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Former Congress leader Ashwani Kumar said that of all the qualities of democratic leadership, the most important is magnanimity.
Former Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar. (File)
Former Congress leader Ashwani Kumar has said that there cannot be an effective opposition in the country without the Congress, but acknowledged that the party has “somewhere lost ground” and needs to introspect and revive itself, calling it a “national obligation”.
Speaking at the launch of his book ‘Guardians of the Republic’ on Friday, the former Union Minister said that the Congress must look inward for its weaknesses instead of finding fault with rival parties.
“Congress is a great party, and there cannot be an effective opposition in the country without it. That is a certainty. It still has its influence across the country. But yes, somewhere it has lost ground,” he said as quoted by news agency PTI.
He further said that of all the qualities of democratic leadership, the most important is magnanimity.
“You need not the narrowness of mind, but the largeness of spirit, the magnanimity of the heart. That is the quality of leadership which Manmohan Singh represented… And that is the leadership that Jawaharlal Nehru represented,” Kumar said.
The former Union minister also struck a nuanced note on the current political discourse, saying it is incorrect to assume that the present government or the prime minister does “everything wrong”. “The impression that this regime does everything wrong, that this prime minister does everything wrong, is also not correct,” he said.
Kumar also said that the BJP is under no obligation to strengthen the Congress.
“Congress will have to strengthen itself from within by looking inwards, by introspecting… For example, Rahul Gandhi, his heart is in the right place. He is an idealist. He speaks for the poor. And I like that. But somewhere, the messaging of the Congress has gone wrong. I don’t know. I cannot comment,” Kumar said.
“I am no one to pass judgment. They have to discover. They are very wise people, very wise leaders. It is a national obligation of the Congress to revive itself, to strengthen itself. And I wish it the very best,” he added.
Asked about his ideological position after quitting the Congress, Kumar said he continues to hold the party and its leadership in high regard. He praised Sonia Gandhi for maintaining civility and dignity in public life and credited her decision to appoint Manmohan Singh as prime minister as a reflection of those values.
“I may have left the party, but I have the highest personal respect for Sonia Gandhi for unfailingly maintaining civility and decency in public life. In my long, personal association with her, I never found her to be arrogant. She has strong views. She has strong likes, and dislikes. That I can concede.
The book was launched by former Supreme Court judge Madan Lokur and former foreign secretary Shyam Saran. The session was moderated by senior journalist Neerja Chowdhury.
Late Manmohan Singh’s wife Gursharan Kaur, former vice-president M Hamid Ansari, and ex-Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad were also present.
(With inputs from PTI)
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