‘Rahul to emerge hero if sent to jail’

Congress scion Rahul Gandhi’s second U-turn is being viewed as an attempt to emerge as the unifying force of the secular forces who are anti-Sangh Parivar.

The move is to project Mr Gandhi taking an “ideological stand” against a “communal outfit”. After saying that he did not blame the RSS as an institution for the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, Mr Gandhi told the top court on Thursday that he was ready to face trial for his alleged defamatory statement accusing the RSS and its people responsible for the killing of the Mahatma Gandhi as he stood by what he said in his election rally during 2014.

The Congress spin doctors also felt that reports of Rahul Gandhi’s earlier “U-turn” had gone against the image of the leader, struggling to make his mark in the national political and electoral scenario. The Rahul camp feels if the leaders is sent to jail, he “will emerge a national hero and fulcrum of the secular forces”.

The BJP and RSS took the opportunity to take another dig at Mr Gandhi’s change of stand, saying, “Mr Gandhi’s actions reflect a state of confusion.”

Earlier, when the Congress vice-president told the top court that he had “never blamed the RSS” for the assassination of Mahatama Gandhi, his partymen and the Congress strategists felt that his image had taken another beating and had given a major handle to the RSS and BJP. There was a thinking in the party that Mr Gandhi should have stood firm and not withdrawan the statement.

By taking the stand against the RSS and claiming that he stood by his remark, Mr Gandhi has now directly locked horns with the RSS. “And if he’s sent to prison, he will go up in stature. He will be the leader who openly defied the Sangh Parivar and went to jail defending secularism,” a Congress leader said.

The main Opposition space, which the Congress controlled whenever the BJP and an anti-Congress government came to power at the Centre, was being taken over by the regional forces which included Aam Admi Party, Trinamul Congress and Janata Dal(United). While Nitish Kumar, Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee emerged as the face of the anti-BJP forces, the Congress, led by Rahul Gandhi, could not match up to their stature, a Congress functionary felt.

Mr Gandhi’s “latest defiance” will now push him up the ladder, the Congress strategists felt.

With Uttar Pradesh elections approaching and Congress nowhere in the race, Mr Gandhi is now all set to step on the gas against the BJP and the Sangh Parivar. He’s now expected to wear his defiance as a badge to woo the UP electorates, particularly the minority and dalit vote banks who were still divided between BSP and SP.

BJP said that Rahul Gandhi’s assertion in the Supreme Court that he stood by his statement alleging RSS killed Mahatma Gandhi, was driven by “votebank politics” and his attack on the “nationalist outfit” would cause further fall in his party’s fortunes.

Responding to Mr Gandhi’s move to stand by what he said RSS Communications department head Manmohan Vaidya said “why Rahul Gandhi avoided the trial for two years under one pretext or other Is he scared to face truth ”

Playing the ideological card, Congress spokesperson, Randeep Surjewala said that the “Congress’ ideology has strengthened by this bold and courageous” decision of Mr Gandhi. he added; “To those who seek to divide this country based on caste, religion or region, we will like to remind them that when Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated on January 30, 1948, by Nathuram Godse, the government of India and the home ministry then headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel proceeded to ban the RSS.”