After being in the public gaze for over a decade, it is time handlers of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi admit interviews are not his strength. Monologues work to an extent, like his rather sharp speech giving the old ad jingle Hum do, hamare do a new spin to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and crony capitalism. But then his inability to feed the media machine with new headlines each day to keep it interested is a critical deficiency.
Well-timed stunts like jumping into the mid-sea thus showing his toned abs or doing push-ups do keep young fans drooling. But interviews? That is where he appears fidgety, ponderous and out of depth. His latest blunder was to wonder why the US was silent on what was happening in India—on charges like stifling individual freedoms and capturing institutions in response to a macro geopolitical poser by former US under secretary of state and now Harvard professor Nicholas Burns on how the two democracies could come together to take on totalitarian nations like China. It was an unforced error as Burns did not ask any leading question.
Rahul’s response drew flak as it was interpreted as seeking international intervention in domestic matters. Burns smartly sidestepped it with a straight face, showing how adept he is at diplomacy. The larger points Rahul made like finding an alternative global democratic paradigm to China’s promise of prosperity through its Belt and Road initiative got lost in the self-goal. In the past, Rahul’s interviews to Indian media were airbrushed by his minders before release, but that could not be done to the Harvard interaction.
One of the interesting takeaways of this round of elections is the extensive campaigning by Rahul’s sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in various states for the first time. Her comfort levels with the electorate and the ease with which she answers impromptu media questions show her natural flair as compared to Rahul. With Rahul not sounding optimistic about regaining lost ground for his party in the Harvard interaction, perhaps the Congress president should look at talent instead of the natural heir principal while deciding on her successor.