New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday expressed his readiness to make way for Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and hoped that he would lead the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in future.
The prime minister said he had always believed Rahul Gandhi was fit to be leader of the UPA.
“I have always said I would be very happy to see Rahul step into my shoes,” the he said when asked about Rahul Gandhi’s candidature for the post of prime minister.
“Rahul Gandhi is a national leader. He has all the right qualities that a leader should have. I hope he will be a leader of the UPA alliance,” the prime minister added.
Speaking to reporters after swearing-in of eight new ministers at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Singh expressed optimism about the Congress forming the government after the next general elections.
“I always believe we will have a third go (after the elections) as the UPA and people will again repose their faith in us,” he said.
The prime minister said the Congress faced no threat from Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and described Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as a “secular leader”.
He slammed Modi, who heads the campaign committee of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the Lok Sabha polls.
“(Modi) is no threat for us. People of India know what he stands for... People have to draw their own conclusion,” Singh said.
The prime minister described Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as “secular” but did not speculate on an alliance between his party and Janata Dal-United (JD-U).
“There are no permanent friends or enemies. We take decisions as situation evolves. I can’t speculate on what happens in the future,” he said.
IANS
