Rahul Gandhi...

As Gandhi consolidates his control over the party, a major element of his decision-making process in terms of internal party functioning seems to be reliance on data and direct feedback from workers, as one among the many inputs, said both functionaries.

The first functionary offered another example. “Take Karnataka. Senior leaders were given charge of districts. When the party finally decided on ministers, we looked at how the party had done in those districts. Gandhi understood that vote share and seat share could be different. He went by vote share to introduce a degree of accountability and institutionalise a rewards system. This kind of data was always there, it was never used.” He emphasised that this was not the only criteria, but it was one element in appointments. The Congress has faced major dissidence on the state on ministerial appointments.

The second functionary gave a third example - of direct interface with party workers through Shakti.

“Gandhi was going to Chhattisgarh in May. Before addressing a rally in Durg, he decided he wanted to hear from women workers of the Mahila Congress what were the big local issues in that region. We reached out to them through messages. They sent responses. The president weaved it into his speech, and even called one of them out to the stage.”

Looking ahead, this second functionary said that the method of direct interface with workers, through technology, will also be used as an instrument in determining selection of candidates.

“It is the same principle. Workers have to go and campaign for the candidate. If there are 8,000 workers in a constituency, and 6,000 don’t want a particular candidate, how can he win? We now have a mechanism and willingness to use a more scientific system to pick a candidate, rather than decide only in a vacuum and views of a few.”

When asked about the rationale of such methods, Chakravarty said, “Conceived by the party president, Shakti aims to bolster the party at the grassroots through direct engagement with workers. Electorally, it will serve to improve the party’s vote to seat conversation.”

The Congress has noted that BJP’S ability to convert even limited vote-shares to massive majorities, and recognised it needs to do the same. Detailed booth-level data of workers is expected to contribute to the objective. “It is also an important decision-making tool for the party allowing it to receive feedback from workers in a democratic, objective and transparent manner.”

Experts, however, are sceptical about the efficacy of such instruments beyond a point.

‘There is a distinction between taking decisions based on what appears to be popular opinion within the party, gauged through data, and taking decisions which are in the optimal interests of the party and the organisation in the medium and long term,” says Neelanjan Sircar, a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research, who has extensively used quantitative data in political analysis.

“So in Delhi’s case, Congress leadership may have got a better sense of the mood of the workers through this mechanism. But the key question is: will this strengthen the Congress in Delhi in six months? This method will not help answer that.”

The petitioner said in his PIL that state authorities were giving illegal leases in favour of private agencies to organize water sports on the Ganga. According to the petitioner, temporary structures are being permitted to be set up on the banks of the river.

“We have also gone through the photographs. We can see people organising picnics inside the river water. They can be seen drinking in the river water. The sanctity of the river Ganga is not maintained by the respondentstate by permitting the lease of river beds,” the order said.

The HC noted that raw sewage was being permitted to directly flow into the river. The state government has till date not enacted any law to regulate white river rafting, paragliding or water sports, it said.

“The state government cannot be oblivious to its duties to regulate and restrict the unauthorised activities. The white river rafting is a serious sport. Paragliding is equally dangerous if not regulated. The water sports in big lakes like Tehri Dam can prove fatal. These are required to be regulated,” the court observed.

SS Chauhan, deputy advocate general representing the state government in the case, said that a law is in the offing.

“The state government has not pointed out precisely what is the yardstick, guidelines and parameters to sanction the lease in favour of the private parties on the river beds including for boating/rafting, paragliding and other water sports,” the HC said, noting the risk of people dying when a raft capsizes in the river.

“This can only be permitted to be managed by the highly trained professionals. The river beds cannot be leased out for a song. There has to be transparent procedure for inviting the applications after fixing the minimum rates for using the water. The state government cannot permit the use of rivers without fixing reasonable charges. The tourism must be promoted but it is required to be regulated. The sports for pleasure cannot be permitted to end in disaster”, the order said.

The HC said it was “shocked to know that the state government is permitting camping sites on the river beds,” adding that this “pollutes the environment and ecology of the river and the surrounding areas”.

The court said launching points of river rafting are choked with traffic.

“Huge rafts are placed on vehicles of small size. The vehicles, on which the rafts are carried out, are taken directly near the water itself. The state shall not permit the use of vehicles right up to the water of rivers,” the order said, adding that the rafts would have to be carried manually from some distance away.