Rahul had expressed to her many times that she should contest the elections, says Priyanka
With Sonia and
Rahul Gandhi at the top, the Congress has "no requirement" for a leadership role, party leader Shashi Tharoor said on Saturday amidst speculation that Priyanka Gandhi could assume a bigger responsibility in the organisation.
(India Votes 2014: full coverage)"Congress has a president and a vice-president, who are working. Priyanka is also working. She is leading a campaign in two constituencies. She herself has declared that there is no need for any other vacancy. Why are you asking this question now? There is no requirement right now since two of our leaders are already working so hard," he said.
The Congress leader, at the same time, said that there has been a "very positive impact" by Priyanka's campaigning in the two parliamentary constituencies.
(Manmohan Singh is the super PM: Priyanka Gandhi)Earlier this week, Priyanka had said that her brother Rahul had expressed to her many times that he thinks she should contest the elections.
(This is not family tea-party, it's ideological war: Priyanka)She had also said that no one in her family would ever stop her from contesting an election.
"My brother, mother and husband would whole-heartedly support me if I wanted to contest. My decision not to contest is entirely my own. I will only change it when I feel from within I should," she had said.
Priyanka's comments had come in response to a report that she was very keen to contest from Varanasi Lok Sabha seat against BJP's prime ministerial candidate
Narendra Modi because she felt he was "bad for the country" and needed to be "stopped".
(Priyanka Gandhi starts campaign with swipe at Narendra Modi)But, the report added, the "party leadership finally decided against fielding her".
Two years younger than 43-year-old Rahul, Priyanka is seen as a more natural leader in the Congress than her brother. There have been demands from party-men from time to time that Priyanka should assume a larger role and campaign all over the country.