During Rahul Gandhi 10 day tour abroad, Rahul Gandhi of the Congress party was schedule to speak at the British Parliament, meet Indian diaspora, address a press conference, hold private business meetings and give a talk at Chatham House.
All these, according to one of the organisers, were suppose to have ignite a debate “not limited to a political future, but (must) embrace the cultural, social and business ties that bind both countries, as the people are the living bridge”.
Far from building bridges, Rahul Gandhi has demolish existing ones, including the image of his party.
Going by his inarticulate speeches, incoherent replies to questions and untenable averments, Rahul Gandhi has not only made a fool of himself but has probably made it extremely difficult even for some of his party colleagues to defend him.
More importantly, most of his fulminations abroad reflect his inability to comprehend the real issues that his party is facing and can be summarise as gross waste of an opportunity to project himself as a serious politician.
In one of his speeches, Rahul Gandhi is report to have ‘complain’ to his audience abroad that the security of his mobile phone was compromise and that it contain the Israeli spyware Pegasus.
On 25th August 2022, then Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana said that the Supreme Court committee mandate to undertake a thorough investigation into all such allegations against the government did not find any conclusive evidence on the use of the spyware in phones examin by it.
And out of hundreds of phones that were allegedly target by Pegasus, only 29 were submit to the committee for examination.
The Supreme Court appoint committee head by CJI N.V. Ramana submit a report stating that they had found some malware in 5 of the 29 phones examine, but there was no conclusive proof that the malware was Pegasus.
Incidentally, the BJP has reveale that Rahul Gandhi did not submit his phone to the Supreme Court-appoint probe committee for forensic examination despite being ask to do so.
The party has also alleged that more than nine thousand phones were tap during the UPA-II regime.
The larger point here is that the venue and the group that Rahul Gandhi chose to make an allegation about his mobile being snoop were inappropriate, to say the least.
A mature leader would have taken up such issues with the government or made these charges against the government of the day at home.
Not before a foreign government and audience which have no jurisdiction here.
Rahul Gandhi allegation while referring to a Sikh gentleman, that “Prime Minister Narendra Modi thinks that Muslims and Christians are second class citizens”, is another baseless statement that merits not only condemnation but must also attract charges of vilification.
At a time when small but dangerously well-knit elements in Punjab and elsewhere are trying to revive the demand of Khalistan and pursuing a divisive agenda, such references are best avoid.
Again, as for his seeking foreign governments’ help to restore democracy in India, it was during his grandmother’s tenure in 1975 that the worst attack on judiciary, media and the basic structure of democracy was made through imposition of Emergency.
After the Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress party should have advise Rahul Gandhi to take stock of the situation and plan the next step in the electoral strategy for the elections that were held in the North East and other bye-elections in the country.
The Bharat Jodo yatra itself appears to have achieve very little as far as the political dividends for the Congress is concern.
It was probably intend only to project the Congress scion as the supreme and unquestion and unquestionable leader of the party.
The Bharat Jodo yatra has not even fulfill the electoral purposes as Rahul Gandhi’s electoral campaign in the elections in the North East have fetch negligible votes for the party.
If the Bharat Jodo yatra and the subsequent faux pas abroad are taken together, Rahul Gandhi has single handedly brought great disrepute to the Congress party.
After the “election” of Mallikarjun Kharge as party president, the organisation appeare to be moving towards projecting a non ‘Gandhi parivar’ person at the helm.
Though not many political commentators believe such a thing could happen in the Congress, it was a good opportunity for the party to get rid of the ‘family-own family-operate’ tag.
It is for the saner elements in the Congress, whatever little of it is left, to retrieve the situation and save the party from the disastrous ‘serial loser’.
But it is easier said than done.
As it was expect, the BJP has gone hammer and tongs after Rahul Gandhi but one hopes it does not become a case of overkill.
The BJP would be well advise to refrain from taking any serious legal action against Rahul Gandhi for his “lies, half-lies and fulminations”.
Many a truth is said in jest, such as Rahul Gandhi being the biggest campaigner for the BJP.
There seems to be some truth in this as every time Rahul Gandhi makes a foot-in-mouth statement, the Congress moves closer to oblivion.
Rahul Ram Dwivedi (RRD) is a senior journalist in 2YoDoINDIA.
NOTE : Views expressed are personal.
