After Sanjay Gandhi's death, Youth Congress(I) stalwarts lose their standing

Mrs Gandhi with Azad and Tytler: A sombre gatheringIn the rolling greens of Shantivana last fortnight, a little boy romped around, gathering flowers, as the elders, heads bowed, went silently round in a sombre circle, girdling a flaming red granite column, 11 feet high. For 17-month-old Varun Pheroze Gandhi, his father, Sanjay's first death anniversary on June 23 could not have been more than a day's outing in the company of the whole family. For the crowd of 10,000 that had assembled at the Sanjay monument, and later, at the rally held for the occasion and addressed by Mrs Gandhi, the day marked a major turning point in Indian politics.The rally, and the accompanying programmes to commemorate the day, gave an indication of how fast the "old order changeth". Some of the Youth Congress(I) functionaries, like president Ghulam Nabi Azad and Delhi unit chief Jagdish Tytler, were seen at the rally like a few odd remnants from Sanjay's Round Table. But the new order cast its shadow in the portly shape of Arun Nehru, MP and leading light of the Sanjay Memorial Trust.The line-up of leaders on the day bristled with smart operators who had switched allegiance over the year, if not overnight. H.K.L. Bhagat, the old faithful of the Gandhi family and president of the Delhi Pradesh Congress(I) Committee, for example, converted, with practised ease, the mournful phrases into a paean of praise for Rajiv Gandhi.Maneka Gandhi, Sanjay's widow, sat stiffly at a corner of the dais during the function. Says a Youth Congress(I) leader, his face distraught with guilt: "Maneka did not as much as return my wishes." She rose only once, to receive from Azad a collection of the commemorative stamps of Sanjay released by the Post and Telegraph Department.For a week before the rally, the city walls were plastered with multi-colour posters, issued in the name of Tytler, saying that both Mrs Gandhi and Rajiv would address the rally. However, Rajiv sat throughout among the audience. Even Mrs Gandhi's brief but clearly visible attempts to persuade him to speak failed to get him onto the rostrum.Though Rajiv kept a low profile in the day's functions, it was evident that the new power-brokers sprouting around the rising son were the men in charge. Since the by-election at Amethi, only three people - Rajiv, Azad and Nehru - had been involved in giving final touches to the plan for the day's programme.The week-long blood donation camp inaugurated on the day was a brainwave of Nehru more than anybody else's. So was the plan to institute three national awards of Rs 1 lakh each in the name of Sanjay Gandhi, to be given to young scientists with outstanding records of research in the fields of environment planning, birth control and alternative sources of energy.Subterranean Pulls: On the surface, however, the Sanjay-men are all seated in their previous perches. But the events of the previous one year have generated strong subterranean pulls, overtaking these men. It is a well-known fact that none of the Youth Congress(I) stalwarts carry the weight they used to with the party's leadership. The organisation's final alienation from the power-nucleus was - symbolically at least - confirmed last month when its headquarters shifted from the All India Congress (I) Committee offices on Akbar Road to a modest bungalow on Janpath. It is significant that none of the eight members of the, amply funded Sanjay Memorial Trust, was ever a close associate of Sanjay.In Sanjay's time, the Youth Congress(I) enjoyed a near-autonomy in its affairs. In most cases, it was for the youth to call the shots. In the 1980 parliamentary polls, 35 per cent of the Congress(I) nominations went to the young members; in the Assembly polls the same year, their share went up to 40 per cent. However, in the recently concluded by-elections in seven parliamentary and 23 Assembly constituencies, not a single Youth Congress(I) member was nominated. Nor did the Government evince any interest in encouraging any renewed effort at implementation of Sanjay's five-point programme.It is ironical that Rajiv was nominated as a special invitee of the 60-member national council of the Youth Congress(I) last fortnight. The decision reflects the sense of helplessness in the organisation and its search for a new messiah. Announcing Rajiv's appointment, Azad hopefully mused: "He (Rajiv) will receive the same affection and regard in the Youth Congress(I) that his late brother, Sanjay used to have."Still, it is unlikely that Rajiv will rely on his brother's cohorts when he picks up the reins of the party in the months to come. Nor is he a person to wield the organisation as a battering ram to bring about drastic changes. Says a close aide of Rajiv: "He (Rajiv) believes in doing things quietly, without a touch of melodrama. He influences decisions on matters involving policies, not individuals. The sort of things that he does may not require crowd-gatherers."Naturally, in Rajiv's scheme of things, issues like tree-planting and limiting the number of children to two may be overshadowed by assisting his mother in streamlining the administration and drawing up plans for boosting the economy. For operations of such nature, he needs a band of genteel professional managers, which he already seems to have acquired.As the claimed membership of the Youth Congress(I) swelled into 25 lakh last fortnight, its leaders suddenly found that they had inherited a massive limb which, by a freak of evolution, had lost its function.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Nov 18, 2013 12:00 IST--- ENDS ---

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After Sanjay Gandhi's death, Youth Congress(I) stalwarts lose their standing

It is a well-known fact that none of the Youth Congress(I) stalwarts carry the weight they used to with the party's leadership.

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