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Congress' Sanjeevani Booti: Priyanka Gandhi is the life-giving magical herb her party needs

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Sadhavi Khosla
Sadhavi KhoslaFeb 06, 2019 | 11:51

Congress' Sanjeevani Booti: Priyanka Gandhi is the life-giving magical herb her party needs

For political junkies, 2019 is the year many have been eagerly waiting for. Priyanka Gandhi, charming scion of India’s first family, has entered active politics as the Congress party’s general secretary in charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh.

And ever since she made her much-awaited plunge over a fortnight ago, scores of op-eds have been penned on her. After all, it’s been a long time coming.

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Some op-eds focused on her political acumen. Some praised her demeanour. Some eulogised her for being a people’s person.

But they all had two things in common — all couldn’t help but draw parallels between Priyanka and her grandmother, the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. And all had mounting expectations of her.

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Priyanka Gandhi's striking similarities with her grandmother Indira Gandhi is often evoked by Congress supporters. (Source: India Today)

In fact, a few columnists even described her as the Congress party’s ‘Brahmastra’ (the divine weapon of last resort as per Hindu mythology which cannot be counter-attacked).

Well, there is no denying that Priyanka will make a monumental difference in the grand old party — but it is too early to tell if she indeed is the 'Brahmastra'. In my opinion, she is the ‘sanjeevani booti’ that the Congress needed. ('Sanjeevani' is a mythological magical herb which has the power to cure any problem. The herb is mentioned in the Ramayana, where, when Lakshman was severely wounded during the battle against Ravana’s son, Lord Hanuman was sent to fetch the sanjeevani, a powerful life-restoring herb).

Being the powerhouse that she is, it is certain that she will revive the party’s fortunes in Uttar Pradesh, where it has been dead for long. And the impact of her official entry into Indian politics will definitely extend beyond the borders of the Hindi heartland.

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To know this, one needs to know a bit more about Priyanka herself.

Pain and courage

How difficult is it to muster up the courage to mourn the death of a loved one? Embracing pain, and moving on, is a trait only a few possess — Priyanka Gandhi is believed to be one such being.

Early in her life, she demonstrated that she is not cut out for despondency. They say tragedies make one mature. She, like her brother, saw two of them at a very young age.

First, she lost her grandmother. Then, her father, Rajiv Gandhi.

But one thing that she did not lose was courage. She was just 19 when her father was assassinated. It was the toughest phase of her life and she stayed strong for she had to take care of her grief-stricken mother Sonia. Her brother Rahul was studying in the USA then. And so, Priyanka took charge of the situation with absolute grit.

She travelled to Madras with her mother — and brought the mutilated body of her father back home to Delhi.

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Priyanka Gandhi stood strong supporting her mother Sonia Gandhi at the time of Rajiv Gandhi's tragic assassination. (Source: Twitter)

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It is not easy for a child to receive the body of their parent and still gather themselves for what was about to come.

But Priyanka did.

And time and again, she has stood up for not just her family, but also the party that she belongs to. From extending support to her mother, when she made her political entry, to campaigning and writing speeches for her, Priyanka has worked tirelessly over the years.

The doting sister that she is, Priyanka has campaigned for her brother too. In fact, her decision to join the Congress came a few days after the party’s victories in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. The timing was apt. For she wouldn’t have wanted the Opposition to attribute these victories to her charm, instead of Rahul’s hard work.

Some ridicule Priyanka for starting her political career this late. But had she joined politics about 15 years back, she would have been criticised then too, even for leaving her household to enjoy the perks of power.

If truth be told, just like her brother, she isn’t power-hungry. In 2004, Rahul could have contested as a prime ministerial candidate — but he chose not to. Similarly, Priyanka could have joined politics over two decades ago but didn’t, despite knowing that she had the charisma and the ability to build an instant rapport with people. Instead, she chose to stay in the backroom of Congress politics.

One of the reasons was to ensure a normal childhood for her children. Growing up in a family where she was surrounded by fear due to the violent deaths of her loved ones, Priyanka knew what she wanted for her children.

Now that her children are grown up, she has taken the decision to join politics.

And rightly so. It’s never too late to do something you love and she has over 25 years of political life ahead of her to bring a difference to the country.  

Perhaps she is just like her grandmother. Yes, they look similar. But their life paths have been quite similar too.

Even Indira Gandhi supported her father, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, during his tenure as the country’s Prime Minister. During her stay at the Teen Murti House, she was the one to manage everything — and Indira too didn’t join active politics until her boys attained a certain age.

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Indira Gandhi also didn’t join active politics until her boys had grown up. (Source: India Today)

She was a strong and compassionate woman. And so is Priyanka.

Evoking Indira

Over the past several years, Priyanka has been dubbed the 'real' political heir to Indira Gandhi. Apart from the striking resemblance that she shares to her grandmother, it’s her strong connect with the masses that evokes Indira every time you look at her.

From what I have heard from those who know her, Priyanka never forgets the name of a person she meets. Besides her sharp intellect, superb oratorical skills, impeccable Hindi and oodles of charm, she also has a splendid gift of repartee.

And that’s what works in politics.

In one of her very old campaigns in her mother’s constituency, Priyanka was seen interacting with the locals in Bhojpuri. It’s because of these simple things that Priyanka is believed to be a vote puller.

