Front foot or back foot? Undecided Cong focuses on 'puppy'

New Delhi, July 15: While BJP's Narendra Modi has gained pace while emerging as his party's main face for the next big fight, the Congress is yet to find a way out. The irony is that the latter has failed to chart a way out despite being a relatively stable party.

Some observers feel that the apparent dilly-dallying in the Congress camp over naming its prime ministerial candidate is a calculated strategy. For them, the party is monitoring the developments in the BJP at the moment before taking its final call.

A senior Congress leader said that his party had time in its favour to plan out a strategy without actually naming a candidate for the top job. This is very unlikely the previous time when the Congress was banking on Manmohan Singh after his first stint in office, which was relatively more successful.

Is the party really trying to look to take the upper hand in choosing its candidate or lacks a face to project? The clear lack of clarity in the thought process of the Congress is visible when its leaders speak in different tunes. While some say Rahul Gandhi might not lead the pack, some say he is the man.

The problem with the Congress is that it has started to think negatively. It is caught between two contradictory beliefs. First, why project Rahul Gandhi at the fag end of the tenure of a tainted government and make him lose the battle before it starts? Second, why not project Rahul Gandhi as the fresh leader of the party and try to improve the party's image in the popular sphere?

The concern is that Rahul Gandhi remains silent on issues involving him. Even as the Congress attacks Narendra Modi over every words he utters and tries to make a gain through negative mandate against Modi, it can not afford to ignore the silence of its own leader.

It has allowed its pawns to attack the opponent's king while its own would-be king keeps within himself. This might be a strategy but never a foolproof plan to win a tough battle.

Corporate Affairs Minister Sachin Pilot said Rahul Gandhi doesn't need projections and the Congress will declare its prime ministerial candidate after the UPA III is formed. He said the party is not a one-man show like Modi.

For the time being, the puppy controversy is a good engagement. Isn't it?

OneIndia News