Congress reshuffle likely after polls in States

Plan to rejuvenate the party being drawn up, after the LS poll rout

August 27, 2014 02:19 am | Updated May 23, 2016 06:35 pm IST - NEW DELHI

Changes in the Congress — starting with a reshuffle of Central party functionaries in the wake of the electoral rout it faced in the recent Lok Sabha election — are likely to take place only after polls in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand are over, senior party sources have said, even as a plan to rejuvenate the party is being drawn up.

The Central leadership is delaying changing Central functionaries, party sources said, because it expects to perform poorly in the upcoming State elections — and does not want to make changes twice in six months. Second, ahead of the organisational elections to be completed next year, a substantial section is opposed to Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s “democratisation” methods in the Youth Congress — and the Congress’s rock-bottom electoral showing has made it harder for him to have his way.

It is, therefore, also not yet clear whether there will be just a “reshuffle” of Central functionaries or whether the long-awaited generational shift will be visible in the new appointments or, whether, there will be a mix.

No heads have rolled Indeed, thus far, no heads have rolled nor has anyone been held accountable for the party’s poor electoral showing — and the offer of resignation made by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Mr. Gandhi was rejected by the Congress Working Committee (CWC) that met soon after the elections.

There has also been no real open discussion yet: the CWC had authorised Ms. Gandhi to take the next steps, and she appointed former Defence Minister A.K. Antony to head a committee to analyse why the Congress fared so poorly in the polls. The committee met party representatives from all States and submitted its report to Ms. Gandhi, but it clearly has only cathartic value.

Senior functionaries say its contents are ‘for her eyes only” and she is authorised to use the “inputs” in it to make changes. As in the past, even party seniors are unlikely to see anything beyond a bland executive summary of the report.

Debate on 3 subjects Of course, with the BJP not just in power, but with a full majority, three subjects are being discussed “informally” in party circles: in the wake of the Hindu consolidation that was seen in the recent elections, the need to rearticulate secularism; to “clarify” its position on caste-based quotas as the party’s efforts to give reservation to Jats and Marathas – both well-to-do dominant communities — has been criticised inside the party; the need to reconnect with party workers and reactivate the organisation; and whether to adopt the coalition route or rebuild the party from scratch.

The party’s minor success in the Bihar by-polls where it contested along with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Janata Dal (United), together winning six of 10 seats, has placed this issue on the centrestage again.

A ‘chintan shivir’ has been spoken of and this, too, is likely to take place — only at the end of the year — to grapple with these issues.

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