Rahul Gandhi’s outburst against the Ordinance to let the status quo continue on convicted politicians is either irresponsible or opportunistic and, in either case, unbecoming. And this is regardless of the substance of his views on the Ordinance. If he was so aggrieved by its substance, why had he not spoken up when the Bill was introduced in Parliament? Sonia Gandhi should intervene, either to contain the damage caused by her son’s tantrum or to allow Manmohan Singh to exit an office whose authority is being undermined by his own party.When Rahul Gandhi says that the Ordinance should be torn up, he states three things. One, he is not part of the process of the decision-making in the government. Two, he cares nothing for the damage his denunciation of the Ordinance does to the authority of the PM, to the authority of his mother and party president, without whose consent a critical decision like issuing the Ordinance would not have been made, or to the integrity of the decision-making process within the party. And, three, he wants to place himself outside the grimy world of realpolitik and on the side of the angels. All three statements are irresponsible and disingenuous.If Gandhi thinks distancing himself from the present government is a smart way of trying to unburden the poll-bound Congress of the scams and mismanagement associated with the government, he is fooling himself, and no one else. And he is doing a pretty good job of it, too, considering the self-satisfied glee he displayed while tearing up the credibility of Congressmen and government leaders who have been explaining the rationale for the Ordinance and defending it. Rajiv Gandhi once sacked a foreign secretary during a press conference. That did not add to his reputation or to his efficacy. Rahul Gandhi should not delude himself that intemperate outbursts that condemn his senior colleagues would raise his public image. Politics is not about impetuous interventions but about continuous, dedicated engagement. If Rahul Gandhi does not have the stomach for it, he should leave the field completely and let others do the hard grind that constitutes politics.