Congress footprint shrinking in Lutyens’ Delhi

WITH dwindling numbers in both Houses of Parliament, the Congress is finding it difficult to retain its ‘work stations’ outside 24 Akbar Road, its national headquarters in New Delhi. Due to poor performance in several state elections, the Congress tally in the Rajya Sabha is 30 and 53 in the Lok Sabha. There are now 17 states where the Congress does not have representation in the Upper House. In the 2019 General Election, the grand old party had drawn a blank in as many as 14 states.

The recent eviction order for the house serving as the office of the AICC’s research department came as a shock. Some Cong insiders view this as a wake-up call, pointing at the govt’s notices to vacate 24 Akbar Road office too. A new Congress office is ready, but Sonia Gandhi, currently the interim AICC chief, has reportedly been waiting for an ‘auspicious and politically prudent time’ to move in. Some see this as a sign of her sentimental attachment to 24 Akbar Road, next to her residence from where Indira and Rajiv had served as Congress presidents.

Apart from the ignominy and decline of fortunes, the electoral setbacks are posing many functional problems. For years and decades, the Congress had developed a habit of sorts in occupying several bungalows in Lutyens’ Delhi, often allotted to its MPs who used to “loan” these houses to the party. These premises were used by senior party leaders and professionals to bring in an element of professionalism and urgency, particularly during or closer to the General Elections.

In addition, the Congress, while in power for over five decades since 1947, had managed to get several government houses allotted to itself, in addition to the main party office. Addresses such as 26 Akbar Road, 5 Raisina Road, C11/109 Chanakyapuri, Jawahar Bhawan, 99 South Avenue, 80 Lodhi Estate, 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj Marg etc served as such power centres, etched in memory of the party faithful. The recent eviction order for C11/109 Chanakyapuri, serving as the office of the AICC’s research department, came as a rude shock.

Some Congress insiders view this development as a wake-up call, pointing at the government’s notices to vacate 24 Akbar Road office too. A new Congress office at Deendayal Upadhaya Marg/Rouse Avenue is ready, but Sonia Gandhi, currently the interim AICC chief, has reportedly been waiting for an ‘auspicious and politically prudent time’ to move in. Some see this delay as a sign of her sentimental attachment to 24 Akbar Road, next to her own residence from where Indira and Rajiv Gandhi had served as Congress presidents. Sonia, incidentally, holds the record of being the longest-serving Congress president in the 137-year history of the grand old party. Barring a brief period between December 14, 2017, and August 10, 2019, Sonia has been heading the Congress since March 13, 1998.

Sanjay and Indira Gandhi preferred to function from their residence, Rajiv Gandhi (1984-1991) had opted for 2A Motilal Nehru Marg. PV Narasimha Rao largely functioned from the prime minister’s residence, while another AICC chief, Sitaram Kesri, did not have the opportunity to lead any electoral campaign from the front.

The 2004 General Election saw the emergence of 99 South Avenue and 80 Lodhi Estate as the Congress ‘war rooms’. Initially, 99 South Avenue was allotted to the Congress Rajya Sabha MP and industrialist RP Goenka, who in turn, handed over the flat to Sonia for the party’s use. Sonia used it to set up the party’s high-profile department of planning, policy, information and coordination. A team consisting of Jairam Ramesh, Salman Khurshid, Janardan Dwivedi and others would meet daily at 99 South Avenue.

Once the elections were over, 99 South Avenue began seeing factional wars among the party leaders. By January 2006, internal bickering within the Congress gained such proportions that the flat had to be locked up to prevent its ‘misuse’. Dwivedi, Ramesh and Khurshid had chalked out their own courses and often worked at cross-purposes. What was worse was that Sonia was constantly flooded with complaints about the flat serving as a ‘conspiracy centre’ against one leader or the other. Fed up with the squabbles, Sonia ordered the then AICC treasurer Motilal Vora to close shop.

As the General Election of 2009 inched closer, 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj Road became a rival to 24 Akbar Road. The former was allotted to a media baron as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. She had loaned the premises just as RP Goenka had given his official 99 South Avenue bungalow. Every day, 17 senior Congress leaders would meet at 11 am in the ‘war room’ and reassemble there at 6 pm. In between, Rahul and a dozen or so professionals belonging to the country’s leading ad agencies slipped in and out. Jairam Ramesh served as the overall in-charge of the war room, but other notables registering their presence there included Digvijay Singh, Ahmad Patel, Oscar Fernandes, Ambika Soni, Vishwajeet Prithvijit Singh, Prithviraj Chavan and Janardan Dwivedi.

Unlike 24 Akbar Road, entry to 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj Road was severely restricted, and confidentiality and coordination were at a premium. This was evident when senior leader and the then Union Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh expressed a desire to be part of it. Arjun Singh never received an invitation. When the media baron’s term ended, actress Rekha, another nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, was requested to loan 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj bungalow to the Congress. A Congress MP from West Bengal was the next occupant, albeit merely on paper. He reportedly suffered humiliation when he tried to enter 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj Marg. Rahul Gandhi then had SPG cover and the dweller was asked to retreat.

At 15 Gurdwara Rakabganj Road, the Congress spin doctors’ prime task was to market the Manmohan Singh-Sonia Gandhi duo. In marketing terms, it was not an easy task because the anti-incumbency factor tends to work at different levels. People had seen what the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) could do and had not done. The war room boys tried to find holes in the BJP campaign which was carefully cultivated and latched on to LK Advani’s image and came up with the slogan, ‘Mazboot neta, nirnayak sarkar’ (strong leader, decisive government). The Congress fielded Manmohan Singh to counter the BJP campaign. Manmohan Singh, who had campaigned very little in the 2004 or earlier elections, was launched as a sustained, successful and effective campaigner, puncturing Advani.

While the war room was busy fighting such intense battles, the old-timers and puritans at 24 Akbar Road used to scoff at these spin doctors and their ability to deliver. A UPA cabinet minister used to narrate a story to illustrate his line of argument. He said that many months earlier in Canada, someone offered clean, bottled mountain air by mail order. Thousands responded with money and received empty bottles. ‘The political campaigns are similarly packaged,’ he had said with a chuckle.