Congress' learning curve

Smarter alliances, social media tactics helped

After plummeting to historic lows in the 2014 and 2019 general elections, the Congress appears to have internalised the lessons of failure to nearly double its own seat tally in Parliament and forge alliances that have eroded the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) dominance, including in traditional strongholds. Though its broader election rhetoric may have scarcely been novel, being based on the old tropes of freebies and handouts, the grand old party finally displayed the kind of hard-nosed political savvy that was missing in action this past decade. The foundation for the bounce-back lay in the Congress leadership’s realistic understanding of