Congress leaders call for naming Rahul Gandhi as the party's PM candidate
As the BJP credits its presumptive prime minister Narendra Modi with poll victories in four states, the chorus within the Congress for a prime ministerial candidate has become louder.
"It would make a huge difference if Rahul Gandhi is announced PM candidate," said union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, giving voice to a demand raised repeatedly by several Congressmen.
The BJP on Sunday retained power in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and wrested Rajasthan from the Congress. In Delhi, the Congress was reduced to a poor third by debutant Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party.
Another Congress minister, Shashi Tharoor, today said it was time for a "new generation" to take over. "Rahul Gandhi is 42. He is not a young man; he is not an old man either. He has the energy, he has the youth,"
If the Congress does make an announcement, it will be a break from tradition, but the poll debacle just five months before India votes for a new government has left the party desperate for new ideas.
Party leaders see several benefits in going into the polls with a name and face to counter Narendra Modi with. The rank and file, they say, don't like being kept guessing on whether Rahul Gandhi is up to accepting a bigger responsibility or not.
As a party, the Congress has always defended the model of a dual power centre with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi sharing the decision-making. But privately, many leaders want the perception of vacillation and slow decisions to go with one clear leader in charge.
The BJP has already pitched the 2014 polls as a direct fight between the BJP and Congress.
"State elections are different from national elections," said Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Sunday. But for the first time, she acknowledged the view of several Congressmen that naming a Prime Ministerial candidate may just help the party. "At the opportune time, the name of our PM candidate will be announced," she said.