The successful selection of chief ministers for Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh shortly after the Assembly polls, and the arrival at a consensus on Chhattisgarh as well, show the Congress leadership is treading a careful course with a resolve to build on its present gains and further its prospects in the next Lok Sabha polls.
Impressively, every side was given a hearing by the central leadership. The forces of contending sides for the CM post were welded together with admirable skill and we have the youthful Jyotiraditya Scindia and Sachin Pilot falling in line and taking secondary roles to those of veterans Ashok Gehlot in Rajasthan and Kamal Nath in Madhya Pradesh. Those who waited for a revolt are understandably dispirited. So with Chhattisgarh as well, where the lot fell on PCC chief Bhupesh Bhagel, the OBC face.
Notably, the “first” family sat together to broker peace among the contending sides which had powerful local bases. Supporting one would mean ignoring the claims of the other(s). Yet, the leadership’s success lay in the fact that the final decision has, on the face of it, left no hard feelings. In the end, Sachin is willing to be piloted by Gehlot, and Scindia is smart enough to effect a climb-down and have Kamal as his Nath (head). In fact, unity is what has principally helped the party win the polls in all the three states; and here is guarantee this could prevail.
Kamal Nath as chief minister is the best bet for the Congress as it takes on the BJP in the next hustings. He has the drive, the experience and the maturity which all helped him as PCC chief in re-energising the Congress in Madhya Pradesh in six months. Gehlot was CM twice in the past, and still retains his image and clout. Kamal Nath carries with him two slurs; one of his alleged leadership of the anti-Sikh riots post the assassination of Indira Gandhi in Delhi, and two, his “percentage” slur – of allegedly taking commissions for every government deal under his ministry in the UPA. All the more reason why he needs to tread a careful course this time. Gehlot’s challenge as CM would be to balance the sensitive communal equations in Rajasthan.
The Congress cannot rest easy now, though. With Prime Minister Modi quickly taking the fight for 2019 right into the enemy camp and addressing a massive rally in Rae Baraeli, Sonia Gandhi’s pocket borough, Sunday is proof of the fierceness of the fight at the hustings that will unfold sooner than later.
