Rahul Gandhi leading oppn charge on govt indicates it’s time for him to take on mantle of Congress chief again

For once, the mainstream media is not able to ignore a burning issue on which the opposition is going hammer and tongs against the government. It is abuzz with the issue of Pegasus spyware which has united the opposition like never before. The length, breadth and depth with which the surveillance has been allegedly done upon Indian citizens, encompassing institutions including the judiciary, media, armed forces, Election Commission, Enforcement Directorate etc have left everyone shocked and the opposition is demanding answers from the government.

There is chaos in Parliament, much noise on TV, and a great deal of written words on print and web already.

Amidst all that, one thing that seemed noteworthy is how Rahul Gandhi is regaining his position as a leader, both of the Congress party and the united opposition.

I have earlier written on how Gandhi has remained on top of the public discourse regarding issues such as Covid-19, the economy, unemployment, and the India-China border skirmishes from January 2020 onwards, holding press meetings, webinars, one on one conversations etc. But most of those were his own political activities.

The Pegasus Snoopgate has changed the political scene.

On July 27, Rahul Gandhi chaired a meeting of floor leaders of opposition parties in the Lok Sabha. The meeting was also attended by, among others, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and the party’s floor managers, DMK’s T R Baalu and Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, NCP’s Supriya Sule, Shiv Sena’s Arvind Sawant, Kerala Congress (M)’s Thomas Chazhikadan, National Conference’s Hasnain Masoodi, RSP’s N K Premachandran, Muslim League’s E T Mohd Basheer and the CPM’s S Venkatesan and AM Ariff.

On Wednesday, the leaders met again following which Rahul Gandhi led the group to a joint press statement. With rain drops dripping along their umbrellas and their clothes half drenched, the whole team of 14 opposition party leaders met reporters outside Parliament with Gandhi standing at the front and center. On his left stood Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, on his right was Kanimozhi Karunanidhi and behind him was Mallikarjun Kharge and many others.

“Entire opposition of India is standing here today; we have only one question: did the government buy Pegasus cyber-weapon and use it on Indian citizens, yes or no? Government has told us there will be no discussion on Pegasus. I want to ask the youth of India, when Modi has installed a weapon inside your phone, it has been used against me, against Supreme Court, against activists, media, so why should there be no discussion in the Parliament?” he told the media.

On being asked by a reporter about why certain TMC MPs tore papers and disrupted Lok Sabha proceedings, Gandhi said, “Do not distract. I know who you work for," he firmly said, calling out the reporter’s attempts at whataboutery.

On finishing his statement, Rahul Gandhi requested the other party leaders to each speak a few lines, but they were reluctant. Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut could be heard saying, “No need, whatever you have spoken was on behalf of all of us.”

It was evident that not only has Gandhi taken the leadership role, but the other party leaders have also accepted him as a leader. In fact, according to sources, it was the opposition parties, including those from the BSP, which had approached Gandhi to convene the meeting.

Sources say that during the strategy meeting, Rahul Gandhi told the opposition that Pegasus should be the biggest rallying point to corner the government. This is another sign that Gandhi is ready to or is already calling the shots. Only under his leadership could the Pegasus issue, which is of the gravest nature affecting the very core of democracy but not a bread-and-butter issue, be made the biggest rallying point.

Time and again, and most recently with the Rafale scam, Rahul Gandhi have shown that he would raise issues which he thinks are of national importance without caring about whether they resonate with the largest common denominator or not. He believes in doing better politics than what the masses deserve or expect, a sharp contrast to the ruling regime which is only concerned with appealing to the populist sentiment of the janta.

It is noteworthy that the cottage industry which runs on targeting Rahul Gandhi every few months is also conspicuously silent except a few tweets here and there criticizing him for his body language or clothes.

While there is a lot to lament about in the country from Covid-19 pandemic to the economy to natural calamities to dangerous Pegasus issue, the one development I feel good about is this – the stage being set for Rahul Gandhi to resume his role as Congress president.