Congress defends Rahul Gandhi amid dynasty row, says 'Father's properties belong to son'

The Congress party has stepped up to defend its leader, Rahul Gandhi, and the Gandhi family after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticised the Wayanad MP for his remarks on dynastic politics. Congress leader Rajmani Patel, on Wednesday, condemned the allegations of the dynasty as 'absurd', asserting that the Gandhi family had a legacy of making sacrifices over generations.

The dynastic politics debate has intensified in recent days, with Patel emphasising that a son inheriting his father's property is a common and natural occurrence. He argued, "A son is a natural heir to his father's property. It is assumed that he would take over whatever his father owned. Where is the question of dynasty here? What should a father do, donate his properties to someone else? Is it only then that the son would not be called a dynast... A real dynasty is when a person, devoid of merit and eligibility, is projected as a successor in the name of his father... If a son has merit, is eligible and dedicated, and is given a position or responsibility, then you can't call him a dynast."

Gandhis were the only family that made sacrifices: Congress

In praise of the Gandhi family, Patel said, "When the freedom struggle was on and sacrifices had to be made, it was only the Gandhi family that came forward. They were the only family that made sacrifices over generations."

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), an alliance partner in the I.N.D.I alliance, also weighed in on the matter. RJD Leader Shivanand Tiwari defended the concept of family succession, saying, "You'll see that in leading business houses, family members take over when their elders leave office or step down. Even in other professions, family members take over from their elders."

Significantly, the saffron party has consistently levelled allegations of "dynastic politics" against various political parties, with Congress often being a prime target. However, the dynamics of this debate took an unexpected turn when Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP of the same, providing instances involving Union Minister Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh.

However, in a significant embarrassment for the Congress, MP Shashi Tharoor, who, in an event recently, referred to the party as a "family-run party." Tharoor stated, "It's going to be either Mr Kharge, who then will be the first Dalit prime minister of India, or Rahul Gandhi since, in very many ways, it (Congress) is a family-run party."

In response to Tharoor's comments, the BJP criticised the Congress party, branding it as a "Private Ltd Company." The BJP accused the Congress of being "Of the parivar, By the parivar, For the parivar," emphasising the perception of family interests taking precedence over national interests.

(With inputs from agencies)