After a stormy seven-hour-long meeting, the Congress Working Committee (CWC)’s decision to let Sonia Gandhi continue as the party’s interim president has raised may questions. CNN-News18’s political editor Marya Shakil spoke to senior Congress leader and former Union minister Salman Khurshid to find out about the rift and listlessness the party is suffering at the top and its future plans.
Here are edited excerpts from the interview:
Sonia Gandhi is going to continue as the interim Congress president. Does it answer if there’s anything wrong inside the party?
Find me a party, organization, company that’s perfect. They are constantly evolving, reworking strategies, getting back to blueprints. And constantly finding what must now be done given that the environment is changing. If that’s happening everywhere, then why must we be an exception. We need to respond to the changes that is happening in political framework. And we will. The only problem is media gives us a timeline. That before we go live on prime time, we want an answer.
Is the Congress overlooking the woods for the trees? The real question why did the party lose in 2014 elections? Instead of blaming the dissenters, shouldn’t the real question be addressed?
Nobody is blaming them. But there is a context to anything you do. There is a backdrop and a timing. So, I would be very happy if we engage in a debate that are we missing the point ideologically. And when I say ideologically, its not about the core. Because that remains constant. But it’s the applications of that ideology in given time. It’s when the strategy and ideology have to go hand-in-hand, we must work on strategy. I’m surprised about how people have missed that or simply don’t want to see it.
Since you’ve talked about ideology, I’m going to quote a part of your own piece. You say, “Ideology cannot be bypassed as a concern by focusing on structural matters. Ideology has the dimension of its custodians and that of its followers or consumers.” You emphasized on ideology but if you see the rebellion, be it by Jyotiraditya Scindia or Sachin Pilot as moving away from ideology or the fact that your leadership is inaccessible to most leaders.
It’s very simple. If there’s anyone who has felt disquiet about the state of affairs in the party and that related to ideology, there would have been an ideological debate. Why have we supported farmers, underdogs, minorities, women or people of a particular background? Those are the questions we have to ask and what makes the party vital. I mean you are using the word rebellion again and again but I don’t thing there’s a rebellion. Every time someone disagrees its not rebellion, its human nature. We don’t have a centralized mind and every one uses their own.
Since you’ve blamed the media for giving you a timeline, I’m asking you a specific question. This is the organization you belong to. Would you not agree that it is suffering from listlessness at the top and can you really brush it under the carpet?
No one is brushing it up under the carpet. All we are saying is don’t throw the carpet out. Because till we can get another carpet, we need to make do with this carpet. So, if we need to clean it, repair it, change its position; we shall do it. But the issue of changing the position of the carpet has nothing to do with ideology.
When are you getting a new carpet? Or are you even looking for a new one?
Some old carpets are far more valuable. I’m not saying that the growing family shouldn’t bring in new carpets. But that doesn’t mean you should destroy your home.
Is Congress still stuck in the past and are not seeking accountability from the Gandhis? Can the Congress press the restart button here?
Reset button with conditions imposed on us. Reset it without the Gandhis. Why should we accept anyone telling us that? We decide. It is our party, leadership, association, relationship. We are not going to take instructions from anyone outside.
What is the plan?
You heard it on Monday. When the conditions are conducive i.e., conditions of social distancing, there will be an AICC session.
What is the talisman here? You have said that the talisman of collective leadership sounds great but may not be applicable here. Aren’t you doing the same by getting two to three people to assist Sonia Gandhi?
Collective leadership cannot be conjured. It is the natural thing that happens. Either we accept that we have a leader or we don’t. If we have a leader as I believe everyone agreed to today, now, once we have the top leaders, we can’t tell them how to lead. It is up to them We can’t be the followers and tell them how to lead.
Comments
0 comment