After 24 years, senior leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who has been elected non-Gandhi president of Congress, may have a tough time ahead. In fact, before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Kharge will have to face challenges on many fronts. While Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh do not see much potential for the Congress, in Rajasthan and Karnataka the party is grappling with infighting. Apart from this, putting the opposition together for the 2024 elections is also going to be a challenge for Kharge.
However, several things are in Kharge's favour. He is recognized as a leader in the party who likes to take everyone together. Kharge will be officially appointed as Congress President on October 26. Kharge has been elected to the party's top post when the party is in only two states - Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. In Himachal and Gujarat, the party appears to be far behind the BJP. The elections to be held in both states will be the first challenge for Kharge.
Then in 2023, the Congress president will face the daunting task of leading the party to nine assembly elections, including in his home state of Karnataka. Kharge's election comes at a time when the party is going through internal battles and is facing one electoral defeat after another. Not only this, but Kharge will also have to oppose and prove the BJP's allegations of being remotely controlled by the Gandhi family.
Young and old leaders have to be taken along
Kharge will have to strike a balance between the youth and the elderly leaders in the party. Political commentator Rashid Kidwai says Kharge faces many challenges as he has to coordinate with team Rahul Gandhi, who holds key positions in the All India Congress Committee (AICC), Congress Working Committee (CWC), and most states. Kidwai told PTI that the next challenge is to form a CWC, which is expected to accommodate most of the G-23 people who support him. Kharge also faces the immediate challenge of a political crisis in Rajasthan, as he faces Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot.
There will also be a challenge to bring all the opposition parties together
Kidwai further said that he has to forge a broad alliance with TMC's Mamata Banerjee, DMK's MK Stalin, JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar, and TRS's K Chandrashekhar Rao for the 2024 general elections. On the other hand, political commentator Sanjay Kumar says there are many challenges for the party, and unfortunately, Kharge's leadership ability will be tested on the parameters of Congress' electoral success. The Congress doesn't seem to be in a very good position to face the BJP in states like Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh and next year's assembly elections from Karnataka.
How independently will Kharge be able to take decisions?
Kumar, co-director of Lokniti, a research program at the 'Center for the Study of Developing Societies, said criticism may have started that the leadership change has not done much for the party. He said it remains to be seen whether many critics have tagged Kharge as a puppet. The time to come will also depend on how freely Kharge decides or keeps going to 10 Janpath or Rahul Gandhi for advice. Kumar also said that infighting has been a challenge for Congress and the recent developments in Rajasthan have proved it. When the Gandhi family had problems dealing with it, Kharge will have more problems.
Kharge will have to face these three major challenges
On the other hand, Manindra Nath Thakur, an associate professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University's Center for Political Studies, said Kharge and the Congress would face three main challenges - gaining back support in the Hindi-speaking region, creating a new socio-economic-political idea. To attract people and thirdly to improve the organizational structure. "He is not the natural choice of everyone in the party and therefore, he will have to work hard for it," Thakur told PTI. The road ahead is certainly tough for Kharge, but many in the party believe I think he is the right person for this post as he has a lot of experience. He takes everyone along and understands the organizational working of Congress from the inside.
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