Priyanka getting ready for a bigger role?

• High-level strategy meeting without Rahul at his house
• Meeting assumes significance as Rahul is proposed to be named PM candidate on 17th
• Jairam Ramesh, Ahmed Patel and Janardhan Dwivedi were present
• She may be sharing some of the burdens of mother Sonia
• 10 years incumbency and defeat in Assembly elections major worry for party
• She is often compared to grandmother Indira Gandhi
• Party spokesman says she will only campaign in Amethi and Rae Bareli

New Delhi : Congress president Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday attended a high-level strategy meeting of party leaders at Rahul Gandhi's residence here. Rahul was not present at the meeting. Given the fact that speculations are rife that Rahul may be declared as the prime ministerial candidate for 2014 General Elections on January 17, the meeting assumed significance and created a buzz.

The meeting which was attended by Sonia's political secretary Ahmed Patel, Union Minister Jairam Ramesh and senior leader Janardhan Dwivedi, among others, may also lead to speculations that Priyanka is now gearing up to assume a bigger role in the party affairs while Rahul takes care of politics. In other words, is she getting ready to play a bigger role in party affairs and take some of the burden from her mother?

Reports have been doing the rounds for quite a while now that Sonia wants to take a backseat and hand over more and more responsibility to Rahul. However, a perception has been there that the Congress VP has not been able to take over the mantle from Sonia in the way he should have. Electoral defeats in states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and in the recently concluded Assembly Elections have not helped matters.

Also, Rahul has been perceived by the media as a reluctant politician. But with the 2014 polls just a few months away, the Congress vice-president has been seen to be more pro-active lately and has intervened in matters like the Ordinance for convicted lawmakers and the Adarsh scam report. But with 10 years of anti-incumbency facing them in the face, it cannot be denied that going to the electorate to seek re-election is going to be an uphill task for the Congress. And in such a scenario, a large section of the Congress cadre would want Priyanka to be more actively involved in the party affairs and campaign for them in the Lok Sabha polls, if not contest elections.

It also cannot be denied that in the past certain sections of the Congress have expressed the desire that Priyanka should become an active politician and they have often compared her to the former Prime Minister and her grandmother Indira Gandhi.

Though not a full-fledged politician, Priyanaka has campaigned in her family bastion of Amethi and Rae Bareli and has been overlooking organisational issues there for some time now.

Thus, questions surrounding Priyanka and the role that she is likely to play in the Congress party will continue to do the rounds and every move that she makes will always be in the realm of speculation.

our bureau adds:

Janardhan Dwivedi, who was present in the meeting, explained that there was nothing unusual about Priyanka meeting the Congress leaders. “Priyanka Gandhi is a member of an important political family. Even though she does not take active part in politics, she is an active member and looks after election work at Rae Bareli and Amethi. She has political views, she meets workers and if she meets party leaders, what is new about it?” Others, who attended the meeting, were Congress president’s political secretary Ahmed Patel, AICC general secretaries and Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, among others.

According to party sources, the meeting was to discuss tour programmes of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the coming weeks. Priyanka Gandhi walked into the meeting towards the fag-end.

Priyanka’s meeting comes ahead of the AICC session on January 17, when Rahul Gandhi is expected to be anointed as the Congress prime ministerial candidate. The final call on anointing Rahul Gandhi is expected to be taken at the Congress Working Committee meeting on January 16.

The Congress strategy session assumes significance, as AAP leader Kumar Vishwas has announced that he would take on Rahul Gandhi on the latter’s home-turf of Amethi. Given the upset in New Delhi Assembly constituency where Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal managed to hand out a crushing defeat to Congress leader Sheila Dikshit, the Congress appears to be jittery. Not willing to leave anything to chance, the party will specially focus on these two Congress bastions in Uttar Pradesh.

This adds to the responsibility of Priyanka Gandhi to deliver victories in both the seats. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi would be required to undertake the nationwide campaign and would not be in position to devote much time and attention to their own parliamentary constituencies.

Rahul Gandhi will be required to spearhead a fierce campaign this time round and will have to travel far and wide, as the Congress will try its level best to maintain its present tally, if not improve upon it. Priyanka will specially focus on Amethi and Rae Bareli, which are crucial for the party.