Article : Shri Arun Jaitley on "Why is the Congress so demoralized"

Why is the Congress so demoralized

- Arun Jaitley
Leader of Opposition (Rajya Sabha)

I have in the past few weeks made two comments which I wish to refer to. Firstly, that the Congress has lost the will to effectively fight the 2014 election. It is squeezing itself out of the contest. Secondly, with the result of the elections to the State Assemblies declared on 8th December, 2013, the UPA Government has evolved from a lame duck to a dead duck. Notwithstanding these two comments, political experience dictated that the Congress will at least make an effort to fight back. Resilience after all is an essential aspect of Indian politics.

I am, however, surprised at the complete collapse of the Congress to fight back in adversity. Except for routine functioning of the government such as meetings, file clearance or approval of routine items at the weekly meetings of the Union Cabinet, paralysis has completely engulfed the government. Even the arrogant responses and the exaggerated tweets of some of the ministers have disappeared. The blame game has started. Some Union Ministers privately refer to the non political approach of the Prime Minister’s Office and the others maintain a position of “the boy doesn’t listen to anybody”.

We in the BJP have been in power only in 1997, 1998 and 1999. We supported a government for a brief period from outside in 1989. For the remaining we have been in opposition. Our lowest point was when we got two seats in Lok Sabha in 1984. Notwithstanding the debacle we did not compromise on ideology. We did not lose heart. We did not wait for a day before deciding to fight back. Even in 2004 when we lost the election we went down fighting and were proud of our performance. The Communist Parties have remained confined to only a few States. Their strength at national level is limited and yet they continue their politics with a sense of purpose.

Why is it that the Congressmen find themselves so demoralized today? Is it because they have been in power for too long and cannot survive without being in office? Is it because of arrogant behavior, scams and misuse of institutions like the CBI? They are scared of the very idea that without power their accountability may increase. A lot of ministers are now planning life after May 2014. Disillusionment is writ large in their attitude. Does anyone remember a single decision that the UPA government has taken in the past few months? Are Congressmen willing to seriously introspect what has gone wrong?

The problem of dynastic parties is that their strength is co-existent with and co-terminus with the potential of that generation of the dynasty which controls the party. A Pt. Nehru or Indira Gandhi could carry on the party on the strength of their personality. If the contemporary generation does not have that potential, the party collapses because of inadequate charisma of that generation of the dynasty. A structured party with a galaxy of leadership and a defined ideology still survives even in adversity. A dynastic party will sink or swim with the dynasty.

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