Rahul Gandhi's statement on becoming PM immature, says Subramanian Swamy

Kolkata, May 8: By expressing his willingness to become the prime minister, Congress president Rahul Gandhi has indicated his party might break the alliance it was trying to form with other parties for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy said today.

Gandhi, while replying to a question in Bengaluru, said he was ready to take up the top job if the Congress emerges as the single largest party. "It depends on how well the Congress does in the election... If it emerges the biggest party, yes why not?" Gandhi told reporters today after the launch of party programme in Bengaluru.

Taking a swipe at Gandhi, Swamy said his statement was "immature". "If he (Gandhi) is going to get all these parties together, the Congress will not be able to get more than 100 seats. His statement indicates he (Gandhi) wants to break the alliance. Otherwise how can he win by a single majority?" Swamy, who was here to meet West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, told reporters. The BJP Rajya Sabha MP also said that the "days of the Nehru family are over".

"The Nehru family has always got things done very easily without putting in much effort. Their days are now over," he said. On whether Gandhi's statement in Bengaluru today was an insult to other parties in the proposed alliance, Swamy said this was not the time to decide on who would be the next prime minister.

Asked if he still has reservations about the working of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Swamy said he had complaints because officers, working closely with Jaitley, were helping Congress leader P Chidambaram in his legal battles.

On several occasions in the past, Swamy had critised Jailtley's decisions and even sought his resignation. "Jaitley worked with officials who were really helping Chidambaram escape the law. But he has removed most of them and now the prosecutions are going on well in the National Herald case. I think Chidambaram will be in jail very soon," Swamy said.

PTI