The Congress’s ‘Azadi Gaurav Yatra’ in August in Chhattisgarh, which was primarily a counter-narrative to the BJP’s ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign, stood out in terms of its scope as well as timing (the party is seeking a fresh mandate in the State next year).
The issue of aggressive nationalism has traditionally had limited appeal in State politics. However, the Congress believes that Prime Minister Narendra Modi could assume a central role in the BJP’s 2023 election campaign, and will likely use national and emotive issues. There were reportedly discussions on the party’s need to be more aggressive on nationalism in the ‘Chintan Shivir’ in Udaipur too. This was followed by the Azadi Gaurav Yatra; the Bharat Jodo Yatra starts next month.
The party concedes that the BJP has an edge on the issue of nationalism, but it also feels that core BJP voters do not identify with anyone apart from Mr. Modi in the party. Such outreach programmes, a Congress worker said, will help dispel the many “myths created around historical figures such as V.D. Savarkar, K.B. Hedgewar and Deen Dayal Upadhyay and reclaim the freedom fighter legacy of the Congress.” Additionally, the party is also attempting to “wrest back the BJP’s claims on Congress icons such as Sardar Patel”.
The Congress participates in ‘August Kranti Diwas’ in the run-up to Independence Day every year and celebrates icons such as Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi. In addition, in 2019, the Bhupesh Baghel government organised a padayatra to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhi. Mr. Baghel then questioned the BJP’s brand of “proactive nationalism,” contrasting it with Gandhi’s “inclusive nationalism.”
During the Azadi Gaurav Yatra, Congress leaders included the contributions made by different social groups in Chhattisgarh in the Independence movement. This was an attempt to assimilate local sentiments with the Congress’s legacy at a time when the BJP’s programme mainly focused on displaying flags. For its part, the BJP took its flag campaign to some of the remotest parts of the State, such as the households of the Pahadi Korwa, a particularly vulnerable tribal group. Congress leaders and workers told people that the party had organised similar events on the 25th and the 50th anniversary of Independence unlike the BJP. Mohan Markam, president of the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee, sent the tricolour to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat urging him to hoist it at the RSS’ headquarters in Nagpur, where, the party claimed, the flag had not been hoisted for 52 years.
But the Azadi Gaurav Yatra was more than nationalism. It was organised in every Assembly constituency. Prominent leaders, including 71 sitting MLAs, led the campaign in their respective areas. They divided the 75-km route into smaller padayatras to be covered each day. In the few constituencies where it did not have an MLA, the party fielded those who had contested the 2018 elections. It used this opportunity to tell the people not only about the connect it had with the freedom struggle, but also to gauge their mood and take its initiatives to every nook and corner. In the process, the party also oiled its organisational machinery in all the constituencies, getting block- and booth-level workers to engage actively. Despite the differences between Mr. Baghel and senior Cabinet minister T.S. Singh Deo that play out in the public domain from time to time, the party presented a united face.
The party claims that it has nipped in the bud the Opposition’s plans to whip up emotions on nationalism. However, newer challenges await the Congress as the BJP is regrouping quickly, making organisational changes, exploring new caste equations and organising street protests.
shubhomoy.s@thehindu.co.in
