THE last-minute decision of Congress leader Mr. Rahul Gandhi to file nomination for the Lok Sabha election from the Rae Bareli Constituency came as no surprise to anybody. Credible buzz was already doing the rounds around the country that Mr. Rahul Gandhi might seek election from another safe constituency (secretly suspecting that his re-election from Waynad looked difficult). That search for a safe place led the Congress party to think about Mr. Gandhi’s old Amethi Constituency or of Mother Mrs. Sonia Gandhi’s Rae Bareli Constituency (which she abandoned in favour of a Rajya Sabha seat from Rajasthan). Thus, the whole country knew that Mr. Gandhi would choose mostly Rae Bareli -- and certainly not Amethi where the formidable Mrs. Smriti Irani is so strongly ensconced. This development, though expected by all, demonstrates the pathetic level Congress leader Mr. Rahul Gandhi has descended to over time. Until 2014, he was the invincible prince of Amethi. In 2019, he knew that he had reduced himself to a terrible low in political esteem and chose Kerala’s Waynad Constituency as a safety-net for himself in addition to Amethi. Now, in 2024, Mr. Gandhi has chosen Rae Bareli to ensure that he remains in contention -- and in Lok Sabha -- since Waynad is not a safe seat for him anymore.

 

What a down-slide for a leader of Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s stature! Nobody in the country could expect this to happen until a few years ago. But thanks to Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s failed politics, he kept sliding down in public esteem -- no matter his Bharat Jodo Yatras, no matter his cantankerous accusations against Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, no matter his attempts to build sly bonds abroad seeking help to ramp up his failed politics ...! In other words, this is the story of how the prince of Congress -- which Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi calls ‘shehzada’ -- has reduced himself to an ‘also-ran’ in national politics. If the journey continues in this manner, in a short time, Mr. Rahul Gandhi may become fully irrelevant in the current political arena. Of course, in Rae Bareli, the Congress party would try to shake heaven and earth to ensure Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s win in the Lok Sabha election. By that token, he will somehow maintain his toehold in Parliament. And, if he happens to lose at both places -- Waynad and Rae Bareli -- then his political future will be suspect. There is little doubt that Mr Rahul Gandhi has a major presence in domestic politics.

 

There also is little doubt that the Congress party is the largest Opposition outfit currently in the country. Yet, there is as well no doubt that the party has reduced itself to the worst level of political existence in the country where Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi is changing almost every definition in the book. The Congress party -- as well as every other Opposition party -- is clueless about the method and manner of standing strong against the Prime Minister. The Opposition does not know how to counter the Bharatiya Janata Party’s juggernaut and stall it in its tracks. Mr. Rahul Gandhi goes to Rae Bareli in such a situation. Though he is a political giant at the moment, he is no longer the invincible prince. His vulnerability now has become a talk of the town all over. The BJP has done well to continue with its old candidate Mr. Dinesh Pratap Singh who had put up a tough fight against Mrs. Sonia Gandhi last time. There is every possibility that the BJP may crack the test in Rae Bareli and see that Mr. Rahul Gandhi gets thrown out at the hustings. At least at this moment, there is enough scope for anybody to expect such an outcome.