What Rahul Gandhi got right in his bid to challenge Narendra Modi for India’s premiership
- Congress’ success in the state elections have punctured the aura of invincibility that had surrounded Modi and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party
One year ago, Rahul Gandhi took over the reins of the Congress party when it was diminished, riven by corruption and had just 44 members in the 545-seat lower house of India’s parliament.
But after Tuesday’s elections, the opposition party now looks set to form governments in three Hindi-speaking states that have turned away from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), placing the 48-year-old Gandhi in prime position for a shot at the premiership.
Congress’ campaign in the state polls, which are widely billed as a bellwether for next year’s general election, capitalised on dissatisfaction with incumbents, rural distress and rising unemployment – all issues that have resonated with the electorate.
Added to this was a wave of anti-Modi sentiment that Gandhi has skilfully ridden, according to Congress’ national spokeswoman Priyanka Chaturvedi.
“Here’s a person who faced the biggest negative campaign as a leader even before he took over as president. The entire BJP machinery tried to undermine him, ridicule him, launched attacks on his leadership style and questioned his capabilities,” she said.