Rahul Gandhi Considered Twitter As An "Urban Fad", Says Congress Dissenter Sanjay Jha In His New Book

In his book, Jha, has claimed that he was offered to head the Congress social media team in 2019 but the AICC secretary denied because he felt incumbent Divya Spandana was doing a great job. Divya, a gutsy and innovative cyber warrior whose filmy name Ramya was eventually removed and the Congress presence on social media began to decline.

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Rahul Gandhi and the Congress majorly underestimated a smear campaign against them consisting of morphed videos, memes and fake attributions. While the BJP monopolised smartphone applications, blogs, podcasts and all digital platforms, the Congress struggled to activate online membership on its official website. This was a race between a BMW and a bullock cart, says Jha, author of, “The Great Unravelling: India After 2014 [Context/Westland]".

In his book, Jha, has claimed that he was offered to head the Congress social media team in 2019  but the AICC secretary denied because he felt incumbent Divya Spandana was doing a great job. Divya, a gutsy and innovative cyber warrior whose filmy name Ramya was eventually removed and the Congress presence on social media began to decline.

Divya was Rahul Gandhi's find and used to report directly to him when Rahul was AICC chief between December 2017 to May 2019. Divya, within months of taking over as Congress IT cell, made huge inroads in Rahul image makeover and then putting the BJP on the defensive. A former Lok Sabha MP from Mandya, Karnataka, Divya’s initial days at the congress war room at 16, Gurudwara Rakabgunj Road, New Delhi had aroused derisive laughter within the party hierarchy and in the enemy camp. But within a year, she had succeeded in helping to turn around Rahul’s image as a dynamic national leader. The Congress official handle tweets had become witty, at times on the verge of being whacky but succeeding in unsettling the BJP which was, until then, winning the high-tech warfare almost uncontested.

For Jha, Divya’s exit without a reason, symbolised what ails the Congress. It amounted to the grand old party shooting itself in the foot. The Congress lacked a basic understanding towards social media. Rahul Gandhi had refused to join Twitter—he thought it was just an ‘urban fad!’ According to Jha, it was Shashi Tharoor who pushed the Congress to rethink its social media strategy.

Jha says sometime in  2019, he had received a call from Randeep Singh Surjewala, the head of the party’s communication cell. “I picked up the call expectantly. ‘Would you be open to taking over as head of our party’s social media department?’ Jha quoted Surjewala as saying.

Jha said he declined instantly, because he thought under Divya Spandana, Rahul’s Twitter presence was generating positive word-of-mouth impact, and people were appreciating his cheeky humour, sarcastic jibes and carefree barracking of Modi. “He was no longer the kurta-clad politician spouting the usual bromides; he was now cool, relaxed and friendly. The credit for Rahul’s social media personality makeover must go to Congress Divya. I knew her a bit and admired her feisty demeanour and no-nonsense attitude,” commented Jha.

Jha, now a disgruntled columnist and TV talking head constantly criticising Gandhis, thinks the Congress needs much more than membership drives. “There is need today for a reaffirmation of the party’s core ideologies: inclusiveness, secularism, tolerance, the democratic spirit and progressiveness,” Jha says adding, “Only a commitment to these values can override short-term electoral disappointments. If Congress MLAs and MPs happily jump ship when the BJP offers them a fat wad from the Operation Lotus treasury, the Congress is equally culpable. It is guilty of giving tickets to those who can mobilize muscle power and have the ability to fix underhand deals to recoup their original ‘investments’, political workers for whom ideology is like a third shoe. Over the years, questionable characters have come to dominate the Congress’s political structure and organization, leading to organizational fragility.”

These are some strong words and worth introspecting.

But the Congress has not introspected, argues Jha. Admitting that while at the core, the Congress has remained committed to the idea of secularism, its political intent has been hamstrung by confused articulation and a defensive posture that made it look unreliable and fishy in the eyes of the common person.

Surprisingly, Jha uses some kind words and praises generously making one wonder why he is so passionately arguing for the exit of Gandhis at the helm of Congress affairs. Sample this, “Behind his soft exterior and inherent decency, Rahul has a steely determination.” Jha describes Rahul Gandhi as a proverbial long-distance runner and adds, “as all marathon men know, it is a lonely experience.”

Jha feebly attempts to find faults with Rahul, “The problem was that Rahul remained largely aloof and, to most people, almost inaccessible.”

[Author-Journalist Rasheed Kidwai is a visiting Fellow of the Observer Research Foundation. He tracks government and politics and considered a specialist on Congress party affairs.]

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