Either way, say Congress leaders, her every initiative would have been seen in the light of her "naturalised" status. The new government's ability to take hard decisions on economic reforms, foreign and defence policy would have been compromised. Handling ticklish internal security issues, particularly Kashmir, would have become difficult. The media and the Opposition would have been all too quick to suss out a Bofors under every bush. Sonia would have been constantly on the defensive. Manmohan Singh, who enjoys tremendous goodwill among political parties across the board, is a much harder target.
By saying "no", Sonia has become a martyr. "By abdicating, she has reintroduced sacrifice into the vocabulary of Indian politics. She's become the leader of the nation, not just of the Congress," said Congress MP Ashwini Kumar. The Congress can now garner tremendous political mileage, with the Sangh parivar on the defensive. "You will see her come back with a thumping majority in the next general elections. And that is when the children will move in," said a Congress MP. For Rahul Gandhi, it is the beginning of a five-year internship. As for Priyanka, speculation has it that at some point, she will inherit Rae Bareli from her mother.
At least the initial public response has been a source of satisfaction for Congressmen.As a stunned nation and opposition saw the drama unfold at the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting on television, there was much applause for her renouncing the top job and putting party and nation before her self. The official assessment from 24 Akbar Road was that the move was a masterstroke that has found a resonance among even the cynical middle-class BJP supporters.
But with Sonia Gandhi having acquired the status of someone who had made the ultimate sacrifice, Congress leaders say an interesting and unprecedented scenario will now develop, with the party far more powerful than the pmo. Indeed, the race for membership of the Congress Working Committee is as intense as that for the Union cabinet. More so because Rahul Gandhi is expected to join the AICC shortly and take charge of UP and Bihar. Sources said he's going to take personal interest in UP and it is his team which will eventually take over the reins of the party.
The other interesting aspect of last week's exercise is the way senior Congress leaders have buried the hatchet and hung together. Even Pranab Mukherjee and Arjun Singh forgot their mutual animosity and discovered common ground, as did Ghulam Nabi Azad and Salman Khursheed, Sheila Dikshit and Ambika Soni and Kamal Nath and Digvijay Singh.For the Soni, Jairam Ramesh and Khursheed combine—all of whom are cosy with the new PM—things couldn't have turned out better. Even AICC secretary Dalbir Singh, a devout Manmohan camp follower, finds himself suddenly in demand! Members of this group, who could well become the link between the party and the government, will play a critical role.
For PM-by-nomination Manmohan Singh, there's a positive and a negative aspect to "remote control" politics. On the plus side, he has the luxury of being PM without having to bother about political management and party affairs. On the other hand, his every decision will have to have a stamp of approval from 10, Janpath. A call from a general secretary of the AICC will carry as much weight as a ministerial directive. "When Rahul said there won't be two power centres in the party, he was right. There's only one and it is 10, Janpath," quipped a CWC member.
His other problem has to do with his 'Mr Clean' image. "Congressmen have been out of power for six years. They are hungry. We will have to see how he can handle that," admitted a party functionary. His more obvious problem is that he will be constantly hamstrung by the Left and the allies.At every step, he is going to have to convince the Left Front to toe his line and to soothe ruffled feathers. He trod a fine line all through last week, hedging on disinvestments and seeking to reassure both the Left and Indian Inc: "We are not committed to privatisation as an ideology, only where it serves the national interest...the Left is firmly committed to the success of this government". Clearly, the office of the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs will be important as never before. And Sonia's newly acquired moral authority will constantly have to be brought to bear on fractious allies.
Even before the swearing in, coalition tremors were felt when RJD chief Laloo Yadav threw a tantrum because he was not getting a portfolio of his choice. Similarly, the trs raised the pitch over the common minimum programme.
Whether Manmohan will go the way of P.V. Narasimha Rao and Sitaram Kesri, both ex-sycophants who developed minds and ambitions of their own after being nominated as Congress president by Sonia Gandhi, is the question uppermost in every party MP's mind. There are safeguards against vaulting ambition which weren't in place earlier. After all, Ms Gandhi remains both party president and chairperson of the CPP, which means that she decides who will head the government. She can pull the plug on Singh anytime she cares to—and take over the reins herself. On the other hand, the office of PM is a solid counterweight. And he certainly cannot be pushed around. Beyond a point, he is inclined to pack up and quit rather than fight his corner.
Manmohan Singh, who is seen as a 10, Janpath loyalist but by no means a sycophant, was not an accidental choice. Sonia enjoys a high comfort level with him and he was seen as an alternative to her (Outlook, Feb 2) if the eventuality of her stepping aside ever arose. It was he who was at the forefront of negotiating many of the alliances which allowed the Congress to breast the tape in the Lok Sabha elections. At his first press conference after being elected CPP leader, he sounded surprisingly political: he harped on the country's secular identity, continuing the peace process, the promise of stability and a war on poverty, ignorance and disease. But his morbid fear of the press, compulsive reserve and hesitancy in dealing with issues other than economic could prove to be a cause for concern, particularly on the floor of the House, partymen admit.
Thanks to Sonia's act of renunciation, the new government starts on a note of great goodwill, moral authority and a thoroughly cowed Opposition.That's a rare moment in Indian politics. Question is: how long will it last?
