New Delhi: Rahul Gandhi is "number 2" in Congress but no definite date or time has been fixed for his assuming a larger role in the party in which a reshuffle is "due", party general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said on Tuesday.
"I am not aware of a definite date and time," he told reporters when asked about the speculation that Rahul would be made Secretary General of the organisation on November 2.
"Something is due. It may happen when it is ready. Rahul Gandhi is number-2 in the party. His place is after the Congress President. It is not a hidden fact. There is no ambiguity about it. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that he (Rahul) is the future leader. There is no shying away from it," Dwivedi told reporters.
The speculation about a reshuffle of the AICC secretariat has gained currency after the expansion of the Union Council of Ministers on Sunday.
In the past, party veteran Kamalapti Tripathi had been a Working President of Congress while Arjun Singh and Jitendra Prasada were Vice Presidents. Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna has been the lone Secretary General of Congress.
There is intense speculation about the designation Rahul Gandhi is going to get now in the party. There has been demand from the party leaders for a "larger role" for Gandhi in Congress.
Gandhi, who is currently an AICC general secretary in-charge of Youth Congress and NSUI, has for the last few months gone on an interaction spree with Congress leaders in various states.
Dwivedi said even as the general secretary of the party, Rahul is virtually number two.
"This has been accepted by every forum in the party--from block level to the Plenary. The Prime Minister has said more than once that Rahul is future leader of the country. So far as the reshuffle of the party is concerned, let it be announced.
Only the Congress President knows the exact nature of the reshuffle," Dwivedi said.
PTI
First Published: Tuesday, October 30, 2012, 21:49