Rahul Gandhi will soon be crowned as Congress president, bringing an end to a long running debate on what should be the perfect timing for his ascension to the top of India's Grand Old Party.
His crowning, said by top sources in the party to be imminent, will end one of the most debated topics in Indian politics in recent times. It will also herald a generational shift in the Congress that is struggling for relevance following a series of electoral defeats.
"You cannot have this confused twin leadership for long," said a top functionary, asking not to be identified.
Sources said Rahul's ascension as Congress president would be accompanied by an overhaul of party structures to populate them with younger people. Older party functionaries will be asked to step down and make way for a new order, they said.
The Congress' first family has been waiting for the right time for the coronation, but have now veered around to the view that doing it sooner is better.
They have also long argued that Rahul, under whose effective charge the party has hurtled from one defeat to another, needs to be protected from electoral failures and making him the president would bring him directly in the line of opposition fire.
Many say when they approach Sonia Gandhi with a problem she listens to them, but sends them to Rahul for solution. When they approach Rahul, he sends them back saying he would decide only after consulting his mother.
A few others have been even more vocal.
Comments
0 comment