'I'm Pro-Business': Rahul Gandhi Clarifies After His Column Sends Jitters Within MVA Ahead of Polls

Last Updated:November 08, 2024, 09:13 IST

Top sources have told News18 that many of the MVA allies like the NCP (SP) and the Shiv Sena (UBT) are unhappy with Rahul Gandhi's column as it sent out a message that they were against the corporate sector.

The clarification from Rahul Gandhi came in not because he tried to reach out to the BJP, but more because many among his own allies, were uncomfortable, particularly the Maha Vikas Aghadi members in Maharashtra. (Getty File)

Almost 24 hours after Congress MP Rahul Gandhi wrote an Op-ed in a national daily where he criticised the corporate culture and the fact that there was a monopoly and he spoke about the East India Company, a clarification came from the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha. “I am pro-Jobs, pro-Business, pro-Innovation, pro-Competition. I am anti-Monopoly. Our economy will thrive when there is free and fair space for all businesses," Gandhi said after facing criticism over his column.

As many from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), especially those from royal families, like Diya Kumari and Jyotiraditya Scindia objected to Rahul Gandhi’s attack on the royalty, the BJP also mounted criticism. The clarification from Rahul Gandhi came in not because he tried to reach out to the BJP, but more because many among his own allies were uncomfortable, particularly the Maha Vikas Aghadi members in Maharashtra.

‘Colonial Mindset’: Royal Scions Hit Out At Rahul Gandhi Over ‘Plaint Maharajas’ Remark

Maharashtra is set to go to polls on 20 November. The state is also called the financial hub of the country. Most of the biggest corporates in the country are seated in the state and the BJP said Rahul Gandhi is against the private sector, something which could hurt the Congress and the MVA as well.

Top sources have told News18 that many of the MVA allies like the NCP (SP) and the Shiv Sena (UBT) are unhappy with Rahul Gandhi’s column as it sent out a message that they were against the corporate sector. Despite Rahul Gandhi’s clarification, the message which was sent out to the top brass of the Congress was that this is a perception which could end up hurting the alliance on multiple grounds.

Sources have said that questions have been raised like how Rahul’s column would be taken after the Congress and MVA have attacked the Modi government for shifting industries from Maharashtra to Gujarat. Secondly, parties like the NCP and Shiv Sena don’t have a problem with the private sector. They know that in a state like Maharashtra, it is very important that the private sector also is taken along and, therefore, they cannot afford to alienate this important as well as influential vote bank, sources added.

There was also uneasiness among the governments in Karnataka, Telangana, and Himachal Pradesh, which are looking at more investments by the private sector.

The whole perception of Rahul Gandhi and the core team running NGO-style politics has ended up hurting the Congress party very often in the past. Leaders like Kamal Nath and Captain Amarinder Singh (former Congress leader) have been known to have good equations with private sector leaders, and such comments in the past too have made it difficult for them to convince the private sector that they must keep on investing in Congress-ruled states.

In fact, the genesis of the G 23 and one of the problem areas with many leaders in the Congress with Rahul Gandhi’s strategies for both 2019 and 2024, was that his constant attacks on the private sector and calling out the Prime Minister is something which boomeranged on the Congress. In fact, Congress leader Anand Sharma and his letter to the top Congress leaders, at one point in time, made it clear that this as a political strategy and campaign had just not clicked.

Many corporate-friendly leaders within the Congress and the MVA feel that Rahul Gandhi should have gone slow and that the timing was wrong. The perception which has been built after the column is also something which will end up harming the MVA.

One criticism which Rahul Gandhi and his team have often faced is that unlike Sonia Gandhi, he believes in running a Left-oriented NGO style of politics in a country like India where a large number of private sectors employ a large number of people. This perception only ends up hurting the Congress.

Many INDIA bloc allies feel that the Congress is ruining the private sector. They know that development and infrastructure facilities in states can only come if there is more private sector investment. Attacking the private sector and raising questions against them is something which could hurt the prospects of the INDIA bloc. It can least afford to send out a message at this point in time that it is not going to be corporate-friendly as India looks at being self-reliant with Prime Minister Narendra Modi making a strong pitch for Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Many in the MVA feel that this kind of article was badly timed and will only help the BJP build a perception that Congress and MVA are against all-round development.

What Rahul Gandhi Said

In an opinion piece in The Indian Express, Gandhi said India was silenced by the East India Company and it was silenced not by its business prowess, but by its chokehold.

“The Company choked India by partnering with, bribing, and threatening more pliant maharajas and nawabs," he pointed out.

“It controlled our banking, bureaucratic, and information networks. We didn’t lose our freedom to another nation; we lost it to a monopolistic corporation that ran a coercive apparatus," he said.

“The original East India Company wound up over 150 years ago, but the raw fear it then generated is back," he claimed.

“A new breed of monopolists has taken its place, amassing colossal wealth, even as India has become far more unequal and unfair for everybody else," Gandhi said. “Our institutions no longer belong to our people, they do the bidding of monopolists. Lakhs of businesses have been decimated and India is unable to generate jobs for her youth," the Congress MP said.

News elections 'I'm Pro-Business': Rahul Gandhi Clarifies After His Column Sends Jitters Within MVA Ahead of Polls