Congress party

GHULAM NABI AZAD’S quitting the Congress and his scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi rattled the party (“Fighting for survival”, September 23). Many disgruntled members of the Congress have found greener pastures, mostly in the BJP. Azad slammed the “coterie” of the party as one of the main reasons for its present abysmal state.

The party’s organisational elections will be a sham. Its decline was not sudden but happened over time. It should not be forgotten that it was the ruling party until it lost the 1977 general election because of Indira Gandhi’s imposition of the Emergency. In 1984, it returned to power on a sympathy wave owing to her assassination. It was unable to get a majority on its own in 1989, and saw its vote share declining in the 1990s. A revival of sorts happened when it led coalition governments in 2004 and 2009, but since then its fortunes have gone downhill and Rahul Gandhi’s yatra may not be enough to change this situation.

S. MURALI VELLORE, TAMIL NADU