Rahul Gandhi does not merely want to lead India. He believes he is entitled to rule it. The entitlement clearly is hereditary. His grandmother, Indira Gandhi, once believed that power was not something to be exercised but something to be possessed.
When power went to Indira’s head, the Constitution was treated like an inconvenient speed-breaker, and the Emergency followed – the only period in independent India when democracy was officially suspended to protect democracy from the people. Now, her grandson appears to have inherited the confidence, if not the competence.
Losing elections, winning lectures
India is possibly the only country where a Leader of the Opposition, after presiding over the loss of roughly 95 elections, travels abroad to explain to foreign audiences that he does not believe in the Constitution while simultaneously aspiring to occupy the post of the Prime Ministership. This ideological flexibility is impressive.
As a politician, Rahul has failed with remarkable consistency. His campaigns begin with great promise and are followed by long periods of reflection in carefully chosen locations far from Parliament. Failure, however, has not dampened his sense of destiny. On the contrary, it seems to have reinforced it.
Leader of the Opposition in absentia
As Leader of the Opposition, his performance has been equally underwhelming. The role demands rigour, homework, parliamentary presence, and a respect for institutions. Instead, Rahul has offered slogans, absences, and overseas monologues. The Opposition under him has often appeared less interested in opposing the government than in opposing the country itself, preferably on international platforms.
What troubles many Indians is not merely his ineffectiveness, but his apparent lack of respect for the nation he seeks to govern. Criticism is the lifeblood of democracy. No doubt, but deriding India abroad while demanding its highest office at home suggests confusion, or entitlement, or both. Patriotism, in his case, seems conditional – extended only when the country agrees with him.
Emergency lessons are still unlearnt
Rahul Gandhi remains convinced that India owes him power because history once did. Indira Gandhi misruled India when power went to her head, and dissent became a threat. Her grandson seems eager to inherit not only her surname, but her certainty that leadership is a birthright and democracy a hurdle.
India, however, has moved on. It continues to vote, to debate, and to reject entitlement. Rahul Gandhi continues to explain why the country is wrong while the inheritance remains unclaimed.
