Former JNU Students’ Union president and CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar is the latest in a long line of Left leaders to join the Congress or forge stronger ties with the party.
In fact, Shakeel Ahmed, a two-time MLA from Bihar and Congress whip in Rajya Sabha Naseer Hussain, are former JNU students and were associated with leftist politics while there. In recent instances, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s aide Sandeep Singh and likely UP election candidate Mohit Dubey were also with the Left in JNU.
Kanhaiya Kumar will join independent Vadgam MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani along with his university colleagues in the Congress on Tuesday.
The latest addition has prompted political observers to wonder whether the Congress is shifting from its decades-old centrist position to the Left. The party has shown leftist leanings on several occasions in the past, especially during Indira Gandhi’s tenure as prime minister. Indira’s inclination towards the Soviet Union model is believed to have slowed India’s march towards liberalisation.
In fact, Indira Gandhi’s Left leanings helped her engineer a split within the Congress and tighten her grip on the new Congress. slogans likeremove povertyThe 1971 elections helped revive him and the party’s fortunes. By her second term in office, the loss of following a left-wing line in her economic policies had dawned on her and she went on the path of modernization, which her son and future PM Rajiv Gandhi firmly believed in.
Indira’s successors Rajiv Gandhi, PV Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh from the Congress were never fans of the Left. He realized that any leftist leanings would harm the country, and with the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was time to walk the middle path.
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It came as a surprise to many when Sonia Gandhi displayed her mother-in-law’s left-leaning leanings, and filled the National Advisory Council (NAC) with people responsible for leftist ideology such as Aruna Ali and Jean Dietrich. The NAC framed guidelines that were often imposed on the Manmohan Singh government such as farm loan waivers, food bills and NREGA.
This ideological tussle between the party and the government gave rise to strange moments. Sources say that Manmohan Singh was not very comfortable with the Food Bill as he feared that when there is a shortage of funds, it may take a toll on the economy.
But Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are following the path of their mother. Sandeep Singh, once associated with the student wing of the CPI(ML), is Priyanka’s political secretary. Back in 2005, he was among those who waved black flags at Manmohan Singh over his government’s policies. When he left the CPI(ML)-backed All India Students Union and joined the Congress, he apologized for it.
Rahul Gandhi is also known to have consulted CPM leader Sitaram Yechury and DU professor Apoorvanand. People close to Rahul say their appreciation for these leaders stems from his belief that only a Left ideology can connect his party with Dalits. This will help them to present the story that the Congress is with aam aadmiBJP onesuit-boot party”
Kanhaiya Kumar can no longer be linked with JNU’s Left. He is an aggressive Hindi-speaking politician from the heartland who will help us,” said a senior Congress leader close to Rahul Gandhi.
But Kanhaiya Kumar’s entry into the party has already become a cause for controversy, with some fearing that the baggage of his controversies in JNU will drag the party down. The first to be vocal is Manish Tewari who tweeted without naming Kanhaiya Kumar. “As there is speculation about some communist leaders joining @INCIndia, it might perhaps be instructive to revisit the 1973 book ‘Communists in Congress’ Kumaramangalam thesis. The more things change, the more they Maybe she stays the same (sic),” he said.
As there is speculation about the involvement of some communist leaders @INCIndia Perhaps it might be instructive to revisit the 1973 book ‘Communists in Congress’ Kumaramangalam thesis. The more things change, the more they probably stay the same. i read it again todayhttps://t.co/iMSK8RqEiA— Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) September 28, 2021
The Kerala Congress is also uncomfortable with the involvement of many Left leaders. “We have our own people. We have our own ideology. When these Left leaders come with us, they do not give up their ideologies. They only bring them in and associate with us. It makes us look more and more leftist,” A Congress leader from the state told News18.
With the BJP and other political parties emphasizing on liberalization and centrist thinking, it remains to be seen whether the Left-leaning will pay off for the Congress.
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