Rahul Gandhi not being allowed to function independently: Digvijay
Darpan News Desk IANS, 25 Feb, 2015 11:54 AM
Congress party vice president Rahul Gandhi "feels very strongly" that he is not being allowed to function independently by "vested interests" in the party, said Congress party general secretary Digvijay Singh Wednesday.
In an interview with Headlines Today, Digvijay Singh said Rahul Gandhi was "not running away" and he is "made of sterner stuff".
Digvijay Singh said that Gandhi had held consultations on the future roadmap of the Congress before going on leave. He acknowledged that he was surprised when he learnt about the latter's leave, adding he came to know about it from journalists.
Asked if Gandhi was frustrated at not being allowed to function freely within the party, Digvijay Singh said: "I'm not sure of that, only he can answer. One thing I know that he feels very strongly that he is not being allowed to function independently."
When asked who was stopping him Singh said "the party itself", adding: "Vested interests in the party."
He discounted any difference between party chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, saying they had a good bonding but they were different in their thinking due to the age gap, a feature which exists in all families.
Digvijay Singh also mentioned Congress workers in Delhi were more disillusioned with Rahul Gandhi than their colleagues from other units in the country.
"Time has come for him to aggressively come out on issues. He should be seen more. People want to know what Rahul Gandhi stands for. What is Rahul Gandhi's development strategy for the country," he added.
Leaders of Punjab's ruling Shiromani Akali Dal will meet President Pranab Mukherjee soon to protest against the recent bill passed by the Haryana assembly under which a new Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (HSGPC) would be set up to manage gurdwaras in Haryana.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal Saturday termed the move of the Bhupinder Singh Hooda-led Haryana government to set up a separate committee for managing Sikh shrines in the state "illegal and patently wrong" as well as "politically motivated".
For Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the passing of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwaras (Management) Bill, which paves the way for a separate body for Haryana's gurdwaras, may have been a cakewalk Friday but this has to overcome hurdles with serious legal and political implications.
State-run Air India Friday became 27th member of Star Alliance. The move will provide customers access to lounges of member airlines the world over and single-ticket travel across airlines and other such facilities.
Punjab's Non-Resident Indian (NRI) Commission has ordered district authorities in Gurdaspur to take prompt action to hand over possession of Denmark-based NRI Sarjit Singh Ahluwalia's rightful property to him, a panel spokesman said here Friday.
