The Congress Party like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are the only two national parties having a base in nearly all the state of the country. At one time the Congress Party had vibrant grassroots presence right down to the blocks and units. Now, after being out of the limelight for over a decade, the only time the Congress is in the news is when Rahul Gandhi leads a movement – such as the Bharat Jodo Yatra before the 2024 elections and this time the Vote Chori campaign directed at the Bihar elections.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the Congress won 99 seats almost double the 2019 tally of 52 seats. Most of the seats came from states where it contested the polls in alliance with stronger regional parties. So, do the results signify a Congress revival? When the BJP came to power it started a campaign “Congress Mukt Bharat (An India freed of the Congress) and even announced that the party was dead. But such slogans don’t prove the facts on the ground. The 2024 Lok Sabha election results show that the Congress is capable of fighting back. The question remains whether the Congress can return to power in 2029 or if it can capture the elections in different states either alone or with its INDIA partners? The Bihar elections would be a litmus test for the Congress Party.
Coming to Meghalaya, the Congress Party is now reduced to zero seats in the state assembly; a situation that is alarming if not desperate. After being reduced to nil also in the Khasi Hills District Council after the 2024 elections, the Congress should have had serious introspection on the rapid downfall of the Party more so after Vincent Pala the 3-time MP took over as the State Congress President in 2021. But this is the inherent problem of the Congress Party. State Presidents are not elected but appointed by the High Command thereby depriving grassroots workers of their right to elect a person of their choice. It’s almost as if the High Command knows best. It is a well- accepted fact that Vincent Pala and Dr Mukul Sangma are arch political rivals. So, by appointing Pala as party chief the High Command showed its short-sightedness because soon after, Dr Mukul Sangma and other senior Congress leaders like Charles Pyngrope left the Party and joined the Trinamool Congress. Today the Congress Party in Meghalaya is reduced to a shadow of itself and needs injection of leadership that can enthuse party workers. The Party also needs to introspect on what has gone wrong and what has alienated it from the people. Political parties are meant to give agency to people’s voices in the state assembly but if there is not a single Congress MLA in the Assembly, the few who still vote for the Congress are now disillusioned and feel abandoned, especially after those MLAs they elected defected to other parties. The Meghalaya Congress needs a revival now and leadership change is called for!
