With High Command without command, who runs Cong?

Upcoming elections will give Kharge an opportunity to come out of the shadows of RaGa and show that he is the Congress High Command

- Ajay Jha is a senior journalist, author and political commentator.

that Kharge is, he has not forgotten the key fact that the Gandhis failed to maintain neutrality, which tilted the balance in his favour. The use of High Command was thus a natural expression of being obliged to the Gandhis for the gift of his life.

Kharge is probably the first remote-controlled Congress president in the post-Indira Gandhi era. His limited organisational abilities were visible in his failures to resolve similar leadership issues in the past, whether in Assam, Punjab or Rajasthan. He was sent as a firefighter but failed to douse the fire, leading to the party's defeat in all three states. His track record after being at the helm of the party is far from impressive. Since 2023, the Congress has failed in elections held in 16 states, including being voted out of power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The party won only in three states, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana, while its allies emerged victorious in Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. To top it all, the party faltered yet again in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and failed to reach the three-figure mark.