Next is what? For the Congress, the victory in the assembly elections could mean that it is time to put some loud thinking into action. For a while now, a section of Congress leaders has been veering towards a go-it-alone, or, as some say, “Ekla chalo re” position. At the Panchmarhi session in 1998, the party had expressly rejected the coalition dharma, but political exigency dictated a different path. That may change now, especially since no less than Rahul Gandhi himself is said to be pushing for a new mantra to expand the party base. The ‘attitude’ is already in evidence from the patronizing manner in which the Haryana Janhit Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party and the Trinamul Congress are being dealt with. Down South, where equations need to be reworked badly, Rahul’s meeting with Rajnikant is said to be on the anvil. In fact, the CBI raid and the muddying of waters over the dealings of DMK’s A Raja on the day the election results were out apparently have much to do with the subterranean shifts in Congress politics. Perhaps only time will tell if the Congress is going too fast, too soon.