Congress dismisses Sharad Pawar's critique of Rahul Gandhi; 'fell short of understanding'

Senior Congress leader and Maharashtra Minister Balasaheb Thorat on Monday said that NCP chief Sharad Pawar seems to have fallen short of understanding Rahul Gandhi. The sharp response from Congress comes days after the NCP supremo observed that the former Congress president apparently lacked consistency.

'He has fallen short in understanding Rahul Ji'

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Thorat, who heads the state Congress unit, also praised Rahul Gandhi for "emerging out of a personal crisis and leading the party". Thorat said Rahul Gandhi has acceptability in the Congress and the party is getting organised under his leadership.

He alleged that "some machineries of the BJP have been targeting Rahul Gandhi. But, Rahulji will lead us successfully...We accept the seniority of honourable Pawar Saheb. But he has fallen short in understanding Rahul Ji it seems." 

Pawar's comments seem to have not gone down well with the Congress, which is a constituent in the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government along with the NCP. On Saturday, state minister and Congress leader Yashomati Thakur said constituents of the MVA dispensation should stop commenting on the Congress leadership if they want a "stable" government in the state.

When asked about Thakur's comments, Thorat said, "She said what the Congressmen felt about Pawar saheb's remarks".  In an interview to a Marathi daily, Pawar had reportedly said Rahul Gandhi appeared to lack consistency.

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'There are some questions in this regard'

The NCP Supremo was being interviewed by Lokmat Media chairman and former MP Vijay Darda. When asked if the country was ready to accept Rahul Gandhi as a leader, Pawar said, "There are some questions in this regard. There seems to be less consistency."

Obama, in his recently published memoir, said that the Congress leader appeared to be like a student eager to impress the teacher but lacking aptitude and passion to master the subject. Asked about this, Pawar said it was not necessary that we should accept everybody's view. "I can say anything about the leadership in our country. But I will not talk about leadership in another country. One should maintain that limit...I think Obama crossed that limit," he said.

Asked about the Congress's future and if Rahul Gandhi was becoming a "hurdle" for the party, Pawar said the leadership of any party depends on what kind of acceptance he or she has within the organisation. "Though I had differences with (Congress chief) Sonia Gandhi and the family, even today Congressmen have a sense of affection for the Gandhi-Nehru family," the NCP chief, who quit the Congress over the leadership issue two decades ago, said.

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(With PTI inputs)