Rise and fall of leaders

Since the Congress' 2014 defeat, doubts have been raised about Rahul Gandhi's leadership qualities

Akhilesh Yadav entered active politics around 2000. Rahul Gandhi joined him as member of Parliament in 2004. In 2012, Yadav shifted to state politics, canvassed for his party on a bicycle — the symbol of the Samajwadi Party (SP) — and became the youngest chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.

In 2004 and 2009, Gandhi campaigned for the Congress in the Lok Sabha elections in fits and starts. He continued as Parliament member till 2014 despite nudges from the party and then from prime minister Manmohan Singh to be a member of the Cabinet. 

One of them embraced responsibility; the other shirked it, content to enjoy authority without accountability. Both of them began their political career under their parents’ tutelage. Yadav was able to establish his identity and a following through his commitment and sincerity while Gandhi depended on the influence and popularity of his mother, Sonia Gandhi. Yadav earned admirers among the public, Gandhi added sycophants to his circle.

Since the defeat of the Congress in 2014, doubts have been raised about Gandhi’s leadership qualities. Yadav showed his stewardship by challenging his mature and popular father and got the better of him.

Today, the Congress, which had earlier vowed to fight the UP Assembly elections alone and declared Sheila Dixit as its chief ministerial candidate, has agreed to be a minor partner to Yadav’s SP. The rise and fall of two young leaders could not have been more revealing.

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