‘It’s Okay to Lose,’ Says Rahul Gandhi’s Key Adviser Sam Pitroda

Pitroda, chairman of the Overseas Congress Department, is credited with Rahul Gandhi’s newfound political aggression.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/Sam Pitroda)

“Failure is a part of success, there is nothing to worry about it,” said Sam Pitroda when asked about the possible impact an electoral loss in Gujarat or Himachal Pradesh would have on Rahul Gandhi’s tenure as Congress President. Gandhi will formally take over the top post just two days before election results are declared in the two key states.

Pitroda, chairman of the Overseas Congress Department, is credited with Rahul Gandhi’s newfound political aggression. But according to him, “The real credit goes to Rahul Gandhi. It is not a new avatar but the same one, but he has been given a chance to be heard in the noisy Indian media.”

Pitroda was instrumental in Rahul Gandhi’s two-week visit to several US universities including Berkeley earlier this year.

Pandit Nehru has spoken at Berkeley. We thought it will be a good idea for Pandit Nehru’s great grandson to come in and begin new conversations. He was well received by the western media.

Sam Pitroda, Chairman, Indian Overseas Congress

Pitroda has earlier advised former prime minister and Rahul’s father Rajiv Gandhi and has also worked closely with former prime minister Manmohan Singh. He is known largely for his role in advising Rajiv Gandhi on developing India’s information technology sector in the 1980s.

To Pitroda, the debate on whether Rahul Gandhi has risen to the top post in the Congress courtesy his surname is a non-issue. “I don’t think it’s a dynasty issue,” he says. “It’s an issue of who can win.”

And winning in Gujarat is the latest task that Pitroda is tackling for the Gandhi family. He has helped craft the party’s manifesto ahead of the elections and believes that a Congress turnaround is inevitable. “What goes down, must come up,” he says.

Congress has deep roots, great philosophy, ideology, Gandhian thought process rooted in the Indian independence movement, some great leaders in the past. And that party will come up. It’s okay to be down for a while. That’s what democracy is all about.

Sam Pitroda, Chairman, Indian Overseas Congress

(This article was originally published on BloombergQuint)