Congress President Election: After one election after another, anger started accumulating in the minds of the party workers over the years regarding the party's position on multiple issues. A section of the party demanded that the party's leadership should be in the hands of non-Gandhi members to fight against the BJP and survive as the main opposition party at the Centre.
Can Shashi Tharoor become Congress president?
New Delhi: The long wait is over. Congress national president election is going to be held today. Senior Congress leader and MP Mallikarjun Kharg will fight against another MP Shashi Tharoor. Two candidates have already completed campaigning in several states. Even though the polls are yet to begin, since the announcement of the candidate's name, the lead of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharg, has been heavily contested. He is the 'official' candidate of the Congress. Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor is fighting against such a heavyweight leader. He had already made it clear that he would not leave the battlefield so easily. But why is Shashi Tharoor so important in the election of Congress president?
Although not a seasoned political leader like Mallikarjun Kharg, Shashi Tharoor is not less experienced in politics. The MP from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala is very popular. Perhaps more popular than him is his fluent English and witty replies. He raised questions against the government even on big issues. The knowledge he has on various subjects is also very important. But above all this, Shashi Tharoor's candidacy for Congress president is very relevant. Some of the reasons are-
Why Shashi Tharoor's vote is important?
Although the elections are yet to begin, the results are almost known. Everyone speculates that Mallikarjun Kharge may win the presidential election because of the support of the Gandhi family. However, it is not that Shashi Tharoor's vote book will be completely empty. In that case, the number of votes he will get is important enough. Because those who vote in support of Shashi Tharoor, will indirectly express their opinion against the dictatorship of the Gandhi family and the old ways of the Congress. Even if Mallikarjun Kharge is elected as president, he cannot ignore this voice of opposition within the party. Shashi Tharoor's vote is very important keeping in mind the recent disintegration of the Congress and the resignation of senior and top leaders one after the other.
Will the secret ballot change the outcome of the election?
As the voting for the Congress President election is conducted by secret ballot, the possibility of a change in the result cannot be ruled out. The popularity of the Gandhi family has declined considerably in the last few years. There is also anger and dissatisfaction in the minds of party workers. In this scenario, due to the secrecy of the election and its expression, apart from the G-23 members, ordinary Congress workers can vote for Shashi Tharoor to bring about the necessary changes in the party.
Tharoor can end the monopoly of the Gandhi family in the Congress.
The Congress, the country's oldest political party, has been ruled by the Gandhi family since independence. But in one election after another, anger started building up in the minds of the party workers over the years about the party's position on several issues. A section of the party also demanded that the party's leadership should be in the hands of non-Gandhi members to fight against the BJP and survive as the main opposition party at the Centre. Shashi Tharoor is one example of a non-Gandhi face. On the one hand, while Mallikarjun Kharge is close to the Gandhi family, Shashi Tharoor is a member of the G-23 camp, an angry group of the Congress. It was this G-23 camp that wrote a letter to party leader Sonia Gandhi in 2019 demanding several changes within the Congress.
Shashi can run the Congress in his own way.
No member of the Gandhi family is contesting this year's Congress presidential election. But they have their preferred candidates. When Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's name emerged as a candidate for the election, the theory surfaced that if Gehlot was elected as president, he would remain a puppet of the Gandhi family. The Gandhi family will take all the decisions of the party from behind. The theory resurfaced when Mallikarjun Kharg was announced as the 'official' Congress candidate on the last day as an alternative to Gehlot. That is where Shashi Tharoor is completely different from Kharg. While Mallikarjun Kharge in his election manifesto talked about the Congress's modus operandi starting from the Udaipur camp, Shashi Tharoor in his manifesto made a series of promises ranging from grassroots party workers reaching out to top leaders to handing over power to the party wings. Shashi Tharoor has brought a kind of openness to the closed atmosphere of the Congress.
