#ShuruHoteHiKhatam: Congress has lost the social media plot
2019 Lok Sabha elections are special in more ways than one. If Rahul Gandhi loses, his career will be decimated. If Narendra Modi loses, he would not be able to leave the legacy he has been yearning to. If regional parties' mahagathbandhan wins, India loses. If Arvind Kejriwal loses, there is no if, he will. But, before the grand finale, Congress has already lost the social media battle. We tell you why.
To begin with, Congress has a bad product to sell
To be fair to Congress, they are on the back foot. When your competition is Modi, you have already been outmanoeuvred. The man is a workaholic, knows every political trick, and is insanely hardworking. Congress, to make matters worst, has Rahul as its face. He is affable, can be your goofy buddy but can't represent the nation. He has been 'coming of age' for decades now. Fun fact: He is just 5 years younger to Amit Shah.
But, their message can't be "Not Modi"
Beyond a point, it is difficult to sell a bad product. Marketing can't do all the job (Ask SRK). But, if you are into negative marketing, no one takes you seriously. For every tweet in which Congress tells us what RaGa can do as the potential PM, there is an equal and opposite tweet where they mention what Modi isn't doing. If I have to be convinced to buy a Samsung phone, I should be told its specifications and not the limitations of Apple.
Modi needs to be challenged, but by adults
Now, don't get me wrong. Modi is no Apple, heck even Apple is no more Steve Jobs' Apple. In any healthy democracy, it is important to have a discourse. Modi should be challenged, questioned (if he decides to address the media that is), confronted with and not let go easy. His policies need to be scrutinized, his actions should be argued upon. But, not his suit, not how he speaks, and certainly not where he comes from.
Did "comedian" Kunal Kamra write the script for Congress?
But why is Congress rattled
To our utter disappointment, just half way into this battle and Congress already looks rattled. On a day China insults India by blocking a plea to designate Masood Azhar as a global terrorist for the record fourth time, Congress decides to take a dig at Modi. Modi is not India, last I heard Indira was. He should be questioned, but not by making a juvenile video. Congress' stalwarts should coach RaGa better.
Calling voters stupid in a democracy?
Hillary Clinton made the exact same mistake
To recall, in the run up to 2016 US elections, Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton called half of Donald Trump's supporters "basket of deplorables." Cut to now, Trump is the US President and Clinton has taken retirement from politics. And now, in a spookingly similar manner, Divya Spandana, who handles Social Media and Digital Communications for Congress has called 38.5% of Indian voters stupid. Trust Modi, who invented the social media game, to milk this opportunity now.
Next two months would be eventful, to put it mildly
Having said this, it is time for most of us to grab popcorn and enjoy the show. Indian politics is going to get better than Game of Thrones. There are many characters - bua, bhatija, mama, didi, pehelwan, jija, Modi, RaGa. This list is endless, there are no rules and there is just one throne. The pressure is high, and stakes even higher. Only success will be counted sweetest.
