Meritocracy in a court?

The Congress party should be made a meritocratic organisation; advancement should depend on a person's achievements and track record. So said Rahul Gandhi on Saturday at the meeting of the All-India Congress Committee (AICC). Perhaps the irony escaped Mr Gandhi, since he was elevated to party general secretary not long after his campaign in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections ended in a dismal performance by the Congress. But in a party which now has accepted dynastic succession as its organising principle, few in the party would have thought along such lines and fewer still would have dared to express such sacrilegious thoughts. Instead, sycophancy was in full display as Congressmen tried desperately to curry favour with the party's royalty. It was left to Sonia Gandhi to inject some realism into the proceedings in her usual practical way by stating that neither she nor her son has a magic wand, and that the party's success depends on the efforts of all concerned.

Those words ring true because, while Congressmen have demonstrated infinite faith in the leadership qualities of all members of the Gandhi family, the same is not true of the voter. The party that used to win some 40 per cent of the popular vote in a typical election has seen that figure come down to 25 per cent. And it will take more than dynastic drum-beating to change that hard reality. Indeed, the problem with a dynasty running what has all the appearances of a court is precisely that party workers are keener on hanging around the court than on working in the constituencies that need to be won. So while a party that is frustrated by the compromises involved in running a coalition government is understandably keen on establishing one-party rule again, it has done little over many years to bring that hope within the bounds of possibility. Indeed, it might be argued that Manmohan Singh has done a better job in the last three years of leading the government than Sonia Gandhi has done as party chief, for the Congress remains a very minor player in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Bihar, not to mention Uttar Pradesh, states that have 40 per cent of all Lok Sabha seats. But no Congressman can be expected to say that, though there is no shortage of Congressmen willing to criticise Dr Singh.

Against this backdrop, the young Mr Gandhi spoke sensibly on the challenges, not of winning elections and forming governments, but of staying relevant. His word play about affluent people being poor if they don't have opportunities was overly clever, but he did focus on the plight of the poor "" underlining the point that the party will continue to portray itself as representing the underdog. This is unexceptionable at a time of growing disparities, but the party needs to be aware of what works and what does not, when trying out poverty-reduction programmes. Throwing money at the problem, as the UPA has done, does not necessarily guarantee results.