Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar is upbeat with the Gurdaspur bypoll result where Congress candidate Sunil Jakhar won by over a lakh votes. In an interview to Newslaundry, he spoke of the “three disastrous years of BJP rule” and the much-needed “rejuvenation the Congress had to go through”. According to him, the BJP’s downfall began close to a year ago and the Gurdaspur victory of the Congress “shows that this downfall is now catching momentum”. “The general public is disillusioned with the BJP and the tide is finally beginning to turn,” he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is probably acknowledging his possible defeat in the 2019 elections, which is why he is now talking about 2024, Aiyar said, referring to Modi’s addressing a meeting in poll-bound Gujarat on Monday. In the meeting, Modi claimed, “Development politics triumphs over dynasty politics.”
Aiyar said Modi’s biggest lie is to create a binary between growth and dynasty. He defended Rahul Gandhi’s nomination as party president by claiming that “nobody within the Congress desires to stand up against Rahul Gandhi”.
Earlier this month, Aiyar found himself in a bit of a bother when he replied to a question by the media about Rahul Gandhi becoming president of the Congress. He said, “I think only two people can be Congress President, mother or son. Rahul already said he is ready to contest the election. But to contest election, rival candidates are required, if there’s no one and there’s only one candidate how will you conduct an election in the first place?”
In response to the damage caused by his statements, including the one where he invited the “chaiwalla” to serve tea at an AICC session, Aiyar said his “British humour” isn’t being understood by Indians and the gossip-hungry media manages to pull everything out of context.
A stout defender of the dynasty, he did admit being disappointed at being pushed to the margins over the last three years. “I was dropped from the ministry for voicing my opinion about the Commonwealth [Games],” he said.
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