What is the success story of Congress party in India for last 130 years?

Congress was the first political party which attracted the Indian masses. Mahatma Gandhi made Congress a party of common people. Common people could relate to Congress.

Congress had galaxy of charismatic leaders like Dadabhai Naroji, Surendranath Banarjee, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Lala Lajpat Rai, Mahatma Gandhi, Vallabhbhai Patel, Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose, Achrya Kriplani, Jay Prakash Narayan, Rajendra Prasad, Kamraj, Indira Gandhi, Morarji Desai etc. Even though Congress was dominated by lawyers, its leaders came from diverse background and from all parts of India. It was first democratic party in India. Even after independence, Congress had huge mass following. There is a story that one 80 plus years old lady refused to vote in 1952 election in Assam because she couldn’t vote for Nehru.

Congress channelized the anger of Indian people in a proper format and it played very important role in Indian Independence Movement. After Independence, Congress party build democracy in India. Nehru could well have become a dictator like his counterparts in Egypt, Indonesia etc. but he chose path of democracy. Western Media used to publish many stories about India in 1950s & 60s that India couldn’t survive as a country. But India under Congress party proved them wrong.

But gradually the party became a family enterprise and it lost its connection with ground. But still it came back into power after heavy defats. Congress party has an amazing power of rising from ashes (crushing defats). As they have ruled India for most of the time, the party is associated with most of the problems (like Kashmir issue, corruption, less development, nepotism etc.) faced by India.