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His familial duties, birthday and New Year vacations stall critical decision-making in the party.

While the national media attention has moved away from Karnataka, the political circus in the state is not over.

On Wednesday, 23 May, H.D. Kumaraswamy took oath as Karnataka chief minister. G. Parameshwara of the Congress was sworn-in as the deputy chief minister. Five days later, it remains a two-member cabinet.

The number of ministers that Kumaraswamy’s Janata Dal (Secular) and the Congress will have has been decided, but the two sides are still fighting over who will have the more lucrative and powerful portfolios.

This public bickering from day one does not bode well for the alliance. If the JD(S)-Congress alliance in Karnataka continues to be this messy, it can only help the BJP in the state in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Just like Nitish Kumar went into the arms of the BJP in Bihar, Kumaraswamy can easily do that in Karnataka.

Why is it taking so long to sort out the issues? In the words of Siddaramaiah, outgoing chief minister and leader of the Congress Legislature Party: “We could not discuss allocation of portfolios with Congress president Rahul Gandhi. Once he returns, we will discuss with him again. It will not take a week… Maybe, three-four days will be required.”

Familial duties

Congress president Rahul Gandhi announced on Twitter Sunday night that he was going abroad to accompany his mother Sonia Gandhi for an “annual medical check-up”.

Everybody wishes Sonia Gandhi the best of health. The word “annual” suggests it is a routine check-up. But may be Sonia Gandhi needs to go see the doctors who treated her of cancer. Perhaps, Rahul Gandhi had to accompany her. Perhaps, Priyanka and Robert Vadra were not available. Perhaps, they all are needed. Everyone should look after their parents.

But Rahul Gandhi’s familial duties are coming in the way of governance in Karnataka. The people of Karnataka, most of whom can’t go abroad for annual health check-ups, have been told by chief minister Kumaraswamy that he’s beholden to the Congress.

I told you, Kumaraswamy says, give me a full mandate! “Mine is not an independent government. I had requested the people to give me a mandate that prevents me from succumbing to any pressure other than you. But today I am at the mercy of the Congress. I am not under the pressure of the 6.5 crore people of the state,” Kumaraswamy has said.

This is not the first time that Rahul Gandhi’s trips abroad – which often come with compelling reasons – have hurt the Congress party. In December 2016, he flew abroad to celebrate New Year’s eve even as Amarinder Singh camped in Delhi, waiting for Rahul to return and finalise ticket distribution for the Punjab election.

Elections were to be held in Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh in February, and Rahul Gandhi was abroad for 10 days in December-January. This wasn’t the first time though.

Rahul Gandhi had similarly gone to Europe in December 2015 just before the Assam assembly election in April 2016. One has never heard of Amit Shah taking foreign holidays. The commitment shows in the results, with the BJP winning one election after another.

Perhaps realising the bad optics, Rahul Gandhi chose to holiday in Goa in December 2017 along with his mother, who took a much-needed break after relinquishing her post as Congress president.

Electoral politics is a full-time job but perhaps everybody deserves a vacation. But Rahul Gandhi takes 2-3 vacations a year, and we are not even counting the foreign trips arranged by Sam Pitroda to interact with NRIs.

These trips not only stall decision-making in the Congress party but also further his image as a part-time politician. That’s not the impression with which one could convince voters to make him the prime minister.

Birthdays in Europe

Most politicians use their birthdays as campaign tools. Prime Minister Narendra Modi turns is birthday into ‘Sewa Diwas’, public service day. Mayawati cuts her cake to assert Dalit aspirations. Rahul Gandhi goes abroad.

A month after his party was reduced to a historic low of 44 seats in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi went abroad in June 2014.

In early 2015, Rahul Gandhi took leave of absence and went away for almost two months. He travelled to Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, but much of the trip was about a meditation course in Myanmar.

He returned from this rejuvenation exercise in April, and was very much in Delhi for his birthday on 19 June. That is so rare that it was described as “Rahul Gandhi’s first birthday in Delhi”. Not one to disappoint, he took a flight the very next day to somewhere faraway from the humdrum of Indian politics. Sonia and Priyanka Gandhi went away too. They were all back 10 days later.

In June 2016, he celebrated his birthday in Turkey. In 2017, he spent his birthday with his grandmother in Italy. He has currently gone abroad with his mother for annual check-up and may soon go on the Mansarovar yatra.

In March 2018, Rahul Gandhi went to see his elderly grandmother in Italy again, even as the party’s poor performance in the northeast made headlines. Rahul had little to say.

Rahul Gandhi has stated his desire to be the prime minister in 2019. Perhaps, the air miles will help?

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