The letter sent by 23 Congress leaders to interim party president Sonia Gandhi recently seeking sweeping changes in the organisational structure seems to be an outcome of a prolonged frustration than a signal for rebellion.
The message, however, appears to be meant for Rahul Gandhi, who remains reluctant to take over the helm once again. He had quit the president's post in 2019 following the drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls. The message is loud and clear – take over the charge at the earliest, or make way for someone else. The uncertainty over the leadership which has led to the organisation to a standstill cannot continue for long.
Senior party leader and former Rajya Sabha deputy chairman P J Kurien confirmed to media about the letter on Sunday morning. "Either Rahul Gandhi or Priyanka Gandhi should take over the party leadership. Otherwise, someone outside the family should be found," Kurien told media in Kerala.
Kurien is the only leader from Kerala, other than Shashi Tharoor, who has signed the letter. The demands in the letter reportedly include, "full time and effective leadership" which is both "visible" and "active" on the field; elections to the CWC; and the urgent establishment of an "institutional leadership mechanism" to "collectively" guide the party’s revival.
Tharoor has refused to comment on the letter. However, for those who want to read between the lines, he posted a quote from Jawaharlal Nehru on social media on Sunday. "Without passion and urge, there is a gradual oozing out of hope and vitality, a settling down on lower levels of existence, a slow merging into non-existence. We have become prisoners of the past and some part of its immobility sticks to us – Jawaharlal Nehru," Tharoor wrote.
Other major signatories include Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad; party MPs and former Union Ministers Anand Sharma, Kapil Sibal, Manish Tewari and CWC members including Mukul Wasnik and Jitin Prasada and former Chief Ministers and Union Ministers including Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Rajender Kaur Bhattal, M Veerappa Moily, Prithviraj Chavan, Ajay Singh, Renuka Chaudhary, and Milind Deora.
The letter was reportedly sent a fortnight ago. Its content has come out a day before the unusual Congress Working Committee (CWC) meet, which is likely to initiate some crucial steps in terms of organisational revamp.
"The letter is only an expression of the discontent brewing among the party ranks for a long-time following Rahul Gandhi's decision to relinquish the president post. There is growing concern that the organisation cannot go forward like this. More leaders are likely to join the call for immediate reforms in the coming days," a Congress leader in Kerala told Onmanorama.
Another leader corroborated this statement saying the letter could be seen as a response to Rahul Gandhi's inconsistent attitude which does not help the party overcome the current crisis. He hinted that the CWC meeting could initiate steps such as appointment of an ad-hoc president, an outsider from the Nehru-Gandhi family, and election for the post of full-time president under his watch.
'Not conducive for sweeping changes'
A leader in Delhi, however, contradicted such views, saying the atmosphere within the organisation is not conducive for such sweeping changes. "A rearrangement in the work structure is most likely. It is true that the organisation has come to a standstill at the national level after the 2019 rout and there is a sense of discontent among many leaders," he said, terming the letter a natural outcome of the despair.
He said the party is most likely to go for a rearrangement of the work structure if Sonia Gandhi continues to be the president. The rearrangement could mean appointment of working presidents or vice presidents and new general secretaries.
Monday's CWC meet is likely to be followed by more such meetings.