File photo of NCP Chief Sharad Pawar
When asked how Gandhi should handle the office, the NCP leader had a word of advice for him. He should start touring the country. He should travel, meet party workers. This is something he had done some time ago. He should start doing it again. It is important to mobilise party workers, Pawar said.
- CNN-News18
- Last Updated: July 29, 2020, 12:27 PM IST
Gandhis are a cementing force for the Congress, and it was high time that the party’s leadership was handed over to Congress, NCP president Sharad Pawar said. In an exclusive interview to CNN News18, he spoke of his long association with Congress.
“I have seen Congress for several years now. And I want to note one thing. Whether anybody accepts or not, Gandhis are a cementing force for Congress. Soniaji succeeded in bringing the Congress together. Now, Congressmen have accepted Rahul Gandhi. It is their internal matter. And it is up to the rank and file of the party. But I think they should hand over the entire responsibility of the party to him,” the NCP supremo said.
Pawar added that it was important for Rahul Gandhi to not just take over the reign of the party, but to also hold conversations with the various party leaders. “He should talk with all the leaders, bring them together,” he said.
When asked how Gandhi should handle the office, the NCP leader had a word of advice for him. “He should start touring the country. He should travel, meet party workers. This is something he had done some time ago. He should start doing it again. It is important to mobilise party workers,” he said.
It is one of the few times Sharad Pawar has spoken about the leadership issues in Congress. He was also asked about the recent comments by Rahul Gandhi against PM Modi. Rahul Gandhi had tweeted, “PM is 100 per cent focused on building his own image. India’s captured institutions are all busy doing this task. One man’s image is not a substitute for national vision.”
In response to a query on this comment, Pawar advised Rahul Gandhi against making such comments “This may be his personal opinion. But we have seen that when you target any one person individually, your credibility goes down. It should be avoided,” he said.