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Voices in the Congress demanding that party Vice-President Rahul Gandhi should be made its Prime Ministerial candidate got strengthened after speculation that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may himself support the idea at a press conference to be held here on Friday.
After the recent setbacks for Congress in the Assembly elections, party chief Sonia Gandhi had announced that the party would soon announce its Prime Ministerial candidate. Several Cabinet Ministers had supported the move and many of them were of the opinion that Rahul Gandhi’s name should be announced immediately.
There is pressure on the high command to announce Rahul’s name at the AICC session, scheduled on January 17. While Finance Minister P. Chidambaram favoured that the party should fight the election with a candidate for the top post, Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily said Rahul was the ultimate leader who is fit to become Prime Minister.
“It is time for Rahul to take charge. We hope the Congress President will make such an announcement in the AICC session,” another Minister told Business Line . Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said Rahul was the natural leader of the party.
In September, the Prime Minister had said that Rahul Gandhi would be an ideal choice for the Prime Minister’s post after 2014 elections. “I will be very happy to work in the Congress under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi,” he had said.
Congress sources indicated that ahead of the AICC meeting, the party top-brass would discuss the suggestions from the Ministers and party leaders. The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party has been challenging the Congress to announce its PM candidate. BJP said Congress’s support would erode further if it made Rahul their Prime Ministerial candidate.
“If they make Rahul Gandhi their Prime Ministerial candidate then everybody knows what happened to the Congress in the Assembly elections. The whole country knows that Rahul Gandhi could not click anywhere,” said BJP leader Yashwant Sinha.
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