Now the #Thread
Para by para rebuttal to @dhume on @RahulGandhi.
Para 1-2 is about RG's age. I've nothing to argue except I personally believe RG doesn’t want to be PM, even if Congress wins a LS elections in coming years, RG won’t be the PM. Like SG wasn't.
Para by para rebuttal to @dhume on @RahulGandhi.
Para 1-2 is about RG's age. I've nothing to argue except I personally believe RG doesn’t want to be PM, even if Congress wins a LS elections in coming years, RG won’t be the PM. Like SG wasn't.
Just like SG, he too would give up the Chair. One needs to read a few books and some talking inside congress camps to come to this conclusion. For books I would recommend, Rajdeep Sardesai and Rashid Kidwai (I have some contacts inside Cong camp).
Paras 3—6 Dhume writes, “ordinary people seem uninterested in the man and his message.” To support claim he gives eg that RG’s video interaction with R. Rajan got mere 200k views on YouTube. This is correct. It is @INCIndia communication team's failure. They should work on it.
Para 7: he finally makes an argument that needs countering. “Why is Rahul busy playing TV anchor when he ought to be out on the streets raising hell against the government?”
My two responses: 1/There is a lockdown, he can’t be going to street.
My two responses: 1/There is a lockdown, he can’t be going to street.
2/ Through his career RG has done all that is understood by the phrase “taking to street” – walked through muddy road, dusty deserts, traveled by trains buses, ate at dhabas, jumped through walls, crossed barb wires, escaped cops, courted arrests, led marches and protests.
In one of my recent columns I’ve enlisted at least 10 such street activity by RG with time and place, in case anybody has doubts. Here is the link to my column: nationalheraldindia.com/opinion/where-…
Did these activities help him in win elections?
Yes and No.Election win or lose is not a simplistic linear cause and effect thing. Some of these above activities were prior 2009 so we can say they helped him win UPA for the second term. But he wasn’t the Congress President then
Yes and No.Election win or lose is not a simplistic linear cause and effect thing. Some of these above activities were prior 2009 so we can say they helped him win UPA for the second term. But he wasn’t the Congress President then
He failed to win LS 2014. He wasn't the President. After 2014, Congress’s best performance, winning 3 Hindi Heartland states and swift coalition formation in Karnataka, was under his leadership as President.
Para 8: gives a list of all Modi govt’s failures. I was like, “Whoa that’s a whole bunch of failure, this Modi chap is pathetic. But wait a minute, why is the blog about RG then? Didn’t you just say he is 50 years old and there is no hope, why you still writing a blog on him?”
Para 9: talks about two types of Cong leaders. Those who know RG is a failure but still need him. Those who want him gone but can't speak up. I have nothing to argue since these are not about RG’s qualities but other people’s approach to party’s decision making.
Para 10-11: is about country needing strong institutions, media and good political parties which recognizes and rewards talent and is in touch with the people. I disagree about what Dhume thinks country needs. My response:
Talent, hard work, young age these are no brainers, all parties all nations need them. What does India need? India needs an opposition led by someone with an ideological conviction, rock solid courage and integrity to fight not just Modi or Amit Shah but RSS.
Only RG had the courage to equate RSS to Muslim Brotherhood, he called out Savarkar not as Veer but Coward, alleged RSS to be responsible for Gandhi’s killing. No other political leader has ever attacked RSS the way Rahul has.
Anybody who’d carefully study the last 6 years of Indian politics would notice that Modi has been primarily fulfilling various RSS projects nurtured for over 90 years. So the nation needs a leader who would can never compromise, never collude with RSS-BJP on any issue.
Nation needs a leader who’d not be scared to come up with pro-poor social legislation frowned upon by middle class, capitalists. A leader who doesn’t pretend to know all, who would not try to run the nation from one room but will talk to all stake holders, subject matter experts.
But what is the point, can he win elections? No. He alone cannot win elections. He needs a strong team, better communications, funds, fearless unbiased media which can question authority and he himself have to be able to manage it all 24x7x365. Not zone in zone out.
However, even if no electoral win, he is the only leader capable of posing any kind of opposition. Even with 40-50 MLAs in the Parliament, and with a few Tweets here and there, RG has been able to corner the government on many issues. here is small list: sanjuktabasu.in/2019/03/25/how…
Rahul Gandhi has relentlessly attacked Modi, but Modi has won every time. That’s ok. That is the nature of any fight. My fear is, if RG is gone, there will be no one left to fight.
Rahul Gandhi did not win elections. But that does not mean he is a failure because he will not stop fighting.
Fighting is not losing. Giving up is losing. Being coward is losing. Being silenced for fear of ED, IT, CBI is losing.
Fighting is not losing. Giving up is losing. Being coward is losing. Being silenced for fear of ED, IT, CBI is losing.
Without RG both BJP and Congress will be controlled from Nagpur and elections and parliamentary democracy will be reduced to tokenism. That is RSS’s ultimate dream.
So I would wait for another 10 years but still want him to lead Congress as the opposition’s moral compass.
End.
So I would wait for another 10 years but still want him to lead Congress as the opposition’s moral compass.
End.
Dhume has not yet replied to any of my Tweets made in last 30 mins. I just checked his last tweet was at 2.10 am, 7 mins ago. So it is not like he hasn't seen my tags or retweets, about 5-6 of them. Yesterday when challenged he replied within 5 mins.
Update: Sadanand Dhume did in fact reply to this thread though he didn't debate much. Here is the Tweet:
