An entire generation of Congress, fortunate enough to be born with a golden spoon in their mouth, might have never imagined that voters would literally oust them from power during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Like the Indian television series character Mungerilal, Congress prince Rahul and his comrades continued to dream that the Congress would retain the crown even if it failed to secure a majority, due to the qualities of their ancestors – Nehru and Gandhi. Despite losing power in 2014, Rajkumar, his mother and his staunch scholar leaders such as Chidambaram were all hopeful that he would return to power in 2019, he believed, especially in the assembly elections in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and after his success. Chhattisgarh in 2018. But, in 2019, voters rejected the Congress leadership. And now it seems that the Congress leadership is convinced that they will not be able to return to power at least for the next two terms i.e. until their prince becomes a senior citizen.
The Congress leadership has repeatedly tried to oppose the Bharatiya Janata Party. And in doing so, they fail to realize that sometimes they are putting the pride of the country at stake. This trend of Congress was also seen in 70s and 80s, i.e. when Congress was in power in the country. And even today, that is, since 2014, the Congress has not moved yet. Constantly opposing the Modi government at the Center on every issue proves how their leadership has no other agenda left. This shows his ideological poverty.
When the issue of Ram Janmabhoomi came up in the 80s, the Congress leadership did not know what stand to take. Lord Ramachandra is not a religious issue but a matter of national identity of the country and its rich cultural heritage. The Congress leadership unnecessarily gave a political touch to the issue of Ram temple construction in Ayodhya, failing to realize that it was a pride that united the entire nation. The then Congress President, who was also the then Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi had to depend on his ‘Doon School’.
Friends and some journalist friends for such political advice. At that time these scholars had advised Rajiv Gandhi that it would not be appropriate to support the construction of Ram temple, given the liberal outlook of the Congress.
Significantly, even before this Rajiv Gandhi had decided to make a constitutional amendment to set aside the Supreme Court’s decision in the Shah Bano case. At that time Muslim leaders like Arif Mohammad Khan, who was considered a staunch supporter of Rajiv Gandhi, opposed this constitutional amendment. But the so called secular Congress leadership was in no mood to take this protest. It was because of this constitutional amendment that it became clear that the Congress was persuading the Muslims without any reason.
Against this background, when the Ram Mandir movement began to spread rapidly in North India, Rajiv Gandhi felt that it would be politically suicidal to oppose the construction of the Ram Mandir. And so in September 1989, when the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and saints were going to lay the foundation stone in Ayodhya, the Congress government in power in Uttar Pradesh had to allow it without any choice.
After that when LK Advani started the Ram Rath Yatra, the Congress leadership opposed it, objecting to the evidence that Ayodhya was actually the birthplace of Lord Ram. The issue of the birth place of Lord Rama is beyond political and legal controversies. It is a matter of our cultural heritage and keeps the unity of our country intact. Had the Congress agreed on these aspects and approved the construction of Ram Mandir, the Congress would not have had to go through what it is experiencing today. The aim of the Congress was only to obstruct the construction of Ram Mandir.
Also from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2004 to 2014, that is, during the 15 long years when the Congress was in power, it did everything possible to create hurdles in the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya. Whose Bhoomi Pujan was performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2020?
Ram Mandir. After that, the Congress once again proved its ideological bankruptcy by questioning the fund collection campaign launched by pro-Hindutva organizations for the construction of the temple.
Now in 2022 to celebrate the nectar festival of India’s independence, the central government had announced the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign. The objective of this campaign was to make Gen Next aware about the freedom struggle and the sacrifices made by the freedom fighters. It was also started to ensure that as the country moves towards celebrating the centenary of its independence, the youth of today work towards making the nation even stronger and more prosperous. This campaign was not only of the Modi government nor of the Bharatiya Janata Party, but it was the campaign of the whole country. If Congress was involved in this campaign, no one would have objected to it. But Congress prince Rahul Gandhi unnecessarily dragged the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Parivar into it and politicized the campaign. Considering the participation of the campaign from all walks of life, it was clear that the Congress prince was disheartened and irritated. There was no reason to make the Har Ghar Tricolor campaign a bad omen.
In 2020, the Indian Army gave a befitting reply to China’s incursion into the Galvan Valley of Ladakh. Even at that time, Rahul Gandhi had expressed doubts about the capability of his own country’s army. Sadly, Rahul Gandhi blamed the failure of the army’s intelligence wing for the death of 20 jawans. Opposing the Modi government, the mother-son duo fail to realize that they are indirectly supporting powers like China against India. The Congress leadership did not even dare to hold China responsible for the infiltration in Ladakh.
Maharashtra’s Cultural Affairs Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar suggested that ‘hello’ should be replaced with ‘Vande Mataram’ while answering phone calls in government offices, sparked by Congress leaders objecting to India’s nectar festival of independence , once again reiterated that they are no less than their leaders in Delhi. Vande Mataram, a tribute to the motherland, was adopted as the national song by the Constituent Assembly of India in 1950. famous marathi poet,
Lyricist, writer and actor GD Madgulkar aka Ga Di Ma had said that Vande Mataram is as revered and sacred as our Vedas and mantras. History tells us that it was a popular marching song for political activism and the Indian independence movement. Our freedom fighters breathed their last while chanting Vande Mataram. If hardline organizations like Raza Academy would have objected to the Vande Mataram slogan, one could understand. But for the Congress which claims to lead the freedom struggle and still object to the Vande Mataram slogan, it is incomprehensible. Congress is ready to leave no stone unturned to show its ideological poverty. May the Almighty impart wisdom to the Congress leadership, we can hope and pray.
Disclaimer
The views expressed above are those of the author.
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