Rahul returns to Delhi!

NEW DELHI: The Congress party’s vice-president Rahul Gandhi returned home on Thursday after a sabbatical that lasted for nearly two months. His long absence raised several questions about his leadership quality and level of commitment to politics.
Gandhi reached his 12 Tughlaq Lane bungalow just before noon from Indira Gandhi International Airport where his mother and party president Sonia Gandhi and sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were waiting to welcome him home.
He later drove down to Sonia’s 10 Janpath bungalow for lunch in a bid to end all speculations that he had left the country at a politically crucial time due to differences with his mother.
Picture of a business class flight ticket that has gone viral on social media suggests that he left for Bangkok on February 16 by Thai Airways flight TG 332 and returned by Thai Airways flight TG 323 at 11.15am on Thursday.
The Congress party was hard-pressed to justify Gandhi’s long absence and jibes of political opponents that he was out to prove that he was a reluctant and part-time politician.
There are suggestions that he went from Bangkok to Yangon in Myanmar and stayed at a famous meditation retreat. The party had explained during his absence that he had gone for introspection and think of strategy to revive and strengthen the 129-year-old Congress party.
The Congress party appeared divided during Gandhi’s absence over suggestions that Sonia may handover the president’s post to her son soon. Several leaders of the party including former chief ministers of Delhi and Punjab Sheila Dikshit and Capt. Amarinder Singh respectively openly favoured Sonia’s continuation as the Congress president, indirectly showing their lack of faith in the 44-year-old scion of the elite Gandhi-Nehru family.
Party general secretary Digvijaya Singh, supposed to be close to young Gandhi, admitted that the timing of his absence was wrong while suggesting that like any individual Gandhi too is entitled to a leave.
“I want him to lead from the front. He should be more hands on. I think he has to lead his own life, at the same time today’s politics is 24X7 job and he has to be more hands on,” Singh said in a television interview.
The Congress party circles, which celebrated his return by bursting firecrackers outside his bungalow, suggested that he has returned ‘rejuvenated’ and would jump head on into active politics.
Senior Congress party leader Anand Sharma confirmed that Gandhi would lead the April 19 farmers rally being organised by the party to oppose federal government’s contentious Land Acquisition Bill since the issues of farmers was always close to him.
“There is nothing wrong with Rahul going on a sabbatical. Rahul is back now and he will be aggressive. The Land Bill protest is very close to Rahul’s heart,” Sharma said.