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THE NATION:
CONGRESS
No
Contest
Sonia
is uneasy as the Congress vetoes CWC elections and vests her with unlimited
powers
By
Lakshmi Iyer
On
December 31, at a meeting of newly elected All India Congress Committee
delegates of Uttar Pradesh in Lucknow, Chandrajit Yadav, a former party
heavyweight, stirred out of semi-retirement. When the delegates moved
a resolution authorising Congress President Sonia Gandhi to pick and choose
all 23 members of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), Yadav opposed
it, saying such an authorisation was not in order. The party constitution
provided for election of 12 members of the committee. The election clause
was a legacy of Jawaharlal Nehru and there was no way it could be waived
in such a cavalier manner, he pointed out. As Yadav played out the dynasty
number, Sonia's managers frowned. Who was this new malcontent?
 |
| The
delegates moved a resolution authorising Congress President Sonia
Gandhi to pick and choose all 23 members of the CWC. |
After the
manner in which the Congress presidential election was steam-rolled in
November, Yadav's plea for CWC elections and compliance with the party
constitution may seem an anachronism. But Yadav was not a dissident cast
in the mould of either the late Rajesh Pilot or the now subordinated Jitendra
Prasada. He had impeccable credentials to protest against the selection
route to the CWC. He was a legatee of the election clause that was incorporated
into the party constitution in 1961. He was the convener of the constitution
review committee that had recommended it.
Yadav's
reminiscence about Nehru's democratic credentials irked Sonia's managers.
What if she developed an emotional value for the election clause in the
manner of her mother-in-law Indira? In 1972, Indira disregarded advice
to avoid elections. The result: a young turk named Chandra Shekhar was
elected to the CWC much against her wishes. "Now there is no question
of elections. The AICC has authorised Sonia to nominate the members,"
says Central Election Authority chairman Ram Niwas Mirdha. It would take
two months to convene an AICC plenary session, a Sonia aide is quick to
point out.
In party
circles Yadav's defiance has sharpened the election versus selection debate.
An election would have helped Sonia separate chalk from cheese, argued
pro-contest leaders like Kamal Nath, Suresh Kalmadi, Mani Shankar Aiyar
and Salman Khurshid. Selection is a conspiracy against change, they say.
While some of them hoped that Sonia would overrule the AICC and order
elections, others like Aiyar, who wrote to partymen seeking support, have
repositioned themselves. "I have made my aspirations known. I can
only hope the Congress president will consider it," he says.
Those against
a contest include Arjun Singh, Digvijay Singh and M.L. Fotedar. They too
did not mince words. An election, they argue, would have brought to fore
moneybags. They found comparisons with Indira's conduct in1972 odious.
"Can any of the aspirants match Chandra Shekhar's stature?"
one of them asks. They underscore the futility of elections by citing
the example of 1992 when all those who got elected had to resign.They
do not see the selection process imposing any awesome responsibility on
Sonia. "For a leader it is no burden. It is a wondrous responsibility
to provide a stable and cohesive team," says Fotedar.
At the core
of the debate, of course, lies the backlash of those who do not qualify
for the programme of affirmative action adopted by the party in 1998,
namely, the caste Hindu and males. Two years after the party amended its
constitution to reserve 53 per cent of the party posts at all levels-33
per cent for women and 20 per cent for the SC, ST and minorities-senior
leaders have used the election versus selection debate to tell Sonia that
affirmative action has not been thought out. Kerala leader A.K. Antony
was the first to draw attention to the perils of voting on the basis of
caste. "CWC is the shadow cabinet. You cannot have reservation in
executive positions," an AICC functionary says. By refusing to contest
the six posts that were left in the general category Congressmen will
have forced Sonia to go slow on affirmative action. As for the new AICC
team, she is likely to take the safe route and avoid any drastic overhaul.
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METRO TODAY
As
the Government brings in more people and mops more money in taxes, it
must be seen to be rewarding those who come forth and pay up, writes India
Today Associate Editor V. Shankar Aiyar in 
