Rahul Gandhi May Return Today, His Office Tells NDTV

Rahul Gandhi, who has been on a sabbatical since February 20, is likely to return today, his office has told NDTV. The Congress vice president has been away during a politically volatile season, leaving his party to defend a "leave of absence" that has been extended several times.

The Congress has repeatedly said that its number two leader wanted time off for introspection and to decide on his role and the party's future.

Mr Gandhi is expected to address a massive farmers' rally on Sunday against the government's proposed law to make it easier to acquire land for industrial and key infrastructure projects. The Congress and other opposition parties allege that the new rules are unfair to farmers.

Mr Gandhi, who has positioned himself as a champion of farmers, was seen to be the driving force behind the Congress government's law in 2013 that said land cannot be acquired without the consent of a majority of the farmers. In his absence, his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi led the opposition in a street protest last month.

The 44-year-old, who has often been described as a reluctant politician, is expected to replace his mother as party chief at a gathering of hundreds of leaders and workers.

But during his intensely speculated absence, his party has appeared conflicted over whether he should take charge just yet.

Mr Gandhi went off the political map after a series of electoral disasters for the Congress, which included a colossal defeat in last year's national election and the Delhi election in February.

On Tuesday, senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit denied that she had criticized Mr Gandhi in an interview to the news agency PTI.

Ms Dikshit's son, Congress leader Sandeep, had suggested recently that the party will not benefit from Sonia Gandhi making way for her son for the top post.

Another party leader, Amarinder Singh, said this week that the party's leadership should remain with Mrs Gandhi as "a generational change cannot be made using a knife."