I got a chance to see her at an event from distance — I won’t be exaggerating when I say that her aura left me wonderstruck. Her electrifying personality not only woos the media and Congress supporters, it also inspires awe in her political rivals.

Her opponents would agree that her choice of a challenging political geography like Uttar Pradesh at such a crucial time shows her unflinching audacity.

Just like her grandmother’s.

However, Indira Gandhi’s legacy is too big, powerful and complex. She was the strongest and most loved Prime Minister India has ever seen. However, when Priyanka’s boldness reminds many of Indira’s bold decisions — like splitting Pakistan into two and dealing with America with an iron hand — that’s not the only thing that can be recalled. The Congress party’s opponents would leave no chance to attack Priyanka for her grandmother’s decision to declare the Emergency.

Moreover, this year will complete 35 years of India without Indira. With two generations passing without seeing Indira at all, it’s a sad reality that today’s 40-year-old doesn’t remember Indira or her achievements. Together with the youth, middle-aged voters constitute a massive voting block, capable of swinging elections. Thus, it will be a challenging task for Priyanka to create nostalgia among young voters who know nothing about Indira or Rajiv.

A different era…

Let’s just face it — Indira Gandhi’s era was different. At that time, Indira as well as the Congress enjoyed political hegemony. They had no competitors.

Today's time is totally different. Further, Priyanka has a much bigger challenge to revive the Congress on Yogi Adityanath and Narendra Modi’s turf. So, to expect quick changes from her would be wrong.

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It was a time of petting all round: Indira Gandhi with her grandchildren Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi. (Source: Twitter)

All in all, evoking Indira’s legacy would be a double-edged sword for Priyanka. For one, she will create immediate nostalgia for Indira among old Congress voters. But at the same time, she has big shoes to fill. Thus, the expectation bar shouldn’t be set too high for Priyanka — let’s not forget that she has joined the Congress at a time when it is down in the dumps.

Even though the party has had three state victories of late, it is still fighting a battle of sheer existence as a pan-India party. And, in the key battleground state of Uttar Pradesh, the Congress is not even considered a player anymore.

The challenges embraced

In times of trouble, history becomes a great teacher. We may remind ourselves that in the past, the Nehru-Gandhi family and its seminal leaders have been vote-pullers for the Congress. Their charisma was enough to garner votes for the party. But after the 1989 Indian General Election, the Congress never won a majority. Even after Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination in 1991, the party couldn’t pull a majority riding on the huge wave of sympathy.

Thereafter, no other leader could fill the vacuum.

So now that Priyanka has been assigned the Herculean task of reviving the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, we must not forget that the party has been out of power from the state for over 30 years. In the last Lok Sabha polls, the Congress tally dwindled drastically from 22 seats (secured in 2009) to a mere two seats (Amethi and Rae Bareli).

There is no doubt that with Priyanka’s entry, the Congress’s 7.5 per cent vote share in UP will certainly increase. But her task won’t end there — she also has the challenge to revive the damaged Nehru-Gandhi brand at the national level, which has been shattered under Narendra Modi’s regime.

And if she successfully does that, then it will benefit the entire country.

Reason: Democracy can only be saved if a country has two strong political parties playing their respective roles.

The Congress, thus, must be revived. And revived soon.

Priyanka + Rahul = 11

Those who hate the Congress, particularly the Nehru-Gandhi family, must not forget that it has always been a Gandhi at hand to save a crestfallen Congress. Be it Sonia Gandhi, who became party leader in 1998 to revive the party's faltering fortunes, or Rahul Gandhi, who became party president when it was at its all-time low, only a Gandhi came to the fore and saved the Congress from crumbling.

And now that Priyanka Gandhi has taken a huge step and shown a lot of courage by making her political entry through Uttar Pradesh, where the Congress is decimated and out of power since 1989, we must not go over the top with enthusiasm. A word of advice to all Congress supporters, cadre and media here would be — let’s give her time.

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Is she Krishna to his Arjuna? Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi together form a formidable team and support each other ardently.  (Source: PTI)

I, as a voter and a sympathiser of the Congress, will give Priyanka Gandhi five years to evolve and be the leader that India needs. I will not hold her back with the shackles of expectations. I won’t judge her on the outcome of 2019. For she is certainly here for a longer inning.  

We need to understand that she doesn’t have a magic wand to make an instant difference in Indian polity. You need to give time to any leader. She definitely has the conviction and the charisma needed to bring her party back to power in Uttar Pradesh in 2022. But we, as a nation, must not lose patience.

The conclusion is clear — with Priyanka making her entry into politics, it’s the beginning of a new political era.  

And to those comparing her with Rahul with an aim to create a rift between the siblings, please remember that both of them share an excellent relationship and support each other ardently.

By my lights, Rahul + Priyanka = 11, not 2.

Not too long ago, when Rahul Gandhi likened the Congress to the Pandavas and the BJP to the Kauravas, I wrote about how he needs to don the role of Arjuna and find his saarthi, Krishna.

Now, I am secure in my belief that the 21st century Arjuna has found his saarthi Krishna in his sister.

Last updated: February 06, 2019 | 13:19
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