'My Role Is To Retire', Says Outgoing Congress President Sonia Gandhi

The Congress chief, who had lately been away from the limelight hinted at her retirement from politics today at the winter session of Parliament.

Outlook Web Bureau

Updated on: 15 December 2017 12:32 pm

As Rahul Gandhi prepares to take over the reins of the Congress party, outgoing president Sonia Gandhi today said her role is now to retire.

The Congress chief, who had lately been away from the limelight hinted at her retirement from politics today at the winter session of Parliament.

Sonia lost control at the Centre in 2014, but has continued to be one of the most significant politicians from the Opposition, though many observers and some members of the Congress have criticised her for favouring her son as the successor.

However, she is still thought of as the one guiding the destiny of the party that is facing a deep existential crisis.

"She will continue to play an effective role even though she is not (Congress) president," former chief minister of Karnataka Senior party leader M Veerappa Moily had earlier said, when asked if Gandhi would play a role to bring together like-minded opposition parties together to fight the BJP in 2019 parliamentary elections.

Moily said she had "that kind of power to put coalitions together".

Sonia could lend power to her party that was in a bad shape in 1998. The Sonia gandhi government stands out as that of someone who initially hesitated to join politics and went on to show courage and achieve considerable success despite facing several problems. After her husband Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991, the baton was passed for the first time to a non-family leader. The party did survive under P.V. Narasimha Rao, but it was a difficult time. Only in 1998 did Sonia become the president, bringing the party back into the hands of the family.

Initially, she faced many challenges with Sharad Pawar and others leaving the party in 1999, citing her foreign origin. In 2004, she led her party to victory after a gap of almost 15 years, and again in 2009. Under her, the Pachmarhi conclave of the Congress declared that the era of single-party dominance was over and forming coalitions was necessary, leading eventually to the formation of the UPA.