‘Rahul can step in, but want Sonia to continue as party president’
Thursday, 19/05/2016
http://paper.hindustantimes.com/epaper/viewer.aspx
NEW DELHI: Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh said on Wednesday that Sonia Gandhi should continue as party president irrespective of the outcome of the recently--concluded assembly elections.
Exit polls have projected Congress losing power in Assam and Kerala.Singh, a former Punjab chief minister (CM) and a sitting MP, at the same time said that Congress vicepresident Rahul Gandhi could step into Sonia’s shoes if she felt that the time had come for her to go and was “tired” of being at the helm of the party since 1997.
“No, not at all,” Singh told a news channel when asked whether time had come for Rahul to take over as Congress president in the backdrop of suggestions in this regard with Sonia assuming the role of Chairman Emeritus. “I have worked very closely with Soniaji and I think she is a great leader.”
Singh said Sonia believed in modern concept of management. Singh said any decision on elevating Rahul is for him and Sonia to take. He denied reports of a rift with strategist Prashant Kishor who has been roped in by the Congress party to hammer out strategies for the Sonia Gnadhiled party for the crucial assembly polls in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh in 2017. “Things are 100% fine between us. We’ve been together for the whole of yesterday, been together whole of this morning. We have no differences whatsoever,” he asserted when asked whether all was well between him and Kishor in the light of reports of a rift between them.
