Amid disagreements and differences between opposition parties, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said that the Gandhi siblings, Rahul and Priyanka, face a big challenge in reviving the grand old party and forging opposition unity.
“Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi are two different personalities…their style of working is different…Rahul Gandhi faces a major challenge of reviving the Congress,” Raut wrote in his weekly Sunday column ‘RokhThok’ that appears in Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana.
The statement of Raut, a close aide of Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray, assumes significance in wake of the his meetings with the Gandhi siblings in New Delhi over the past week.
Raut, who, along with Thackeray and NCP Founder-President Sharad Pawar, played a key role in the formation of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government that kept BJP out of power, has repeatedly asserted that an opposition coalition is not possible without Congress and there should be efforts to revive the UPA.
Recently, Raut had also taken exception to West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chairperson Mamata Banerjee’s “there is no UPA."
In his column, speaking about the Gandhi siblings, Raut further said: “…they (Rahul and Priyanka) has unanimity among themselves…f you expect a quick stand from her (Priyanka) in any political discussion...she says she will have to discuss with her brother….for the last two years, they are giving a lot of efforts”.
Rahul is also expected in Mumbai on 28 December, when he is expected to address a rally on the occasion of the Foundation Day of the Congress.
Raut said that Priyanka told him that ever since she has taken up the Lakhimpur Kheri issue, her husband Robert Vadra has received 69 notices from the Income Tax department. “However, she is not going to backtrack and step up the fight,” he said.
About his discussions with Rahul, he said, “He said that the system of creating and building leaders has stopped in the Congress and that the latter never disrespected senior party leaders.”
According to Raut, Rahul told him that the latter had requested senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad to take charge of the Congress’ Jammu and Kashmir unit after his Rajya Sabha term expired, but the latter refused. “He can become the chief minister again after elections. But, he refused saying the Congress didn't exist there. Azad ji has been the chief minister there and he thinks the Congress does not exist there.”
Raut claimed that Rahul admitted that during Captain Amarinder Singh's tenure as the chief minister of Punjab, the Congress's graph in the state had declined.
Check out DH's latest videos:
Deccan Herald is on WhatsApp Channels| Join now for Breaking News & Editor's Picks