Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has taken charge
as the Congress General Secretary responsible for Eastern Uttar Pradesh last
week. The state is not new to her as she has campaigned earlier also in some
parts apart from looking after her mother Sonia Gandhi’s constituency Rae
Bareilly and her brother Rahul Gandhi’s constituency Amethi for years. Home to
80 Lok Sabha seats, UP sends the highest number of lawmakers to Parliament,
making it a key electoral battleground.
Right from her child hood Priyanka has
heard politics discussed in her dining table as she hails from a political
family. She is indeed the biggest gamble of the Congress party and almost the
last trump card. The question is whether she will be an asset or a liability
for the Congress. Also are three months enough for her to build the origination
in U.P? She is a crowd puller but it is not known whether she is a vote
catcher. Even if she is able to get the votes does the Congress have ability to
convert the crowds into votes? These are
the questions that need answers.
The first time people got a proper
glimpse of Priyanka was when she appeared in Sri Perumbudur on January 11, 1998
along with her mother to pay homage to her father Rajiv Gandhi at a memorial in
Sri Perumbudur wearing a simple red and orange saree. Though it was meant to be the Sonia’s
political launch it was Priyanka, who overshadowed her. People noted her
striking resemblance to her grandmother Indira Gandhi and since then there has
been speculation about her entry into politics. It took two decades for her to
do so. “I have been talking to her about this for years but earlier she would
say that her children were too young, and she had to be with them. Now that her
children are at a different stage in life, with one in university Ms. Vadra’s
decided to join politics, ” the Congress President told the media.
Priyanka has been thrown in the UP
battlefield pitched directly against the BJP’s two tall leaders – Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, (Varanasi) and chief minister Yogi Adityanath
(Gorakhpur.) Priyanka has quick reflexes. When the Prime Minister Modi referred
to her that she was like his daughter earlier, she immediately retorted
“Nobody should try to be my father. I love my father”. The ruling BJP, which won whopping 71 seats
in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, already knows it will not be able to repeat the
performance, especially in the face of the SP-BSP alliance.
Priyanka faces personal and political
challenges. On the personal front, her
foray into politics is at a time when her husband Robert Vadra is facing new
notices from the Enforcement Directorate in connection with alleged money
laundering and land scam. Her mother Sonia Gandhi and brother Rahul Gandhi are
on bail in the National Herald case. Perhaps they might have thought that her
direct involvement in politics might shield her family from a perceived witch-
hunt. On the day she took charge last
week she had accompanied her husband to the ED office for questioning giving
moral support to him publicly.
Her political challenge is really huge
for a novice who has just entered active politics. Though she has been known as
a back room girl, active politics is quite different, as she will be under
constant public scrutiny.
Priyanka has entered politics at a
time when the Congress is recovering from its existential crisis. She has an
advantage as a challenger as the party has not been in power for decades. The
Congress has just won three state assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh,
Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Modi is on the defensive. The opposition is on the
verge of coming together against the BJP. Also a section of the upper castes
are angry with the BJP due to its stand on the SC/ST Act amendment. Priyanka is
expected to target these Brahmin votes as a first step for revival.
Her first challenge is enthusing the
cadre. The injection of a high profile woman leader might galvanize the party
but she alone cannot produce results, as she needs the organization on the
ground, which is absent at present.
Secondly, the youth needs jobs. UP have many sugar cane farmers. Farmer’s
crisis is also there. What is her ‘sanjivini’ for these ills? She not only needs a new narrative but also
provide confidence to the public that she can deliver the promises.
Thirdly, she needs a good dedicated
team to deliver all these. This takes time to build. Above all she needs finances to lift the
party against an unlimited funds of the BJP. Insiders in the Congress say that
she is working on all these. We may have to wait to see what goodies she has in
her bag to give an indication when she delivers her first public meeting after
taking over. As for whether she is an asset or a liability, the next few months
will show. (IPA Service)
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