My sincere apologies to Pink Floyd and to all his fans if the title reminds you of ‘We Don’t Need No Education!’ The number is a powerful and iconic protest song that carries a strong anti-establishment message. The song was the slogan for all those who felt alienated by traditional schooling practices! The Congress Party mis-read the purpose of the number and tried to adapt it to its own needs!
We don’t need no education
We don’t need no thoughts at all
No ideas or ideology in the party
People leave us Congressi’s alone…
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Political parties are vital arteries in a healthy democracy, channelling public opinion and shaping policy. However, a party's failure to adapt to societal shifts and maintain a coherent ideology can lead to significant consequences, weakening its influence and potentially destabilizing the political landscape. The birth and growth of the Congress party has for long been of interest to me. The way I see it today, the inevitable death of the party is pretty much a foregone conclusion. I do believe that its tombstone should read ‘Out of Date, Out of Luck”. There is indeed a method to its inherent madness.
Yesterday, I was part of an interesting conversation regarding the Congress and how its lack of ideology and its incessant dependency on a specific family is responsible for its downfall. I do believe that it is not the lack of ideology, but the fact that its existence all along depended on not having one. An organisation that brought together a disparate set of leaders who at one point in time perhaps had a single goal, slowly dissipated to a bunch of folks who came together for the Sunday dinner pretending to be a family of sorts.
The Indian National Congress, once the dominant force in Indian politics, has experienced a significant decline in recent decades. Attributing this decline to a single factor is an oversimplification. It is a combination of various things that went wrong - a mishmash of strategic missteps, leadership issues, and a steady erosion of its supposedly core ideology have all contributed to its waning influence.
It started off with the Congress positioning itself as a centrist, inclusive party carrying the flag of secularism, social justice, and planned economic development. This blurred over a period of time. The rise of identity politics, coupled with inconsistent messaging and a drift away from its traditional base, has consistently created confusion among the voters about what Congress truly stands for. This vacuum has made it difficult for the party to counter the narratives of its political opponents. The gaffes, the silences, and the constant search for words is a classic representation of this vaccum.
Leadership Challenges and Dynastic Politics is the illness that the party needs to treat. The Congress party has been heavily associated with the Nehru-Gandhi family for generations. Critics say that this lineage once provided stability and a unifying force, and that today it has also become a liability. I do believe that it is not an over-reliance on dynastic succession; but the inability of a significant group within the party to stand up for what is right and essential. They have travelled from Giving in to Giving up! And at no point time has anyone stopped to ask – What gives!
Over-reliance on dynastic succession has stifled internal talent, discouraged dissent, and created a sense of entitlement within the party. This has led to accusations of nepotism and a lack of accountability, further damaging its credibility. The accusations are not only from outside the party, but from within too! So, now we see an entire cadre that knows what the problem is and doesn’t take any steps to do anything about it. The fundamental of any democracy is the individuals ability to give voice to his / her thoughts. The absence of this voice is an indication of the absence of democracy.
Inability to Adapt to a Changing India is yet another issue with the party. Our country has undergone significant economic and social transformations in recent decades. The world’s largest economy that has made phenomenal strides in various avenues especially in the digital space. Any specific reason then, that the party continues to keep “addressing poverty” front and centre” Are we still that poor a nation as we were about 50yrs back? Or is it just an inability to find anything else that can also be of importance??
A complete disconnect from the realities of rural India, a failure to effectively address issues of unemployment and inequality, and a slow and meaningless response to the rise of Hindu nationalism have further alienated key segments of the electorate.
The decline of the Congress party is not one bit a complex phenomenon stemming from a confluence of factors. It’s a representation of an organisation that very consciously picks up a gun with the hope to aim at the enemy; fails to acknowledge that it doesn’t know how to shoot. In its attempt to fire, turns the barrel towards itself and pulls the trigger and misses consistently!!!!
