Soon after India attained independence on August 15, 1947, the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi suggested to the then Congress leaders that the main purpose of starting the Congress party was to fight for freedom. In the process, the Congress completely dedicated itself to this herculean task amidst enormous stress and distress. Subsequently, we became Free India, delinked from British clutches. The goal of freedom was accomplished and it was time to wind up the party. Senior Congress leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhai Patel, and Rajendra Prasad, should meet, review, and expeditiously take a decision in this regard, said Gandhi.
Gandhi would have probably forethought that in the latter days, Congress party leaders of subsequent generations would recall the party’s active role in the freedom movement and gain political mileage, which he felt was wrong and ought to be halted. The aforementioned senior leaders of the party did not pay heed to Gandhi’s suggestion to close the shop.
The Congress party plunged into the electoral battleground. India was proclaimed a Sovereign Republic on January 26, 1950 and the Indian Constitution came into effect. Accordingly, parliament at the Centre and legislative assemblies in the states came into existence. On the basis of the Constitution, the Congress party appealed to the people to elect their representatives.
The Party highlighted their role during the freedom struggle, amplified the sacrifices made by the Nehru family, and enticed the electorate. For over 30 years since Independence, the Congress party reigned in the Centre and in many states. During that period, the opium of power slowly but surely raised its head. Corruption also in small and definite doses started showing up. The leaders of the Congress party during the freedom struggle movement were spotless nationalists. When they jumped into the freedom struggle, they sacrificed all their comforts and luxuries. They even forgot their families.
Due to the selfless sacrifices of the erstwhile leaders, we initially had corruption-free governance. Sardar Patel was a remarkable leader-cum-administrator during that period. Due to his diplomatic efforts, many princely rulers surrendered their sovereignty and agreed to annex their jurisdictions to streamline with India.
During the Nehru era, the India-Russia pact was signed. Also, the other leaders - Abul Kalam Azad and Rajendra Prasad, in particular – played an exceptional role in the discharge of their administrative duties. India began to advance in many sectors. However, after the departure of these leaders, subsequent generations deviated from the path of honesty and integrity, eyed only power, and indulged in corrupt practices. Corruption which started in small trickles began to multiply to the highest proportions. Whenever elections approached, the Congress party would highlight the past struggles of their predecessors, the sacrifices of the Nehru family, and of the Indian National Congress leaders to hoodwink the voters, and they merrily exploited the electorate.
However, over a period of time, people identified their true colors and slowly stopped voting for them. Result:- The 30-year Congress rule at the Centre was disturbed.
New political parties emerged in the states captured power. In spite of all these, Congress continued to remain a reasonably powerful party. At the same time, the party tried to cover-up the corrupt deals indulged by its representatives while in power. A stage has come that they cannot fool the people by singing the old songs. There is a huge difference between the Congress prevailed during/soon after Independence, and the Congress ruling today. One need not look at BJP and other political parties for Anti-Congress forces. Make a simple comparison between the Congress that stood for Indian freedom and the corrupt-tainted Congress of today. The latter is a distinct Anti-Congress in itself.
Dissolve the Congress party
Keeping this in mind and to cherish the historic Indian national ethos, the present-day Congress leader, Sonia Gandhi, in deference to the original wishes of the Mahatma should dissolve the Congress party. Let her start a new political party under a different name. Though she is of Italian origin, she has become a naturalized Indian. She has all the competencies to start a new party. After all, the original Congress was started by a British civil servant, Allan Octavian Hume. If Sonia Gandhi can initiate a decision to that effect, she would be rendering yeoman service to the cause of Indian democracy in general and the Indian National Congress in particular. Referring to Mahatma Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in the same breath is akin to equating Swami Vivekananda with Nityananda!
Happy Republic Day Greetings.
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Also Read: http://kmurthy608.blogspot.in/2014/05/congress-good-riddance.html
http://kmurthy608.blogspot.in/2014/01/mani-shankar-aiyar-hosts-tea-party.html
Very well written
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