Rahul Gandhi turns 37, no private celebrations

NEW DELHI: The Congress party's heir apparent Rahul Gandhi turned 37 on Tuesday as jubilant party workers burst crackers and distributed sweets on the occasion.
    
A large number of party workers gathered outside his mother Congress president Sonia Gandhi's residence at 10 Janpath to celebrate the birthday of the Amethi MP.
    
They danced to the beats of drums and burst crackers. Some of them were holding posters of the Nehru-Gandhi family scion and shouted slogans such as "Rahul Gandhi zindabad" and "Hamara Neta Kaisa Ho, Rahul Gandhi Jaisa Ho" (Our leader
should be like Rahul).
    
Rahul, however, was not in Delhi. Sources close to him said he has kept it a low-key affair and there were no private celebrations.
    
Though he was in Delhi on his last birthday, he had avoided meeting leaders or workers.
    
To mark the occasion, the Indian Youth Congress organised a function in which senior leaders like Union Minister Oscar Fernandes were present.
    
Congress workers also distributed notebooks among under-privileged school children.