In an interview to national magazine, the veteran leader of Congress explains why the party needs to nurture younger leaders.
On being asked why is the Congress facing an existential crisis, Chidambram says that the Congress is a natural party of governance. We know how to run a government. But when we run the government, we fail to run the party. Most senior leaders are inducted into the government and not spared for party work. When Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh were prime ministers, we neglected the party organisation. Because the party machinery and work were neglected, when we are in the Opposition, the party organisation has not picked up the responsibilities or carried the party's message and narrative.
On the issue of plans for revival when the party is almost non-existent in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and a junior partner in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, he says that these states account for nearly 300 seats.
The Congress's decline in states such as UP, Bihar, West Bengal predates even the tenure of Narasimha Rao. The origins of the decline in these states are very different. Under the current circumstances, I would divide the states into three categories—states where the Congress is the principal opposition to the BJP, states where another party is the principal opposition to the BJP and Congress is an ally of that party, and finally states where another party is the principal opposition to the BJP and Congress is not in alliance with it.
The challenge lies in category one and category three. We need different strategies for the three categories of states. In category one, I will not write off the Congress. For instance, in Rajasthan, we won the assembly poll but lost every seat in Lok Sabha elections. In MP also, we won the state election but lost all but one seat in parliamentary elections. That doesn't mean we cannot win the assembly elections in these states again. We need state-specific, sharply defined strategies. We cannot have an all-India strategy, as Indian politics has become very differentiated by the states over the last 30-40 years.
(With inputs from agencies)