Potential PMs in waiting- ‘˜Hesitant’ Gandhi vs ‘ambitious’ Modi

The million dollar question sticking around in the mind of every balloter is that who will unfold the Indian flag at the Red Fort in 2014?

The Lok Sabha elections are just around the corner and the two main political parties – the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – have already announced their leaders to lead the polling campaigns.

Congress vice president and the shy scion of the Nehru-Gandhi clan, Rahul Gandhi, 43, is the head of Congress party’s election coordination committee and is assumed to be the majestic old party’s PM candidate.

Gujarat Chief Minister and Hindu nationalist, Narendra Modi, 62, was recently declared as BJP’s election campaign committee chief and prime ministerial candidate, despite the fact that he said he would go on to be the Chief Minister till 2017.

Recently, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said “I have always maintained that Rahul Gandhiji would be an ideal choice for the Prime Minister’s position after the 2014 election, I would be very happy to work for the Congress party under the leadership of Mr Rahul Gandhi”.

To this statement, Modi attacked Singh, asking was he already not working under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership. Modi had tweeted “PM talks of happily working under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership next year! Wasn’t he doing the same all these years? Misleading the nation again?”

Did the PM imitate the opinion of Congress president Sonia Gandhi who jitters promoting the regular party activist would be unworkable without this purpose?

The relevant query is: Why Singh flared up the discussion when Rahul had himself shown discomfort with this question?  Senior party leaders didn’t consider this as a sign of Rahul’s aloofness but as evidence that the Amethi MP does not yearn for power.

The move tip-offs at a game plan meant at stressing the alleged rush for power in the BJP and budding third-front parties that are flooded with prime ministerial wannabes. The explicit placing is particularly a counter-measure to the publicity around Modi, whose current proclaims are being seen as a shot to project himself as the suitable Prime Minister for India, witnessing feeble economic growth.

Till present, it is not apparent what role does Rahul have it in mind to play in future. Although, second-in-command in the party ladder; Gandhi has managed to go invisible during crucial times. Opportunities have banged the door of Rahul a couple of times but he failed to suggest specific solutions to some of the country’s most frightening troubles like inflation, public debt, statehood issue in Andhra Pradesh, and above all a serious blame of mis-governance and corruption.

And on the other hand, Modi seems to working hard to be the head of state and is doing whatever it takes to reach to the position.

Rahul Gandhi has long been supposed as the successor-in-waiting to the Congress chief and it is high time that he should start showing skills and delivering work as a leader before strong campaigning commences for the 2014 polls. Political experts say it will be Rahul’s test in the next general election, not Sonia’s or Manmohan’s.

But he has since long rebuffed to take on an accountable position and has wished to work on rearranging the youth wing of Congress, and heading regional poll endeavours. Rahul has till date not even expressed enough hunger for the top job.

Rahul’s disinclination has been a trouble for the party.  The congress is playing a wait and watch game at present and will likely see how many seats the UPA wins and then discover if Rahul is ready.