New Delhi: From a reticent politician to one who has assumed the charge in toto, the profile of Congress scion Rahul Gandhi looks all changed ahead of the crucial Gujarat state legislative assembly elections.
In Gujarat, Gandhi’s strategy is to target traditional Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) support bases, including Patels. He campaigned aggressively in the state highlighting Goods and Services Tax (GST) as a draconian tax regime that brought traders, particularly the smaller ones, to their knees.
Congress President Gandhi is no more the same politician one saw three years ago at the time of general elections in the country.
“Rahul Gandhi is a changed man. He is confident, assertive unlike previously when he was learning the tricks of the trade. Last few months have given a great boost to Gandhi’s political acumen and the opposition knows his strength now,” says Delhi-based political analyst Ravikant Dubey.
So much so that BJP ally Shiv Sena declared that Gandhi was now capable of leading the country. Senior Sena leader Sanjay Raut stated that the “Modi wave has faded” and Gandhi could very well be next Prime Minister (PM).
“Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is capable of leading the country. It is wrong to call him ‘Pappu’. The biggest political power in this country is the people, it is the voters. They can make a ‘Pappu’ of anyone,” Raut said last week in a television discussion.
‘Pappu’ is a term BJP uses to mock Gandhi on social media.
Besides, in the backdrop of fast unfolding political drama in Gujarat, Gandhi welcomed Other Backward Castes (OBC) leader Alpesh Thakore to his party last week. Extending olive branches to two other key youth agitators Jignesh Mevani and Hardik Patel, Gandhi said the youngsters in Gujarat were unable to stay quiet as they had been harassed so much by the present dispensation.
“After Alpesh Thakore joined Congress, I can say that Congress has an edge on Bharatiya Janata Party now. Congress will easily get at least 95 to 100 seats. If Congress wins Gujarat, I am sure winning state legislative assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will be very easy for Congress and the credit will go to Rahul Gandhi,” Delhi-based political analyst Avtar Negi told Gulf News.
Senior Congress leader and former minister in Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government Shashi Tharoor commented recently that BJP “very successfully caricatured” Gandhi but the tactic was no longer working in Gujarat because people now saw him as an “effective opponent” to the ruling party.
“The narrative has changed very, very clearly in the past few months and people were now openly expressing doubts and misgivings about the performance of the Narendra Modi-led BJP government. People are also more willing to see Congress as a viable alternative to BJP. BJP had very successfully caricatured Rahul Gandhi in the past. That is no longer working because Rahul Gandhi is seen as a rather effective opponent to BJP. As this changed narrative proceeds, you are going to find more and more momentum behind Congress,” he asserted.
