India, Aug. 29 -- There are two parallel narratives about Rahul Gandhi's politics at this moment - well, three, if you include those who oppose him. But, among those who think the Leader of the Opposition is enjoying a bit of a sweet spot, two varying responses are on offer.

One line of thinking is that Gandhi is the unflinching ideological counter to the BJP and the Indian Right wing, who, after a brief flirtation with soft Hindutva (remember the temple runs and the Congress' claim of him being a janeudhari Brahmin?), has doubled down on a hard mix of secularism and social justice invocations. This school of thought casts the battle between the BJP and the Opposition as a clash of principles and assumes the floating voter has seen the l...