A year after Rahul Gandhi was appointed its vice-president, the Congress is planning to hold an AICC session in mid-January, probably in the national capital, a few months ahead of the general elections, highly placed party sources told The Hindu.
In January, this year, Mr. Gandhi was made the official number two in the party in Jaipur, at an AICC session followed by a chintan shivir, marking a shift in the sharing of responsibilities between Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul Gandhi.
Over the last 11 months, Mr. Gandhi has been interacting directly with party general secretaries and State units, while playing a critical role in the selection of candidates. With the AICC session being planned a month after Ms. Gandhi — in answer to a question posed to her on Sunday after she spoke of the need for “deep introspection”— said she would name a prime ministerial candidate for 2014 “at the opportune moment,” all eyes are on whether the party meeting will provide the occasion for such an announcement.
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However, senior party functionaries said that while Manmohan Singh would remain the Prime Minister till the elections, the party’s next prime ministerial candidate would have to be Mr. Gandhi.
In the last few days, demoralised by the electoral debacle in four key heartland States five months ahead of next year’s general elections, the Congress rank and file, party sources said, want Ms. Sonia Gandhi to play the pro-active role she had in the run-up to 2004, when she had undertaken a punishing schedule of roadshows, but top party functionaries said there is clarity that Mr. Gandhi is the future leader. “We will continue to rely on the rich experience of Ms. Sonia Gandhi,” a general secretary told The Hindu , adding, “but it is an accepted fact that Rahul Gandhi is our future leader.”
Echoing this sentiment, another general secretary said, “Soniaji can’t play a bigger role than she is now as she currently takes the final call on every decision, even though, since January, Rahul’s responsibilities have increased well beyond the youth outfits to the entire party. But yes, there is acknowledgement that there is need for a greater connect with party workers, and with the people at large.”
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Top party sources also told The Hindu that some PCC chiefs are likely to be changed soon, starting with those States that faced reverses in the recent Assembly elections.