Congress rift in open as MP slams projection of Chidambaram as prime ministerial candidate

Congress MP Sajjan Singh Varma said here today that if P Chidambaram was projected as the next prime minister, he would have to think whether he will continue to work for the Congress or not.

The Congress MP said that he had always been a Congress worker but pointed out that if Chidambaram became prime ministerial candidate he would have to rethink about continuing in the Congress.

Varma also cast doubts on the credibility of the London-based 'The Economist' magazine and said that all predictions made by it in the last two years proved wrong.

He said that Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi would be the natural choice for the prime minister's post after the Lok Sabha elections and added that a final decision in the matter would be taken by Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

In its print edition dated December 1 2012, 'The Economist' has carried a story headlined 'On the prowl', portraying Palaniappan Chidambaram as "an unexpected figure emerging as the most powerful politician in India's government".

"Some commentators dismiss as laughable, the notion that he might dream of replacing the 80-year-old Singh when the prime minister at last throws in the towel. And though Sonia Gandhi, Congress's president, expects, health permitting, to hold on to backroom power, she needs a partner to front the show. If she trusts him, Chidambaram may fit the bill," the story said.

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