Amid talk of early elections, India's ruling Congress party on Monday named Rahul Gandhi, son of party president Sonia Gandhi, a general secretary and entrusted him with the task of revitalising the party's youth cadre.
NEW DELHI: Amid talk of early elections, India's ruling Congress party on Monday named Rahul Gandhi, son of its president Sonia Gandhi, a general secretary and also a member of its decision making Congress Working Committee (CWC).
Gandhi, 37, a first time MP, was put in charge of the Youth Congress and the National Students Union of India (NSUI), two organisations that have provided a solid support base for the country's oldest political party.
Underlying the significance of Gandhi's long-awaited promotion, Congress general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi made the announcement at the party headquarters with these opening remarks: "You have been looking forward to our reshuffle for a long time. I will now make an announcement about the reshuffle."
Dwivedi, a confidant of Sonia Gandhi, then went on to read the various tasks allotted to Congress leaders, Rahul Gandhi included.
Rahul Gandhi will now be one of the party's 11 general secretaries and rub shoulders with veterans including two-time Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh, Margaret Alva, V. Narayanaswamy, former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot and Mohsina Kidwai.
Equally important, Gandhi was also made a member of the CWC, the 23-member apex body in the Congress that also has Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi as members.
Rahul Gandhi, who represents Amethi in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha and was elected to parliament for the first time in 2004, was also named a member of the Publicity and Publications Committee as well as a new body that would deal with the party's future challenges.
With Gandhi's elevation, the Congress now has 11 general secretaries - a corps of men and women who are responsible for the party's growth by overseeing its various organisations as well as units in states and union territories.
The promotion to Gandhi came as the communists and the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) remained locked in a bitter row over the Indo-US nuclear deal casting a shadow on the government's longevity.
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