Press Trust of India
The Observer
June 9, 1999
Title: Sonia not mature enough to hold PM's post: CPI(M) Author: Press Trust of India Publication: The Observer Date: June 9, 1999 Communist Party of India (Marxist) Politburo member and LDF convener V S Achuthanandan has said that the Congress chief Sonia Gandhi was "not mature enough" to hold the post of Prime Minister of India, which called for unexceptionable administrative skills. In an interview to the CPI(M) daily Deshabhimani the Left Democratic Front convener however said that there was no technical objection whatsoever in her becoming the Prime Minister as she was an Indian citizen. "Wherever she was born, she is an Indian citizen now," Mr Achuthanandan affirmed. There was no technical hitch in her becoming the Prime Minister, he stated, adding that "her foreign origin should not be made an issue." "At the same time," he said, "Sonia Gandhi lacks the maturity to hold the post of the Prime Minister of a diverse and problem-ridden country like India." Mr Achuthanandan further Pointed out that India was the Most POPUIOUS country after China and felt that a thorough understanding of the complexities of Indian society and practical experience of handling them were essential for a person holding the Prime Minister's post. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader and Politburo member said that Mrs Sonia Gandhi, within a short period of her becoming the national President of the Congress, had doubtless exposed her inability to handle organisational problems. "When Sharad Pawar and his colleagues raised the foreign-origin issue, Ws Sonia Gandhi could not face the problem with equanimity. Carried away by emotions, she quit the post." "She should have faced the problem with courage," he pointed out. "She should have stated there and then that only elected Lok Sabha members would decide the question of Prime Minister," Mr Achuthanandan said. Mr Achuthanandan also clarified that the Congress leaders were "day-dreaming", if they thought that the party would get a majority on its own in the next polls. "The Congress was still not a force to reckon with In many big states including Uttar Pradesh while its hopes in Maharashtra had been dashed with Pawar breaking away," he said. Lashing out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, Mr Achuthanandan said that the party's 13-month rule had only concentrated on placing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) men in key posts in all areas and unleashing attacks on minorities.
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