On 27th June, India’s Congress party President Rahul Gandhi tweeted images of his resignation letter. While there were attempts made to convince the former president of Congress to reconsider his decision, the decision was finalized today. In fact, Rahul Gandhi’s designation on his Twitter bio has also gone from being “President” to “Member of Congress and Member of Parliament”.
Reason for Resignation
The decision to resign has come after their momentous defeat, yet again, in the 2019 election. Winning 52 of the 543 seats, the Congress did slightly better in this term compared to its mere 44 seats in 2014. Holding himself accountable for the loss, the now-former Congress Leader wrote, “Accountability is critical for the future of our party. It is for this reason that I have resigned as Congress President. It would be unjust to hold others accountable but ignore my own responsibility as President of the party.”
The Nehru-Gandhi Legacy
Mr. Gandhi, who comes from a long lineage of political leaders, with his father, grandmother and great grandfather, all being former prime ministers – has implied that he wants to break the wheel. Gandhi has passed on the task to the members of his party to fairly select a new leader for the party and “radically transform itself.” Deciding to end the long and profound Nehru-Gandhi legacy, Gandhi states, “It is a habit in India that the powerful, cling to power, no one sacrifices power.”
Unfair Elections
The Congress Party Member, in his resignation letter, also implied that the 2019 election was an unfair one, writing about the opposition party – the BJP, he said, “…. Nor can an election be free if one part has complete monopoly on financial resources. We didn’t fight a political party, we fought the entire machinery of the Indian state.”
Despite his resignation, Rahul Gandhi intends to remain a “loyal” member of the Congress Party, which in his own words, is his “life’s blood”.
