Chapter 349: Power Reclaimed
Hearing Sonia say this, Manmohan Singh sighed inwardly.
After all, I am a member of the Congress Party and can say that I have dedicated my entire life to the Congress Party.
At this difficult time, I really can't bear to see the Congress Party continue to be so rotten.
In fact, he does not agree with Rahul taking charge of the Congress Party.
Because he knew very well that Rahul, as a young man, had limited political ability and was not mature enough.
Rahul was born in 1970 and is 44 years old this year. Among ordinary people, this age is not considered young.
However, in the political arena, this age is still very young.
Especially since he is running for the post of Prime Minister, he is naturally considered a youngster and still very immature in Manmohan's eyes.
But no one would say these words, just because Rahul is from the Nehru-Gandhi family.
To some extent, the Congress Party is the Nehru-Gandhi family, and the two are equivalent.
Even if Sonya said so and asked him to speak freely, he would definitely not touch on this point. It was a taboo.
Although he served as prime minister for two terms, his power was greatly influenced by the Gandhi family, and he was just a person who was pushed to the front.
He actually did not get the power within the Congress Party.
If I stand up against Rahul taking over the power of the Congress Party, it means I am opposing the rule of the Gandhi family. There will be very few people who will stand on my side, and I will step down immediately.
This is where the Gandhi family’s roots in the Congress Party lie.
Even though he served as prime minister for two terms, he was still unable to gain actual power in the Congress Party.
If Sonia had not been a foreigner who married into India and whose identity did not comply with the Indian Constitution, the position of prime minister would have been hers.
Now that her son has grown up, it is natural for her to take the power back.
Manmohan was not a person who was greedy for power. Besides, he was indeed old and it was time for him to retire.
"We have to be prepared for failure," Manmohan said. "We can't wait until the election is over, we have to start now. The election defeat is certain, and we have to ensure that we hold on to the few constituencies with the highest support. In the coming days, everyone has to be more restrained in some things, so that we can maintain our basic base."
Manmohan's words made many people present frown and look unhappy.
Manmohan sighed inwardly, thinking that he had offended someone.
But at this point, some things cannot be left unsaid.
"Some things that you shouldn't take should be returned immediately..." Manmohan was interrupted by someone.
"How can we go back? Our losses will be huge."
"Yeah, that won't work."
One person spoke up, and was immediately echoed by many others.
Although there were still some people who remained silent, Manmohan knew that most of them supported those who spoke out.
It is harder than climbing a mountain to make them spit out the benefits they have eaten.
During the years when the Congress Party was in power, members of the party enriched themselves in various ways, using their power to seize national wealth and put it all into their own pockets.
Manmohan naturally saw all these things.
Unfortunately, he couldn't stop it.
As I said, he failed to truly grasp power on the Congress Party side. Many people were directly connected with the Gandhi family and did not listen to him as the prime minister at all.
Manmohan Singh has truly been unable to do anything to help the Congress Party fall to its current state.
"Yes, Mr. Singh is right. Some of us have indeed gone too far over the years," Sonya said.
Since she asked Manmohan to speak freely, she naturally had to show her attitude.
If this continues, the Congress Party will not even be qualified to be the leader of the opposition.
The leader of the opposition is naturally the party with the most votes among the opposing parties. Only in this way can he call on the small and medium-sized parties that lost the election to unite and put some pressure on the ruling party.
For example, now, the People’s Party is the leader of the opposition.
Sonia was not very clear about the corruption and depravity of the Congress Party over the years.
But sometimes, for the power of her family and for her son to be able to take the throne, she also had some deals with other members.
If you don't give them various benefits, why would others support you? Now that the Congress Party's position has fallen so much, it must change some of its previous practices.
"Everyone has benefited greatly over the years, so it's only right if we withdraw part of the money," someone said.
This person obviously got the hint from Sonya, and his words made it difficult for others to refuse.
In fact, they did get huge benefits, so if they really want to withdraw some, it won’t be a big problem.
I just felt a little uncomfortable, after all, all of this was eaten.
The people present almost reached a tacit understanding that they would return some things after returning.
I believe that through such means, we can gain the support of some voters.
"Mr. Singh, please continue." Sonia looked at Manmohan.
“I think we have to strengthen our relationship with the people within the civil service,” Manmohan said.
