2009 Elections

Rahul Gandhi has finally come of age is the new notion doing the rounds of the hallowed Lutyens, buzzing kailash nagar and the queens necklace. However, I feel that he has a long way to go. Policits is not for novices and Rahul is as novice as they can come. He needs to read from scripts for his speeches and go back to his old timers to know the history of each constituency. This is being pitted against the season charm of LK Advani or the rousing rhetoric of Narendra Modi. Fat chance I would say. However, UPA might have a minor advantage over NDA as NDA has been out of action for a long time now. Internal feuds, missing Vajpayee and the much needed money which Pramod Mahajan was supposed to have stashed away in some Swiss bank has taken their toll on the popularity of NDA. But if one had to hand over the country then it has to be the congress. They are stable, they have steered the country through a rough economic patch affecting the world and this experience will give them a better handle on managing the economy and thereby growth for the next five years. This also is a time for Rahul to take on a major portfolio and show his mettle as a leader and start preparing himself for the ultimate honor of leading the country.