Making way for Rahul: all-out campaign against Modi?

A rare press conference by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh clears the way for Rahul Gandhi's ascension as the Congress' Prime Ministerial candidate as Dr Singh rules out returning for a third term. Dr Singh launched an all-out attack against the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, harking back to the Gujarat Chief Minister's failure to contain the 2002 riots. The usually soft-spoken Dr Singh minced no words in an all-out political attack, disregarding the recent judicial clean chit and going so far as to say that Mr Modi presided over the massacre of innocents during the riots.

But even as the Prime Minister builds a case for his government's performance and tries to justify its shortcomings, the beleaguered UPA drew fresh fire from political parties and commentators across the spectrum over its poor record at addressing a range of issues including corruption, unemployment, inflation and foreign policy. Will the Prime Minister's new aggressive avatar help improve the Congress' fortunes and Rahul Gandhi's chances ahead of the general elections? We discuss.