Sonia recovering; mixed views in party on secrecy

New Delhi, August 5: Congress president Sonia Gandhi is recovering in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the hospital where she underwent successful surgery on August 4 for an undisclosed medical condition, the party announced on Friday.
In a brief statement, Congress general secretary Janardan Dwivedi - and a member of the four-member panel that is to oversee day-to-day matters in the party president's absence - said the surgeon had indicated that the operation was successful. He also said Ms. Gandhi's children, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Wadra, and her son-in-law Robert Wadra, were with her. His statement concludes with: "This is a personal matter that pertains to her health and medical treatment. Her family requests that her privacy be respected.'
Indeed, the party continued to be circumspect on Ms. Gandhi's ailment, the name of the hospital where she was operated upon as well as the country that she is in. In the Congress, there were mixed views on the secrecy: one party member said, "In no other democracy would there be such secrecy about the medical condition of a political party's seniormost leader - party workers are worried and concerned: there should be medical bulletins to reassure them.'
And there was speculation on the significance of the names of the committee that Ms. Gandhi has constituted to take care of the party in her absence.
While the names of Mr. Rahul Gandhi and that of Ms. Gandhi's Political Secretary Ahmed Patel evoked no surprise, the other two names - Defence Minister A.K. Antony and Mr. Dwivedi - came in for some comment.
The inclusion of Mr. Antony - who, like Mr. Patel, is a member of the Congress Core Group - was seen both as an affirmation of the trust Ms. Gandhi has in him, as in the fact that the other members of the Core Group - particularly Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee - would be too busy to keep an eye on the party as well.
Message to Digvijay
As for the inclusion of Mr. Dwivedi, party insiders say his appointment is "a message to Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh,' whose public statements have often caused consternation. Mr. Dwivedi, on the other hand, like the other three members of the panel, can be trusted to say as little as possible, they say.
Of course, the popular view is that Ms. Gandhi has left behind a perfect Amar, Akbar, Antony arrangement - one Hindu, one Muslim and one Christian - thus leaving behind a message of unity. (Agencies)


2011-08-05



blog comments powered by Disqus

Special News Eka Veera postponed to March 2 Hyderabad, Feb 23 (INN): The discipline of old times is gone, so it appears. When a commitment is given people used to stick to that. Arm twisting by biggies is not a new phenomenon but still there was respect for values. Now everything is done in a huff, from launch to pack-up, audio to result. What is more surprising is films are getting delayed, postponed and badly bruised. Of late there have been many films that deferred the date of release due to what has come to be known as post production work. Announcing the date first and working at breakneck speed has become a fad which will have its ill-effects. There could oth ... Read More

Latest Headlines Indian Muslim leaders urge India to scale down ties with Israel When it comes to Urdu and Hyderabadi, there is no one to support Jan Lokpal, cure worse than the disease - Kapil Sibal Ready to support any Muslim for chief minister's post: Raja Bundela Hyderabad Metro invites designs from practising architects Errabelli raps KCR for talking about 2014 polls State tops in implementation of MGNREGP: CM PC's consensus exposed govt's bankruptcy: Kishen Never promised Centre to get T resolution: Rosaiah

Heroes on screen, not off-screen - Lates Honesty is the Best policy - Hats off fo Injustice towards Urdu in secretariat The hope for the world exists through th