Rahul courageous and fearless, his disqualification will put in additional metal in Congress: Chidambaram

By PTI

KOLKATA: Former finance minister and senior Congress chief P Chidambaram on Sunday stated his occasion’s chief Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from Lok Sabha would strengthen the Congress, serving to its prospects in subsequent yr’s normal election.

Describing the political panorama as an “undeclared emergency”, Chidambaram in an unique e-mail interview, stated the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has made the Congress its “prime target”, wishing its elimination to be able to extra simply handle the regional events.

However, he asserted that Congress wouldn’t be “eliminated” and regional events would “rise and fight” the BJP.

Excerpts: Q: In the backdrop of Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Lok Sabha after a courtroom judgement in a defamation case, how do you learn the nation’s political panorama?

A: The nation is already in an emergency-like state of affairs. It is an undeclared emergency. One of the complaints through the emergency was that press freedom was snuffed out. Is it any totally different at present? Journalists and the independence of the media are below quite a few constraints at present. The BJP’s prime goal is the Congress occasion. They assume if they can eradicate the Congress occasion from the electoral battleground, the regional or state-specific events shall be simple targets. They are fallacious on each counts. The Congress occasion can’t be eradicated. The regional or state-specific events will rise and battle.

Q: Do you assume the Rahul Gandhi incident would assist the Congress within the 2024 elections?

A: The developments of the previous couple of days have put extra metal within the Congress occasion. We know we’re preventing a formidable Leviathan. Fighting the BJP, unity of goal, battle, sacrifice and so on., will certainly strengthen the Congress occasion. A stronger Congress will definitely be a serious drive within the (2024) election.

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Q: As a senior chief of the Congress, what could be your recommendation to Rahul Gandhi at this hour? A: He (Rahul Gandhi) doesn’t want my recommendation and I don’t advise him.

He is courageous and fearless. In the Bharat Jodo Yatra he demonstrated his grit and willpower — qualities that many individuals had been completely happy to find in Mr Gandhi.

Q: Though the Trinamool Congress has described Gandhi’s disqualification from the LS “as a new low for Constitutional democracy,” it has additionally earlier acknowledged that the Congress “should not consider itself to be the big boss of the Opposition Front and should give due respect to the regional parties”. What is your opinion on this?

A: Broadly talking, I agree with that view. To the very best of my data, the Congress’ management doesn’t assume otherwise. We assume that Opposition unity will be achieved and sustained solely via a standard understanding of the present political state of affairs, shared objectives, and mutual respect. No one within the Congress has instructed that the Congress needs to be the massive boss. The means that Mrs Sonia Gandhi and Dr Manmohan Singh led the UPA (the alliance and the federal government) with distinctive grace and knowledge — and efficiently too — is proof of the truth that nobody within the Congress harbours any sense of superiority.

Q: How necessary could be the regional events’ position for the following yr’s elections?

A: The regional events are an integral a part of our federal construction. In truth, the presence and the success of a number of regional events have underlined that the Indian political construction is actually federal.

I imagine that the regional events will play a vital position within the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

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However, he asserted that Congress wouldn’t be “eliminated” and regional events would “rise and fight” the BJP.googletag.cmd.push(perform() googletag.show(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2′); );