While the Congress is going ahead with its scheduled agitation on Wednesday against the controversial land Ordinance sans its leader Rahul Gandhi, party president Sonia Gandhi declined to comment on media speculation that Rahul was sulking over not having the last word in deciding range of organisational issues.
Talking to mediapersons after a floor coordination meeting with party leaders in Parliament House on Tuesday morning, Sonia Gandhi declined to comment on media speculation that Rahul was sulking over some issues related to his plans not seeing the light of the day in the party.
Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh questioned the “timing” of Rahul’s sabbatical, however, defended his decision to take time out to reflect in the wake of series of electoral loss. “If Rahul wants (sic) to reflect what went wrong why criticise himIJ Everyone wants some peace to reflect. Only timing could have been better,” Congress general secretary Singh said in a tweet.
With speculation rife over his “clueless sabbatical” Congress said that Rahul has gone on two weeks’ leave and will be back in action thereafter. “We have made known the whole situation quite clearly. Do not try to find various meanings, possibilities in it and resort to speculation and spread the needle of suspicion. We reject such attempts to speculate other possibilities. Gandhi (Rahul) has gone on a two-weeks leave,” AICC spokesman Randeep Surjewala said at AICC briefing.
The Congress which was hoping to regain its lost ground by protesting inside and outside of Parliament against anti-people measures including the controversial land Ordinance by the NDA dispensation, suddenly fizzled due to Rahul’s abrupt decision to on an ‘uniformed’ sabbatical during the Budget Session.
The party snubbed Digvijay Singh who through his tweet questioned with the “timing” of Rahul’s leave from Budget Session. “You should not pay attention to such kind of things. I have not seen his statement. That could be his opinion,” Surjewala said.
While party denied that the break by Rahul indicates any reluctance on his part to lead the party or renounce politics, the buzz was still that the Congress vice-president was not okay with a number of his ideas not being implemented in the party after he took over the post in January 2013.