Can Rahul Gandhi match the caliber of any one of the Congress present stalwarts - say MMS, Pranab Mukherjee, Chidambaram, Kamal Nath, Sheila Dixit, Jayanti Natrajan, Arun Nehru, Gulamnabi Azaad et al? The Reply is big NO. In a democratic set up, caliber is the only consideration for any elevation.
The Congress has already committed blunder by giving the reigns in the hand of a novice, unqualified, immature and wisdomless leader, resulting in unprecedented corruptions , scandals, looting of the nation and stashing our huge wealth in foreign banks. Second such mistake by installing a so-called tainted Rahul Gandhi as P.M (Boston case, alleged rape case etc.), the congress will commit only a harakiri. I wonder what has happened to this oldest party - Congress and why all the stalwarts are acting like puppet with no self respect and conscience. and seems to have been sold out - obviously and assumingly for money? Such a group has no rights to rule over the nation.
Digvijaya Singh's statement on Rahul Gandhi - that he wanted the heir apparent to take over as India's prime minister as soon as possible - is not without substance or an off-the-cuff remark. A section in the Congress is extremely worried at the way things are going - with one scam or the other surfacing and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh unable to cap the 'flare-up' of a series of scams. Added to this blow-out is the fuel provided by Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev. And the midnight crackdown on Ramdev's supporters has divided the Congress with inputs coming in that the people are upset and angry at the way the issue was tackled. So, was Digvijaya testing the waters on Rahul's take-over? Probably yes. At the same time, he has sent a message to Manmohan Singh too to act and not use coalition dharma as a ruse to preside over a government known for scams and corruption. The indirect message is also that Manmohan Singh may be honest and his integrity may be well above the watermarks of controversy, but that is not enough. Not being able to exercise his authority ordained by the Constitution in checking corruption is as good or bad as being corrupt. After all, the buck stops at the PM's office. Hence, is the Congress looking at alternatives? Maybe. But there are groups in the Congress - hardcore 10 Janpath loyalists (like Digvijaya) on one side and fence-sitters on the other. Senior party leaders are aware of the ambition of Pranab Mukherjee and Chidambaram who have started feeling that they have been taking the cross on behalf of Manmohan Singh for too long.
Digvijaya may have floated the 'Rahul and PM' balloon to also send out a message to Pranab and Chidambaram - that the PM's chair belongs to 10 Janpath. Of course, Digvijaya did a u-turn (when has he not done that?) clarifying that he did not say that it was "high time" that Rahul take over as PM. He has clarified that he did not use the words "high time" but wanted to see Rahul as PM in his lifetime.
Digvijaya's 'become PM' birthday wishes on Rahul turning 41 did create a churn in the Congress. It was seen as an insult to Manmohan Singh. This is why the party scrambled to clarify that it was for the party and Congress (not Digvijaya) to decide when he should take over as Prime Minister. "It is something he will decide, party high command will decide, people of India will decide," party spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan told reporters in Delhi."He has brought about a tremendous change, especially among youth, democratization of the party, reaching out to farmers, dalits and disadvantaged sections of the society. He is not only a youth icon, but certainly a future leader of not only this party but of the country", she said. But she also clarified that "our Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has done an excellent job in heading the government for the last seven years. Manmohan Singh is our PM and he continues to be that."
There is a growing feeling in the Congress in Delhi that Rahul Gandhiis not prime-minister material and is committing one blunder after another that started with Bihar. MSN readers too feel that Rahul Gandhi is not mature enough to take over as prime minister. To a question on whether he is mature enough to take over as Prime Minister, a overwhelming 71 percent (14,967 voters of a total of 21,010) said he is only a product of dynasty politics; not PM material. Just 27 % (5,577 votes) said he is young and dynamic and that India needs leaders like him. 2 % (466 voters) had no opinion.
A similar verdict is reflected on MSN's Facebook poll where 65% voters do not think Rahul Gandhi is ready to be PM just yet.
Here are four reasons why Rahul is not mature enough to take over as PM:
Not willing to shoulder responsibility
Anyone having ambitions to rule the country as PM should have a fair experience in governance. Rahul has always refused to join the Cabinet despite repeated appeals from Manmohan Singh. In 2009, Singh made an open appeal. Rahul kept mum. If he wants to bring in change, he should do so by wielding constitutional authority, shoulder responsibility and not act as an extra-constitutional authority. Why is Rahul reluctant to shoulder responsibility? Can such a person become a Prime Minister?
A vanishing leader
Rahul is never seen when there is a national crisis. He has neither been seen nor has he commented on the crusade against corruption spearheaded by Anna Hazare. This despite the fact that Rahul has always been outspoken on corruption and wants a 'clean and young India'. He has also not spoken on the 2G scam, Maoist issue, Posco land issue (he once rushed to Oddisha, but not this time when the tribals really needed him), the muddle in the Railway Ministry, corruption in the judiciary or the crisis with Pakistan and China. He is only seen and heard only when he takes the Shatabdi Express or rides pillion to assuage farmers in Uttar Pradesh.
A loner
Rahul has always been a lonely man, ploughing his own furlough. At times he gets unsolicited help from people like Digvijaya. When have you seen Rahul discuss serious issue with senior party leaders?
There is a growing feeling in the Congress in Delhi that Rahul Gandhi is not prime-minister material and is committing one blunder after another that started with Bihar. Rahul as impervious and a man who prefers to furrow a lonely path without as much caring for seniors.
Rahul is seen as a man who is 'out of touch' and has 'no close friends or advisors' because he often strays from his briefs and script given by his team. He is seen by some as 'arrogant and rude and doesn't accept guidance from anyone.'
More known for his gaffes
He, like some Congress leaders, is prone to gaffes; Here are a few of Rahul's gaffes: On April 15, in a speech at a campaign rally, he had said: "I belong to the family which has never moved backwards, which has never gone back on its words. You know that when any member of my family had decided to do anything, he does it. Be it the freedom struggle, the division of Pakistan (???) or taking India into the 21st Century." And goen on to say: the Babri Masjid structure "would have been protected had a member of the Gandhi family been in power."
Last year, Rahul created a storm by saying that Hindu extremists posed a greater threat to India than Muslim militants.
In WikiLeaks cables released by 'The Guardian' on Dec 17, Rahul is reported to have met US ambassador to India Timothy Roemer in a luncheon meeting. In the meeting, he had warned Roemer that although "there was evidence of some support for Islamic terrorist group Laskar-e-Taiba among certain elements in India's indigenous Muslim community, the bigger threat may be the growth of radicalised Hindu groups, which create religious tensions and political confrontations with the Muslim community".
The question before the Congress is whether the party should select Rahul Gandhi as a Prime Minister now and take blame on the Gandhi Family for all the misdeeds of last 7 years plus coming 3 years upto 2014 OR wait till 2014. The present Government headed by MMS is a scapegoat for the family to pass on a brunt.
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