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Sonia Gandhi faces increasing criticism from within her party |
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May 18, 2000
NEW DELHI, MAY 17 (AP) - Sonia Gandhi, the powerful chief of the opposition Congress party, is facing increasing criticism from colleagues and poor turnouts at her rallies.
Fewer than 50 people turned up at her house Wednesday when she flagged off a convoy of trucks carrying grass for livestock in Rajasthan, where a drought has killed thousands of cows and sheep.
On Tuesday, only 35 of her 173 lawmakers joined her rally when she asked the government not to cut food subsidies.
An hour later, her party leaders were squirming when Gandhi's top adviser and a former Indian finance minister, Manmohan Singh, participated in a parliamentary debate and defended the government's policies on pruning subsidies.
Gandhi's Italian birth became a major campaign issue during last year's parliamentary elections. Members of the governing alliance questioned whether India should have a foreign-born prime minister, and criticized Gandhi's lack of political experience.
Mrs. Gandhi ran for office from two districts to ensure her election to Parliament for the first time, where she became leader of the opposition. However, her party made its poorest showing ever.
The latest blow to her image was an editorial in her party journal, Sandesh, which said, "The Congress party is once again facing a crisis of confidence."
Gandhi, widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, stepped into public life three years ago when she was elected president of the party and asked to lead it in the general elections.
But she was unable to steer the party to victory or boost its strength in parliament.
The editorial, written by Vasant Sathe, a top leader of the party known for his frank views, said senior members were depressed. The party spokesman said it was Sathe's personal opinion, but was unable to explain why it was found in an editorial.
Last week, Jairam Ramesh, an economist and confidant of Gandhi, told an interviewer that leaders who once hailed her as the party's only hope of coming back to power were now saying she is a liability and that Congress will be wiped out if it follows her policies. |