May 14, 2026 13:14 pm IST

Opinion | Congress's Old Problem Is Back: Over-Confidence Without Numbers

Rahul Gandhi's recent assertion at a rally in Gurugram, that the Congress alone can defeat the BJP, is puzzling. When has arrogance ever worked for the party?

Arati R Jerath Arati R Jerath Columnist

Arati R Jerath Columnist

Rahul Gandhi's recent assertion at a rally in Gurugram, that the Congress alone can defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is puzzling. Not only does it betray a blissful misreading of the outcome of the recent round of five assembly elections, but it also suggests that Rahul hasn't quite grasped the gravity of the upcoming political and electoral challenges the Congress must overcome before he can position his party as the sole viable opposition force. 

The eight-day delay in choosing V D Satheesan as the new Kerala chief minister illustrates the sloth that pervades the party's political responses.

Even so, it would be churlish to begrudge Rahul Gandhi and the Congress their moment of joy. They have ended a nearly two-year-long drought of assembly victories by reclaiming Kerala from the Left with a handsome margin. Rahul Gandhi also made an adroit manoeuvre in Tamil Nadu, which is likely to see the Congress back in government in the state after 59 years. He signed on to a long-term partnership with actor Vijay and his TVK, hoping to ride on the back of their stunning electoral performance to regain relevance in a state once dominated by the Congress till the Dravidian parties swept it into a political wilderness in 1967.

The decision to dump DMK, a........

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