Sonia Gandhi is a cleanliness freak. At a book release function many years back, while most hurriedly ripped off the wrapping paper from the book and threw it carelessly, Sonia picked up hers and folded it neatly, keeping it in her bag to be disposed of later. As she leaves the reins of the Congress party to Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress could do with some tidying up too.
The joy and relief on Sonia Gandhi’s face were visible as she accompanied Kharge to what was once her office at the Congress headquarters. She now plans to take a complete break and retire to the mountains, possibly to the cottage built by her daughter Priyanka Vadra near Shimla.
However, her move is something she has left to fate as the last time she planned to do so, she was forced to take charge again as her son Rahul Gandhi suddenly decided to resign as Congress president.
Destiny has played an important role in Sonia Gandhi’s life. It was destiny that forced her to give up her cozy life as a housewife who loved making ‘gajar ka halwa’ and tending to her garden. Her husband Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination and the crisis in the Congress forced Sonia Gandhi to listen to her “inner voice" and enter active politics.
“I couldn’t stand by and see the party built by my mother-in-law and husband fall apart" is how Sonia Gandhi justified her entry. Beginning as a gawky, shy politician who was rejected by some seniors like Sharad Pawar and PA Sangma for being a foreigner, Sonia Gandhi fell back on her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi’s rule book to master the tricks of politics.
Even her critics within and outside the party conceded that she overcame her Hindi hurdle and ‘foreign origin’ issue by ensuring that she brought the Congress back to power in 2004, defeating the formidable Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Those who had scorned her rushed in to be a part of the alliance she formed — the UPA. The NCP, which was formed by Pawar after he quit the Congress over Sonia Gandhi’s ‘origin’, has remained her ally till date. Even the DMK, whom Sonia Gandhi hated for not doing justice in finding the killers of her husband, remains a staunch Congress ally.
It was destiny again — and her understanding of real politics — which forced her to not become the prime minister in 2004. She knew that the NCP and others may have forgiven her foreign origin, but her Italian roots would always be the favourite punching bag, especially on the issue of national security. Power without responsibility suited Sonia Gandhi. It also catapulted her to the list of top 10 most powerful women in the world as per Forbes and Newsweek.
The role of destiny once again reigned supreme as she gave up charge of the party, which was crumbling under the Modi juggernaut. However, with the party slowly falling apart as son Rahul Gandhi took charge, Sonia Gandhi was forced to cut short her retirement plans.
The happy pictures of Sonia Gandhi cycling in a Goa resort were overshadowed by crisis hitting the Congress and she had to step in to ensure things could be salvaged.
However, as she suffered from Covid-19 twice and her health grew even frailer, Sonia Gandhi’s children realised that she would have to be given the choice to retire.
The interim president insisted on free and open elections. Despite the public perception of the poll process and Shashi Tharoor’s camp openly expressing their disappointment, Sonia Gandhi retired happily. She leaves behind a party that is weak and needs a lot of work. But her worst critics, even in the BJP, admit that she has proved herself as a politician. She ensured that her style of listening to all and hitting upon a compromise will most likely be followed by her successor Kharge.
Sonia Gandhi has, for a change, left the mess to be cleared by someone else. But now, she finally takes charge of her own destiny.
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