Achievements of the INC during its Glorious 125

Years
Beginning from 28th Dec. 2009, the Indian National Congress has begun a
yearlong celebration throughout the country to mark its 125 th birth anniversary
which will culminate on 28th Dec. 2010. While it is true that the INC was not
created as a political party during its inception in 1885, the growing national
consciousness among the people of India prompted the Congress to add to its
goal a political dimension. With inspirational leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak,
Subhash Chandra Bose, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, etc., the INC became
the torch bearer in freedom struggle and later in nation building. Built upon the
foundations of truth, rights, justice, secularism, non-violence, etc., it is
unquestionably the oldest surviving political party in India, and today it is still
growing from strength to strength with millions of members in the country. It has
certainly propelled India to a much higher level for which every citizen of India
ought to be thankful, but unfortunately this is not the case today, perhaps owing
to political affiliations. This essay will thus attempt to summarize the
monumental achievements of the INC during the last 125 years with special
emphasis on the post-independence era.

INC in the Pre-independence Era:

The history of INC is inseparably knitted with the political history of India
although the founders did not conceive of political agenda initially. However,
since the INC was composed of the creamy layer of the Indian society who had
acquired Western education, it had felt necessary to legitimately speak and later
agitate on behalf of millions of uneducated Indians for their birthright. Before
long in 1907, the Congress had to be split into two factions mainly on the
grounds of their attitude towards the British. The extremists led by BG Tilak on
one hand and the moderates led by Gopal Krishna Gokhale on the other.
However in 1917, Mahatma Gandhi appeared on the scene by launching the
Satyagraha movement in Champara Bihar. Thereon, the Mahatma as an
influential leader of the Congress would go on to lead the Congress and India to a
series of protests against the ruling British raj with ahimsa as the main political
weapon. While there were individuals among the Congress who believed in
violent means to fight the raj, the INC collectively rallied behind the Mahatma
and launched Poorna Swaraj (complete independence) in the 1930s and Quit
India Movement in the 40s. The mighty British, in whose empire the sun never
sets, finally succumbed to the non-violent weapon of the Mahatma and ultimately
freed the Indians. It is quite amazing and unique for a nation to have won its
independence without resorting to a large-scale war. Such a unique feat,
exceptional even in the history of the world, is achieved by the INC under the
leadership of the Mahatma who is deservingly called today the ‘father of the
nation’.
INC and Nation Building:
When India achieved its independence, it was in a pitiable state with all its
resources drained. But more severe blow was a violent partition and creation of
Pakistan much against the Mahatma’s will. However, rising to the occasion was
the Congress leader Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru who dedicated his life and served the
nation by becoming the first Prime Minister of India. He was committed to making
India a secular and parliamentary democratic country. He is noted for his
diplomacy and statesmanship, and with two combined he was able to secure
foreign monetary aid. In order to boost the Indian economy, it was Nehru who
availed loan facility for farmers through banks unlike the traditional money
lenders who monopolized the farmers with huge interest.

Social stratification on the basis of caste was a roadblock to establishing an

egalitarian welfare state. Although Nehru’s Congress did not attempt to wipe out
casteism completely from Indian society, it no doubt envisioned an ideal welfare
state in which members would be conscious of one’s wellbeing. Science and
Space programs were given importance by Nehru. He ensured India’s place in the
world map by championing the Non Alignment Movement which was a crucial
body especially in the Cold-War era. Looking at all this, Nehru as a leader of the
Congress certainly led India to a new height, and for this reason, his era is rightly
called the golden era of the Congress.

Breaking the Traditional Yoke: The Woman Prime Minister:

When Nehru died, there was a vacuum left within the Congress and although Lal
Bahadur Shastri held the reins momentarily, no one seemed competent to fill in
the shoes of Nehru. Despite the odds however, entered an energetic Indira
Gandhi, the daughter of Nehru. She was not thought of as charismatic as her
father, yet in time she evolved into one of the most influential leaders even in the
world arena. She first of all broke the society’s norms by becoming the first
woman Prime Minister in India and second in the world. She was the voice of the
poor, women, and children. The historic passing of Women’s reservation bill
today could be what Indira Gandhi envisioned long back.

She then introduced the Green Revolution which became a boon for farmers. The
traditional method of cultivation was replaced by that of scientific, and with high
yielding variety seeds, harvests were never like before. This fulfilled her slogan
‘garibi hatao’. Her period also saw the nation waging war against Pakistan,
however, she made sure that India’s border remained intact. Further, it was
during her leadership that the Congress lost its power in the parliamentary
elections in 1977 for the first time since independence. But again in 1980, the
Congress under Indira came back strongly and formed the government.

