Published 14:59 IST, November 13th 2020
Congress neta defends Rahul Gandhi after Obama's remark, claims 'he is experienced now'
Coming to Rahul Gandhi's rescue, AICC General Secretary Tariq Anwar said that Rahul Gandhi has changed a lot since he met Obama & has gained a lot of experience
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Rahul Gandhi has come under the attack of BJP all over again after the former US President Barack Obama in his new book - 'A Promised Land', described him as "nervous". Coming to his rescue, AICC General Secretary Tariq Anwar has now said that Rahul Gandhi has changed a lot since he met Obama and it is difficult to assess someone in short meetings.
"Obama and Rahul Gandhi must have met briefly, probably 8-10 years back when he came here as US President. To assess someone in few meetings is tough. Rahul Gandhi's personality has changed since then, he has gained a lot of experience," said Tariq Anwar while speaking to news agency ANI.
The 44th US President has opined on Gandhi and former PM Dr Manmohan Singh in his new book. According to a book review by the New York Times, Obama has opined on the Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi stating, "Rahul Gandhi has a nervous, unformed quality about him as if he were a student who’d done the coursework and was eager to impress the teacher but deep down lacked either the aptitude or the passion to master the subject”. He has also opined on Dr Singh as a 'someone having a kind of impassive integrity'. Apart from these Indian politicians, Obama has reportedly described Russsian President Vladimir Putin reminding him of 'the street-smart bosses who used to run Chicago at one point in time'.
Congress president saga
Congress has been in a leadership dilemma since Rahul Gandhi quit as party chief in the post-Lok Sabha 2019 debacle. This led to a barrage of resignations from posts like Milind Deora, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Priyanka Chaturvedi and many more. Amidst a lot of turmoil with Priyanka Vadra also being considered, Congress finally went back to their safe option and named Sonia Gandhi as its interim chief. Recently, her tenure was again extended after 23 leaders sought structural changes in the party, but were shut down by the party's 'Core committee'. Most leaders have time and again implored the 50-year-old Rahul Gandhi to take back the reins of the party, but he has not budged.
Now, with poor performance in Bihar, dissenting voices have again risen. On Thursday, Tariq Anwar, general secretary of Congress, said that the party should accept the truth and introspect about their loss. He has said that the entry of AIMIM in Bihar is not a good sign for the electoral future of the grand old party. Congress MP PL Punia has backed Anwar's opinion and said that a review should happen on the bad performance of the party so that such a situation doesn't arrive in the next elections. Senior leader P Chidambaram has also said that the party must analyse the poor performance.
14:59 IST, November 13th 2020