Rahul Gandhi and his op-ed: Why we must not be fooled into believing that is changing from ‘anti-business’ to ‘anti-monopoly’

But there are more than enough reasons to be sceptical about this change if it is indeed one. Like his embrace of OBC politics and his sudden love for the constitution (or a red book with blank pages), this too could be a too-clever-by-half trick simply to get back to power again in Delhi so damaadshri can get back to his good old days. Rahul Gandhi has recently written an article for a newspaper about his “new deal” for business and also a video about how he is not “anti-business” but only anti-monopoly”.

While this may seem like a positive development, given his vitriolic attacks on Indian businesses especially ones engaged in infrastructure and other businesses with long cycles, there is more than enough reasons to be sceptical. Let us go into the details. First, the article for Indian Express .



Astute observers like Padmaja have alleged that the article is plagiarised from Edmund Burke’s paper for Cambridge, enhanced with some AI masala. This is Plagiarism, just read two lines and realized this article is a smartly copied view of Chapter 13—Edmond Burke on India -published online by Cambridge University Press on 05 December 2012 and later improved by one of the AI platforms. There is no need to read further.

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There were several high-profile reactions to the allegation as well. Would be interesting to see original copy of chapter 13 in Edmond Burke’s 2012 work from which @RahulGandhi ’s op-ed is allegedly plagiarised. If so, editors at @IndianExpress have very poor ability to spot plagiarism.

So too Rahul’s PR-edit team whose bright idea this was. https://t.co/dE3moO0Hpj In any case, it is quite likely ghost-written by some Palazzo serf.

After all, the Crown Prince has in the past been photographed copying a simple obituary message from his mobile phone! His intellectual power is the stuff of WhatsApp jokes and memes. Let us set aside the plagiarism part – frankly, I have not read the Burke article and I cannot confirm. In any case, what matters is what he is saying.

Ghostwriting is also not uncommon among political leaders, let us skip that too. To be fair, he won’t be the first or only one and it is OK as leaders use aides and experts to write stuff. In a way that is better than spouting his own nonsense.

I’m not even going into the issue of an entitled dynast from a family that monopolised power and privilege and wants to continue to do so in perpetuity, using a corrupt feudal ecosystem of media coolies, talking like a saint about monopoly. Let’s give him a free pass on that. The gist of that article is that he links East India Company’s colonial loot with modern monopolies and offers us a “new deal” for “progressive” businesses.

Bizarrely he lists Bajaj Auto among the companies that have “innovated” and “played by rules” in contrast with the “monopolies”. Ask your father or grandpa who had to wait years for a scooter that didn’t change much for years when Bajaj was the only game in town during the dynasty era! Small mercy he did not list Ambassador Car or Hindustan Motors, guess he too is clever enough to know they are out of business since the competition arrived. The article was followed by a media campaign by the usual serfs to sell the article and its alleged author as some revolutionary that has come to clean up the Indian economy.

It is amazing to watch the low bar the Darbari media ecosystem sets for the shehzada. Presumably, they think he is a dimwit so even putting out this article is a great sign of intellectual maturity and sagacity. Rajdeep Sardesai immediately declared it a “model” and wanted a debate with the Modi model! Is writing an article, plagiarised or otherwise, for a newspaper or portal a “model”?! Story that caught the eye: @RahulGandhi writes an op-ed in @IndianExpress to expand on his ‘New Deal’ views on big business and his stand against monopolistic tendencies.

Maybe we should have a debate between the Rahul and Modi model of doing business in India? pic.twitter.com/ZLo1Y2j8JJ Shall we debate the “Ganesh model” then?! Rajdeep had no guts to question why that “model” was not implemented in states ruled by Congress or the nation when it had ample time to do so.

After all, not just Bajaj and Ambassador, numerous other monopolies flourished in the dynastic loot era in a mutually convenient neta-babu-lala ecosystem. More on that later. As if that article were not revolutionary enough he followed up with a short video on X where he declared he is not anti-business.

Now let us get to the meat of this article! Is this a sign of big change? Should we be fooled again? Good news first – the very fact that he writes such articles and posts such videos is a sign of progress. He has not bothered all these years while spewing venom against businesses that takes us right back to the Nehru-Indira era of socialism. Clearly someone with brains is telling him – enough is enough and he should present himself as a PM role aspirant not some Maoist NGO activist.

Small though the mercy is, it is to be welcomed. After all, we know that Nehru-Indira socialism was just a facade for rent-seeking politicians, corrupt babus and crooked businessmen to continue to enjoy monopoly, producing the same product for decades without innovation, preventing entry of newcomers and imports. It was justified with grandiose statements of ideology and subaltern politics.

Corrupt leftist academia/media ecosystem, in exchange for table scraps of loot, favours and gigs, sang praise of this system while the rest of India withered away or ran abroad. We saw countries like Indonesia or Malaysia that did not have this burden race ahead. Even Modi Sarkar couldn’t completely take down this edifice of babudom because it is so well entrenched in years of dynastic loot rule.

Every step forward he takes, he must face the entire ecosystem hollering blue murder, planting articles in the media. Like Congress forced to use ‘soft Hindutva’, Modi has also been forced to use ‘soft reforms’. But there are more than enough reasons to be sceptical about this change if it is indeed one.

Like his embrace of OBC politics and his sudden love for the constitution (or a red book with blank pages), this too could be a too-clever-by-half trick simply to get back to power again in Delhi so damaadshri can get back to his good old days. So what will convince me and in my opinion, others like me that want to see India move away from decades of socialism and sloth, find it’s place in the world? Do this and more along these lines, Rahulji, you will have more of the young, educated, aspirational class of Indians supporting you. If not you are only left with sycophants like Rajdeeps, Sharmas, Banerjees and Pandey’s trying to sing songs.

If I have not said this before, let me end this by saying it again – we are not fools. We have seen thru your nautankis and empty words. Three times.

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