Rahul’s Re-Branded Avatar: Does BJP Need to be Wary of Baba Log?

Brand Rahul in its refurbished form has made heads turn but will he be able to sustain the momentum?

Rahul Gandhi had barely finished speaking in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday when the BJP’s big guns started booming. As many as three top ministers in the Modi government – Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and Sushma Swaraj – as well as Amit Shah’s close party aide Srikant Sharma rushed to slam the Congress vice president as “immature, non-serious and a lying machine.’’ The next day, a salvo came from the Prime Minister himself.

Without naming Rahul, he taunted, ``Some people grow older but not wiser.’’ That was not the only jibe. He recalled the manner in which Rahul tore up the infamous ordinance meant to protect Lalu Yadav’s political career even as Manmohan Singh was in the US for talks with President Barack Obama. ``Please learn to respect elders,’’ he snapped. He blamed the Congress for disrupting the Parliament because of an ``inferiority complex’’ and suggested that young leaders were not being allowed to grow due to the fear that they would outshine the heir apparent.

Drawing Battle Lines for 2019

The acrimonious exchange robbed the debate on the motion of thanks to the President, of the gravitas that should be its hallmark. This debate is one of Parliament’s most important discussions. It provides an opportunity for the opposition to raise burning issues of the day and for the Prime Minister to speak his mind, outline his vision and give direction. But this year, politics seems to have taken over, with both Modi and Rahul drawing the battle lines for the 2019 face-off already.

It is interesting that Modi seems to have decided to pick up Rahul’s gauntlet and take him on directly. If Rahul’s ``suit-boot ki sarkar’’ barb last year struck a raw nerve, Modi refrained from letting it show. His ministers and party spokespersons were tasked with launching a counter attack.

But not this year, as Rahul hit that spot again by painting him as authoritarian and dictatorial. ``You have been taught by your teachers in the RSS that there is only one truth – yours. That nobody else’s opinion matters in the least, ‘’ the Congress heir apparent scoffed.

The one-man brand image was crafted cleverly: Rajnath knew nothing about the Naga peace accord; Sushma was not in the loop about the PM’s Lahore stopover on Christmas day; professionals in the system are not consulted on important issues.

Rahul wove the tapestry with masterful sarcasm and biting wit, winding up with a piece of advice that hit where it hurt. ``Listen to those around you. Listen to Rajnathji, Advaniji and Sushmaji,’’ Rahul said in a deprecatory reference to the barely hidden animosity between Modi and the three seniors.

While the BJP may shriek that Rahul is a “part time politician’’, it is clear that he is working to a plan. With every speech, he chips away at Brand Modi, hoping that he will ultimately succeed in deflating the hype that swept the BJP to power in 2014.

Brand Rahul

Politics is all about branding. Indira Gandhi became Indira Amma, saviour of the poor with her garibi hatao slogan. Modi was Mr Development, the man with a 56-inch chest who would bring in achche din. Rahul has no brand except the one the BJP is trying to craft for him by recalling his many missteps through ten years of UPA rule and waving him off as a spoilt, irresponsible brat.

Modi tried to play the elder statesman in Parliament as he chided Rahul like a child again and again, albeit without naming him. But what came through, is that Rahul has managed to get under his skin. And while Rahul as a member of the ruling party posed little or no threat, Rahul in the opposition could turn out to be more of a challenge than either Modi or the BJP had foreseen.

Rahul certainly has damage potential. His negative campaign may tarnish Brand Modi, especially if the PM fails to turn the economy around and the country is increasingly sucked into social and communal unrest. But for Rahul to emerge as a leader in his own right and make a mark, he must generate a positive aura with a message that is uniquely his.

Rahul’s main challenge in the run up to the 2019 polls is to develop a brand that draws in votes. Otherwise the BJP may have the last laugh with the “baba log’’ salvos it keeps firing in self-defence.

(The writer is a Delhi-based senior journalist.)