The Dynast In Denial

The latest from Rahul Gandhi is that he is not in the race to be the next Prime Minister of India. In fact, he is so horrified by dynastic policies that he does not even wish to get married lest the overwhelming concern for his children forces him into perpetuating the system which is his privilege.

As with all things related to India’s First Family, Gandhi’s statement is open to different interpretations. The Congress party has already clarified that this merely proves that the young Gandhi doesn’t hanker for power unlike he-who-can’t-be-named. Of course, Gandhi could be persuaded to accept power in the larger interest of the Indian nation. This is the old shtick where Nehru-Gandhi scions are the reluctant kings—ever ready to march in to the wilderness but are eventually prevailed upon to assume their hereditary profession because India’s call apparently proves too irresistible.

Others of more cynical bent are less impressed by Gandhi’s claims. They point out that he has been making virtually the same arguments—on Congress’ internal politics and for greater decentralization of power—for the last decade with no discernible difference in the Congress party structure. Even the young talent he has groomed are fellow dynasts who may be accomplished in their own ways but have surely benefited from their family names. Indeed, Gandhi’s recent elevation as the Congress’ vice president itself starkly illustrated that little has changed within the party.

Rahul Gandhi appears to have learned his lessons from his mother’s successful playbook, to wit: the pronouncements rejecting any desire for a post or authority. The Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan Singh model of governance was a consummate political move but it was no act of renunciation. Sonia Gandhi remains the paramount leader of the Congress party and her word is the law as far as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government is concerned. Mrs. Gandhi acts as India ‘Socialist Godmother’s as Sadanand Dhume recently put it in the Wall Street Journal—intervening in policy debates while pointedly refusing to assume any responsibility for governance. She plays the Santa Claus bestowing new gifts on India’s poor while the economist Prime Minister is left scrambling to pay the bills. Indeed, Sonia Gandhi has remained the Congress president continuously since 1998 and if and when she gives up her position, she is only likely to be succeeded by her son. In that sense, Sonia Gandhi has understood India better than many who still maintain that she draws her inspiration from distant lands. She has instinctively grasped that this ancient civilization remains strangely ambivalent towards power; preferring to embrace those who remain outwardly reluctant to wear the crown

Rahul Gandhi’s apparent disinclination to accept power is no act of selfless abdication. Quite the opposite. It is emblematic of authority so uncontested that the outward accoutrements of Lutyens’ Delhi matter little. It symbolizes the ultimate privilege of a dynasty so powerful that the Family is now the Congress and the Congress is the Family. There are many other family run parties in India from Akali Dal in Punjab to DMK in Tamil Nadu. None of them are prepared to act as regents; they all want to be the King! They understand that unless they wield authority directly, regicide is likely. Even within the firmament of India’s family-based politics, Nehru-Gandhis are truly unique. Only they can pretend to reject power while exercising it unhindered by any sense of personal culpability.

Unsurprisingly, the media speculation about Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Manmohan’ has been restricted to political lightweights like A.K Antony and gaffe-prone Sushil Kumar Shinde. They would happily do the Family’s bidding and lack the political heft to challenge it except in the most personal of battles.

Despite Rahul Gandhi’s repeated protestations to the contrary, he is only perpetuating the system he claims to detest. If he truly abhors dynastic politics, here’s what he needs to do.

Obviously, Rahul Gandhi could simply resign from the Congress party and disappear from the public eye. That would be true renunciation. However, Gandhi has shown no signs that his distaste towards clan-based privileges extends quite that far. Perhaps, he believes only he can transform the Congress into a modern centre-left formation. Or perhaps he is motivated by more mundane concerns like a sense of family responsibility. Whatever may be the reason, it is clearly a bridge too far.

So here’s another way Gandhi can strike a blow for meritocratic politics: Declare that he would be the prime ministerial candidate of the Congress party and in case UPA is re-elected in 2014, he would lead the country for the next five years. He should state unequivocally that he would end this undemocratic and feudal charade of enjoying power with little accountability.

Over the last few years, India’s governance has suffered terribly because those who exercise power have no responsibility and those who ostensibly run the country have little authority. This must end if for no other reason than for the sake of India’s development and her growth story. Rahul Gandhi should step forward and accept responsibility for policies he so strenuously advocates. If his politics is truly driven by ideological convictions and not merely convenient expediencies, then he should have the confidence to subject himself to democratic politics.

Politically it may make sense for Rahul Gandhi to find his own ‘Manmohan’. After all, if UPA returns to power in 2014, it would show that the Indian voters are comfortable with this diarchal system. But let us not pretend that it would be a repudiation of dynastic politics. It would be an affirmation of its worst manifestation—ultimate power with no accountability. On the other hand, if Rahul Gandhi agrees to be his party’s prime ministerial candidate, he would at least affirm one important principle: That power in a democracy must be accompanied by direct scrutiny and personal responsibility.

RohitPradhan is a fellow at the Takshashila Foundation. The views are personal. Twitter feed: @retributions