Sonia Gandhi is the longest-serving president of the Congress party, which has governed India during most of its post-Independence decades. She was born in Italy, and educated at Cambridge University, where she met Rajiv Gandhi, who was then the son of prime minister Indira Gandhi. The two married in 1968.
After Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination in 1991, during campaigning for that year’s general elections, Sonia Gandhi initially stayed away from politics, but in 1998, she was chosen as the president of the Congress party. Under her leadership, in 2004, a Congress-led coalition came to power at the Centre. She famously declined to be prime minister — her foreign birth had become a politically controversial issue — and instead chose the economist Manmohan Singh. She was then named the chairperson of the coalition, which was called the United Progressive Alliance or the UPA.
Sonia Gandhi won her first Lok Sabha election in 1999, representing Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, a family stronghold. From 2004, she has represented Rae Bareli as an MP in the Lok Sabha. In 2024, she announced she was contesting elections from the Rajya Sabha, the indirectly elected house of Parliament, signalling her stepping back from electoral politics.
I am not from Maharashtra but I adore Mr. Pawar. He doesn’t extol his virtues like 56″ man who claims to have born to save India.
He may be described in a sentence” a man dreaming of prime ministers post having mentality of a bugger. The great scamster, clever person who can beat any politician in divide and rule theory. It’s a pity that poor illiterate people regard this bloody fellow which he doesn’t at all deserves. Otherwise this should be a very good article which can be published after his death which is awaited by many Maharashtrians. Take my word, if this pig was not born in Maharashtra, the state would have surpassed Singapore hands down
Mr.Sharad Pawar in my view is only the person who is liable to become PM.I really feel sorry to see he being blamed of corruption ,when he was never pointed in any damn, scam throughout his such a long political career.Only thing he is made”badnam” by some Urban antimaratha journalists.To be more truthful he is the only one leader in present Indian politics who could balance Urban and rural India equally.
How is “he gives mixed signals” a sharp comment? It means neither Pranab nor the writer could figure him out! I m not sure why everyone is enthralled by how corrupt he is in real estate. This amount of wealth accumulation using power is usually called a fraud – so don’t understand why the writer is so indulgent of his ill gotten wealth. It takes brains to scam, but must we elevate those brains and cleverness to wisdom? How is BJP giving him Bhushan after calling him corrupt so amusing? It’s top notch hypocrisy. Why is 3 pc growth of agriculture sector so alluring if a record number of farmers have killed themselves? And finally, what is the point of including women in defence if he didn’t even feel secure about having a lady boss just because she was born Italian? It’s called something, xenophobic I think. And great, big favour he did on everyone by being secular: that is commendable in these times where basic expectation is that you don’t kill minorities. But really. How much will you rationalise under the garb of changing an areas skyline? It’s not even funny.
3% agricultural growth – look at how Radha Mohan Singh performs as the incumbent agricultural minister?
One question remains of the great man’s legacy. Will the NCP retain its identity after him, or will it be absorbed by the Congress, with which it shares so much of its DNA ? And will leadership pass to nephew or daughter ? 2. Sharad Pawar was 38 when he broke away from Vasantdada’s cabinet and formed his all party government, which in his mind may serve as the model for a similar formation in Delhi, with him as PM. He could not have foreseen how Mrs Gandhi would return to power so soon, dismissing his government and sending him into the wilderness, till her son brought him back into the fold. 3. Keeping one’s options open may be a good strategy, but Mr Pawar’s golden years have always been with the Congress.
This is fantastic. Good attempt to describe Pawar but he is more than what is written here. No one can describe him in a single article.