Having
a president of foreign origin is not new to Congress. She is the eighth
in line and fifth member of
Nehru
Family to hold the office. She is the third lady of foreign to hold the
reins.
She was born in Ovassanjo, Italy, in 1946 and married into Nehru-
Gandhi Family in 1968. She Toured India with her Mother in Law Mrs.
Indira Gandhi but remained detached from politics. Even during her
husband's regime after Indira Gandhi's death, she never took active part
in the politics, After Rajiv Gandhi's assassination she was offered he
post of congress president but declined the offer
She joined politics 6 years after her husband's death initially to
campaign for Congress in 1999 elections. And now she is all involved in
politics.
Her foreign origin has from the beginning given her opponents an issue
to propagate negatively. Her nationality has triggered off a debate on
the issue of letting citizens with foreign origins contest for the prime
post. It also led to a revolt within the party, with stalwarts like
Sharad Pawar , Tariq Anwar and PA Sangma leaving the party.
To her credit are the facts that even though she is of foreign origin,
she from the beginning tried to adopt Indian culture, language, dress
up, and thought.
She got married into a family that was deep into politics since
generation. It was inevitable for her to join politics after the
assasination of Rajiv Gandhi even though she remained aloof from
politics before that. Due to the role played by the family during
independence and even after the Nehru- Gandhi still is the magic word
for the masses and Sonia Gandhi tried to maintain that when Congress
after experiencing many setbacks needed the backing of the family.
She is one of the most important person and the only big name that the
party can boast of. The coming elections are an acid test as it would
determine her popularity with the masses as well as her personal
capabilities. The coming elections are an acid test as it would
determine her popularity with the masses as well as her personal
capabilities.
