Hand In Hand

The ball is in the Congress’s court— use the furore over Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification to build a clear narrative and a unified opposition ahead of the Lok Sabha polls

- Soni Mishra

In May 2005, a Griha Pravesh Puja—a ‘family only’ affair—was organised at 12 Tughlak Lane. Soon after, Rahul Gandhi moved into the house in Lutyens Delhi allotted to him months earlier as a newly minted member of the Lok Sabha. It was a time when Rahul, winning from the family stronghold of Amethi, was setting foot in the complicated world of politics. The very act of moving out of 10 Janpath—Sonia Gandhi’s official residence—was symbolic of the big shift in his life.

Since then, it has been a rollercoaster ride for the former Congress president. Rahul will soon have to vacate 12 Tughlak Lane following his conviction in a criminal defamation case by a court in Surat and subsequent disqualification as a Lok Sabha member. In the beginning, he was seen as diffident and a misfit in politics, even as his party was, in phases, bringing him on to the centre stage and his political rivals were still sizing him up. Almost two decades later, he is at the centre of a political storm, his opponents at their shrillest in denouncing him as a failed politician while his party is hoping the spotlight on him will end up benefiting him.

Rahul has perhaps never been at the centre of news and discussions the way he is at present. Over the last few months, there is a certain breathlessness to the pace at which developments related to him have taken place. When he had walked into Parliament at the beginning of the budget session in early February, he still sported his overgrown beard from the Bharat Jodo Yatra, his swagger reflecting the confidence of a mission well accomplished. The yatra was seen as having helped in great measure to repair his image and project him as a sincere, committed politician.