New Delhi: There’s something about Priyanka Gandhi. Call it what you will, je ne sais quoi (French for a certain something) or the X factor that has always set the younger Gandhi sibling apart. And we are not just talking about the Congress party but the entire political firmament. Maybe it is her striking resemblance to her grandmother Indira Gandhi which she enhances further by wearing handloom sarees, maybe it is the easy smile when she is on the campaign trail or just the Gandhi name. Whatever it is, the news that Priyanka will be part of any political process, be it an electoral campaign or attending a party meeting, always electrifies political observers.
So it was with no small measure of enthusiasm that the news of her campaigning for the Congress party in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections was received. Sure, her previous outings haven’t exactly yielded results for the party which is struggling under her brother Rahul Gandhi, but there is always the hope that she can turn matters around. That hope was dashed in February this year when Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad declared that Priyanka would not be campaigning anymore.
It’s a statement that raised several eyebrows because it wasn’t as if Gandhi had been particularly active on the campaign trail until then. In fact, she had made just one trip to Raebareli, a family stronghold.
This is in sharp contrast to 2012 when she had spent days on the campaign trail, meeting people and even directing election strategies. In fact, as the Congress-Samajwadi Party alliance was being sealed, it was Priyanka Gandhi who was credited with bringing it to fruition and there was much talk about how active she was going to be on the campaign trail. Speculation about the reasons for her no-show has varied from family matters to being more involved with “election management” but it still has left people wondering.
One speculation is that the party just did not wish to waste her efforts on what they already saw as a lost cause. Adding to the chatter is Sonia Gandhi’s absence from the campaign trail, something which has never happened before. There have been news reports alluding to the state of Sonia Gandhi’s health which could explain her absence.
“We know what Priyanka’s strengths are as a campaigner. She has a striking resemblance to her grandmother and she seems to have a connect with people. But we don’t know what her limitations are. There is speculation that she stays away from politics in order to avoid answering uncomfortable questions,” said Kanpur-based political analyst A.K. Verma.
In fact, Union minister Smriti Irani, who has been on the campaign trail herself, said that Gandhi was missing in action because she did not wish to answer uncomfortable questions from people regarding unfulfilled promises. It was only after this jibe that Gandhi actually made her first appearance on the campaign trail.
There are five assembly constituencies in Raebareli and the Congress lost all of them in 2012. The seat of Rae Bareli Sadar assembly seat has been held by bahubali Akhilesh Singh since 1993; he has been at odds with the Congress for some time now, in spite of having won thrice on a Congress ticket. His last victory was on the Peace Party ticket. However, ill health has forced him to pass the baton on to his 29-year-old daughter Aditi Singh, who interestingly will be Congress’s candidate in the elections. It is Gandhi who is believed to have been responsible for bringing Singh into the fold.
It has not been the best of times for both the Gandhi family and the Congress party as election after election has seen their fortunes dwindling. A win in Uttar Pradesh was always going to be a long shot but the news that Priyanka will hit the campaign trail had, as always, energized the grassroots workers and even the electorate. In the end it was just a huge disappointment, quite like the party’s performance of late.
