Modi vs Rahul: Battle between two conflicting narratives

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s visit to America is on expected lines. If anything is remarkable, it is its texture and timing. The BJP’s strategists must be finding it hard to counter the onslaught. This is for the simple reason that they are unable to grasp the fast-changing political scenario in India. In fact, they are not ready to accept the newly acquired status of Rahul Gandhi as a trustworthy politician who can assume the role of a statesman whenever it is required. It is only a matter of time. These strategists are not ready to accept him transcending his image as well, though this image was thrust upon him and stuck to him until a few months ago. The BJP is getting late in realizing that this cropped-up image no longer exists in the minds of people except in circles that are dominated by ill-equipped, saffron-leaning analysts. This image was ignoring, among other things, Rahul’s distance from power and his ability to not lose his nerves even in the worst of situations.

It must be a matter of pride for the party workers and sympathizers of Rahul that even after losing his seat in the Lok Sabha, he is least worried about his future as the leader of the Congress. He spoke frankly about it in the USA and rightly pointed out that the defamation charges he is facing is a conspiracy against him, and the award of maximum punishment is unusually harsh and unjust.

His statements in the USA are harsher than those he made in the UK. They are direct and strong. One thing is clear: the BJP will not be able to put up any meaningful resistance to what Rahul is accusing the government and the BJP of. The BJP exhausted its means to counter the statements Rahul had made in the UK. It went to the extent of stalling Lok Sabha proceedings throughout the session, though it was against parliamentary norms that the ruling party stalled the parliament. Now, it can only be speculated what the BJP comes up with to counter Rahul’s USA visit. It will certainly have to discover new ways to attack Rahul.

Compared to his visit to the UK, Rahul is more precise and pointed in his attacks on Modi and the government. One more thing he seems to have added is humour. He has been taking help from humour earlier also, but this time it is sharp and effectively accomplishes its job of undermining the authority of the Prime Minister of India. His jokes on Modi: the latter would not mind advising the almighty how to run the universe. Jokes apart, Rahul is successfully putting the situation in India before the Indian diaspora. However, it would be naive to think that his endeavour is limited to mobilizing the Indian diaspora. He is in fact addressing the USA in his status as the leader of the party, which has the credit of leading the freedom movement. The party is also the main rival of the ruling BJP in India and has the responsibility to articulate the opposition's resistance to the latter's attempts to throttle down its voice.

When we take a look at what Rahul Gandhi is saying in the USA, we find coherence in it. He is targeting the "capture of institutions and the press in India". He is talking about the miseries of people.

"I walked across India, from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, and spoke directly to millions of Indian people. They didn't seem happy to me; there were serious issues with rising unemployment and inflation. There was angst among the people. There is a significant wealth gap as a result of rising prices and record unemployment under the BJP. What PM Modi claims to achieve on the economic front is hard to believe," he told American journalists.

He is also talking of religious polarization, "The BJP generates a certain amount of hatred in society. They polarize society. They are not inclusive and do not embrace everyone. They divide society, which is damaging India."

He is, in fact, targeting the decline of democracy in India under the Modi regime. However, he is also attacking Prime Minister Modi personally by raising issues related to Adani.

If we analyze the content of Rahul’s speeches and interactions in the USA, he seems to be presenting an alternative vision of India. This vision is directly opposed to the vision and ideology of Prime Minister Modi and his party. While Modi is talking of a masculine India that prides itself on its past glory, Rahul is talking of democracy, secularism, pluralism, and equality. Modi evades questions on democracy and human rights by claiming that India is the mother of democracy, where different people live. Though he is not ready to accept that under his leadership, minorities are getting shabby treatment, investigations and reports from independent global organizations are bringing these facts to light. Rahul is, in a way, assuring the world community that if Congress comes to power, it will ensure fair treatment for all the communities.

People are arguing that Rahul’s visit ahead of Modi’s visit to the USA may be an attempt to damage the image of Prime Minister Modi. It may be true. The structuring of his visit is such that his political intentions are clear enough to be noticed.

Is it wrong on his part to openly oppose the Prime Minister and try to undermine him on foreign soil? In fact, the Prime Minister has started the game. He has been constantly attacking the opposition, including the Congress. He has constantly attacked previous governments, including those led by the first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party have to respond because NRIs play an important role in elections and the interactions strengthen the build-up at home. The clash of conflicting narratives is unavoidable.

(The author is a senior journalist. He has experience of working with leading newspapers and electronic media including Deccan Herald, Sunday Guardian, Navbharat Times and Dainik Bhaskar. He writes on politics, society, environment and economy)