This is exactly it. I have faced a similar experience, where even though I wanted to contribute more, I was not allowed to. Even though I had actual experience in the domain, I was not the one picked for working on the project, coz someone else needed to lead the project to be promoted.

In the end the project failed, but the guy got promoted. It was just like a play. The script was pre-ordained by the management chain and we all had to play our parts.