THE NEHRU DYNASTY: IS IT NEARING ITS END?
In the 77-year-long history of Independent India, one moment stands out: the 1984 landslide victory of the Congress party, helmed by Rajiv Gandhi, with a staggering 404 seats in the Lok Sabha. Yet, as the dust settles on the 2024 election, the dynasty’s grip on power seems to be slipping. Rajiv Gandhi, scion of India’s ultimate political dynasty, inherited a legacy that stretched back through generations. From Jawaharlal Nehru, the nation’s first and longest-serving prime minister, to his grandmother Indira Gandhi, India’s first female prime minister, and his father, the youngest to hold the prime ministerial office, Rajiv carried a weighty surname.
Despite this illustrious lineage, questions lingered. Critics pointed to his ascent to power not as a testament to merit, but as a product of familial connections. Privately, party insiders whispered of a leader lacking the shrewdness of his adversaries. The 2014 election was the worst political performance of the Congress, but we are yet to see the result of the 2024 election in India. In 2024, the illustrious family name has lost some sheen in recent years. Urban voters and the aspirational youth, disenchanted with the distant glories of Nehru and Indira, turned away.
Amidst the political melee, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seized the opportunity to deliver a stinging rebuke. He lambasted the Gandhi family’s reign, accusing them of enriching themselves at the nation’s expense, while highlighting their missteps, from corruption scandals to questionable legal manoeuvres.
“Instead of alleviating poverty, they indulged in rampant corruption and instigated chaos.”, he asserted at a public meeting in Hasanpur, Amroha in support of Kanwar Singh Tanwar last month.
“The Samajwadi Party has crossed the limits of shamelessness. They had the audacity to withdraw cases against terrorists who attacked Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya and the Sankat Mochan Temple in Kashi. However, the judiciary thwarted their intentions.”, he also reminded.
Adityanath extolled the efforts of Prime Minister Modi in quelling terrorism, citing the revocation of Article 370 in 2019 as a watershed moment in India’s fight against extremism. Under Modi’s leadership, terrorism was not just curbed but eradicated, sending a clear message to adversaries and instilling a sense of security among citizens.