The Rajiv Era:

Indira certainly had the mandate of the people and she could have prolonged her
career in politics, but in 1984, she was assassinated by her body guards. For the
Congress, it was a deadly blow for they had lost another iconic personality. Rajiv
Gandhi, who had till then been the unofficial advisor of her mother, took over as
the leader of the Congress party and was sworn in as the next Prime Minister.

He encouraged foreign investment, and industry flourished with the loosening of

business controls. He sought to increase Indian investments in modern
technology. He removed many restrictions on imports and encouraged foreign
investment. His critics claim that he was indecisive as he changed his cabinet
members frequently. He fired his mother's aides and instead appointed his
friends and technocrats. He was a visionary leader, during his leadership in the
Congress there were plans for India in the 21st Century. It is no surprise today if
his plans are carried out by Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi.

In 1987 however, he committed the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Sri
Lanka in an endeavor to help the government there eradicate militants agitating
for a separate Tamil homeland. Though one of the campaign promises of the
Congress was to eliminate corruption in politics, Rajiv’s tenure as Prime Minister
was marred by allegations of corruption. He was accused of receiving "kick-
backs" from a Swedish company manufacturing Bofors machine-guns. All this
was to result in a huge loss for the Congress Party in its 1989 elections. And if
that was not enough Rajiv was assassinated by the LTTE during his campaign in
the South in 1991.

The New Economic Policy of the INC:

The Congress was able to come back to power in the 1991 elections and PV
Narasimha Rao was elected as the Prime Minister. The nation under him saw a
drastic change in India’s economy. The market was liberalized, which means the
multi-national corporations could now have a direct share. Globalization as we
see today was the result of the New Economic Policy. While the NEP has boosted
India’s economy definitely, it was the poor artisans and small scale industries
that suffered greatly which could not compete with foreign brands.

One of the incidents that tainted Rao’s Congress is the Babri Masjid demolishing
in Dec. 1992. The RSS and the VHP came in thousands and demolished the
mosque at Ayodhya. India with its secular principles, became the joke of the
nations worldwide. Perhaps for this reason, the Congress does not give due credit
to Rao who deserves much more. In fact, it was Rao who groomed the present
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh by inducting him as the finance minister.

The 21st Century India and the INC:

If India has scaled new heights, the credit is befittingly the INC’s. For nearly a
decade after the Rao government, the BJP and its allies were at the helm but
virtually there were little or no new programs to carry India forward. With the
Congress coming back to power in the 2004 and 2009 elections, there has been a
tremendous change with regards to India’s economy, defence, Science and
Space programs, empowering the minorities like the dalits, tribals, women and
children and the poor etc. Many critics are now convinced that it is the Congress
that alone provides stability. The secular aspect of the Congress since
independence is still crucial in maintaining status quo in a multi-religious,
cultural, social and lingual context like India. The BJP with its Hindutva policy may
further disintegrate India should it stay in power for long. Built upon the
foundations of the Gandhian principles, the Congress despite its inadequacies is
always trying to uplift the minorities and this has been an undisputable fact.

With its sincere interest in space programs, India could realize the dreams of
Rajiv by launching Chandrayan which provided the dimensional view of the Moon
and discovered the possibility of the presence of water on the Moon. While critics
were of the opinion that the Lunar mission was obsolete, the conviction that
something new could be discovered was finally realized.

Special interest on the IT has rewarded India richly in relation to its economy.
India is now emerging as a world power, the dream of Nehru, Indira, and
particularly Rajiv, is being realized here. International relations have improved
largely and it is the hope of leaders that by 2020, India would be able to join the
elite clubs of the world.

The 2009 elections has witness many new and young faces in leadership. With
Rahul Gandhi as the General Secretary, the nation is enthusiastic in venturing out
towards the untraveled territory. The Congress, with the vision of the Mahatma
and Rajiv, has successfully launched the National Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme for the majority population living in rural India. With a few years, this
scheme has benefitted the rural population greatly. With pro-people programs
like this, it is foreseeable that poverty would soon be erased in India.

Conclusion:

On the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of the INC, certainly the entire
Indian population ought to celebrate the historic milestone regardless of political
party lines. The INC throughout its long history has been putting much effort to
raise India to a new height, it has selflessly given its all for the well-being of the
country. To disregard this would certainly mean distorting the history of India and
thus it is obligatory of every Indian citizen to thank the INC for raising the
standard of life and also for making India shine in the world picture.