India

NEW DELHI: She may have made a late official entry into politics, but Priyanka Gandhi Vadra seems to have hit the ground running by campaigning in different parts of the country for Congress. Her hectic campaign schedule is only second to Congress president Rahul Gandhi. But some questions still linger about her exact role in the party and whether it is limited to improving the party’s moribund unit in Uttar Pradesh? If one were to follow Priyanka’s speeches closely, one can now see a visible trend of what she is aiming to do.  

Priyanka will make references about her brother Rahul’s simplicity and slowly draw a comparison with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who she says is a ‘weak PM’ due to his inability to handle criticism. For instance, her speech in Kanpur on April 19, started with OROP and veered towards Rahul Gandhi. She said, “If you compare the two (Modi and Rahul), there is one who can’t bear any criticism and there is the other who is abused by his opponents every day where personal comments are made about him and his family. But Rahul takes all the criticism with a smile and is willing to change himself to become a better person. He doesn’t think about muzzling their voice or using other means to bring fear into the minds of his critics. ”

But the million-dollar question still hangs heavy on the Congress leadership – which seat will Priyanka Gandhi contest the Lok Sabha election from? If Rahul does allow her to take on Modi in Varanasi, all her efforts in pitching a Modi vs Rahul battle would have come to nought. And the rumour mills would be working overtime about which one of the two among Rahul and Priyanka is worthy of taking on Narendra Modi head-on. Priyanka contesting from Varanasi may just pitchfork her as the prime contender against Modi.