unturned to re-infuse optimism in many lives, turn chaos to order and confusion to clarity. When there seems to be no ray of hope at the end of the tunnel, that the spark within us is rekindled by the leader. Rahul Gandhi has been that person for millions of Indians. He is our leader.

(Disclaimer: Dr Ragini Nayak is national spokesperson of the Indian National Congress. Views expressed are personal).