"Haven't these relationships always existed?" someone asked doubtfully.
"That's because we are the Congress party in power. Now we are not the ruling party anymore. Do you think they will treat us the same way as before?" Manmohan asked.
These words made everyone present change their expression.
Yes, when people leave, the tea gets cold.
In the past, civil servants would give all kinds of conveniences to these members of the Congress Party. The government’s connections and some policies might favor them, and the procedures were the simplest and fastest.
But once other political parties come to power, they will no longer give face.
This is obvious.
In the future, their business and other things may not be so good.
"In the future, we can't deal with them in the same condescending manner as we do now. If we have offended anyone in the past, it is best to apologize and seek the other party's forgiveness, even if the price we pay is higher. Otherwise, the losses in the future will be even greater," Manmohan continued.
He was well aware that many of the people sitting here had been arrogant in the past and did not take government officials seriously at all, humiliating them at will.
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Once the Congress Party loses power, all these will backfire.
Manmohan's words made many people's faces turn extremely ugly, because they were the people Manmohan was talking about.
In the past, they relied on being core members of the Congress Party and did not take some civil servants seriously.
They also knew that Manmohan's warning was correct, and if they did not handle it properly, they would suffer heavy losses in the future.
"Did everyone hear that? Go back and take action immediately." Sonia glanced at everyone present, then looked at Manmohan and said, "Mr. Singh, please continue."
"I think we need to strengthen our relationship with young people in the national civil service system, especially some young people with potential, so that we can prepare for the future," said Manmohan.
"Young people? They don't have a high position in the civil service system. Isn't it too early? I think they can definitely win the support of senior officials in the civil service system." someone said.
"Those senior officials will be less willing to buy into our business in the future. But we still need to maintain this relationship as much as possible. We don't expect to get their support, but at least we can't make them hostile to us. This is very important." Manmohan sighed, "On the contrary, those young people may still be in the middle and lower classes now, but they will dominate the world in the future. We should build good relationships now, and when they are in high positions, the relationship will be more stable."
Everyone soon understood what Manmohan said.
To put it bluntly, the Congress Party is no longer the ruling party.
It’s not that these senior officials in the civil service system are unable to manage their own side, but the price they pay to win their support will be very high.
Now it’s enough to maintain a certain level of friendly relations, and I don’t expect anything else.
As for those young people, who usually hold lower positions, it is easier to win them over and the cost will be much smaller because their appetites are not that big.
If you keep doing this for a long time, you will definitely reap rewards in the future.
This requires taking a long-term view.
"We, the Congress Party, need time to recuperate. One government may not be enough. We must be prepared for a protracted war. We must continue for two or three governments. By that time, this group of young people will become middle and senior levels," said Manmohan.
"Mr. Singh's advice is very good, and we should keep it in mind," Sonia said. "We should be prepared to fight a protracted war. This is not something that can be accomplished overnight, and I hope everyone can be patient."
"Let me say one last thing," said Manmohan.
"Go ahead." Sonia looked at Manmohan.
“I am afraid some people in our party, especially at the lower levels, will have to hand over,” Manmohan said.
These words made everyone present look pale.
"That won't work."
"Yes, if we can't protect our men, how will others look at us?"
Manmohan's words were immediately opposed by countless people.
But after Manmohan said this, he didn't say anything else.
He had said everything he needed to say, and he had taken on the responsibility of offending people for the Gandhi family.
The rest is up to them.
Sonya pondered for a moment, then spoke up: "This is not something that can be resolved simply by your disagreement. After the new government takes office, do you think they will not investigate and settle accounts? Some people have gone too far, and they must be handed over to give themselves some dignity. This will also help win some public support for our Congress Party. Everyone go back and think carefully, and do some ideological work for the people below..."
On May 12, the general election ended.
After a fierce competition that lasted for more than a month starting from April 7, the People's Party won a landslide victory.
The BJP-led alliance won 336 seats out of 543, with the BJP alone winning 282 seats.
The alliance led by the Congress won 63 seats and other parties won 144 seats.
The People's Party won by a landslide.
BJP's prime ministerial candidate, Laoshan, will become the next prime minister.
The People's Party won 282 seats, more than half, and can form a cabinet alone. It can be said that it is the dominant party.
(End of this chapter)