Priyanka is no panacea for Cong ills: Jairam

Nobody has the magic wand. Team effort is the only way forward for party resurgence, former Union Minister says

Hyderabad: Amid the clamour within a section of Congress for Priyanka Gandhi to take an active political role, senior leader Jairam Ramesh has said no individual has a magic wand to revive the party and a team effort is the only way forward.

"I have always believed that the answer to the Congress' revival lies not in one individual but in a collective endeavour," Ramesh said when asked if Priyanka should campaign extensively in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections or 2019 Lok Sabha poll is the "right time".

"No individual has a magic wand. The magic wand lies in a collective entity called the Congress party. Each of us has a responsibility to contribute to the revival. We cannot sit back and say: 'A' will do this, 'B' will do this and 'C' will do this. I think that era is over," the leader told PTI.

"Nobody has a magic wand any more. The magic wand is a collective entity. It's a collective effort, it's a team effort," the Rajya Sabha member said.
On whether "delay" in Rahul Gandhi taking over as Congress president was hurting the party's prospects, he said, "I think it (Rahul's taking over) is a last mile issue right now. I think it's only a matter of time.

I am not privy to his timeframe, but I am sure it's going to happen sooner rather than later." Ramesh said Congress had taken "the right steps" vis-a-vis Uttar Pradesh elections. For the party to announce a chief ministerial candidate (Sheila Dikshit) almost eight months before the poll was unusual. "So, I think we are learning from our own experience."

"This is the first time we are announcing a chief ministerial candidate. We have a new PCC chief. We have a new coordination committee chairman. I think we should now wait for the people who have been appointed to deliver," the Congress spokesperson said on the UP elections.