Rahul Gandhi still lacks maturity, needs more time: Sheila Dikshit

New Delhi: While Congress party is trying hard to project Rahul Gandhi as a main challenger to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, its senior leader and former Delhi chief minister has opined that the party vice president still lacks maturity and needs more time. 

Sheila Dikshit, who withdrew as Congress CM candidate in Uttar Pradesh after her party's stitched an electoral alliance with Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party, also refuted charges that she had stopped campaigning for the party in the state after that.

The Congress veteran was quoted as saying by the Times of India on Friday, ''I have not stopped campaigning for the party.''

Talking about the Congress-SP tie-up, Dikshit said, ''There were some initial hiccups but all has been sorted out. This is the era of visibility and Akhilesh is way above everyone else. Mayawati does not have that style so she is there but not too much. BJP does not have a leader for UP. The PM is going there very frequently but everyone understands that he will not be CM.''

She also expressed hope that Muslims and Dalits will support the SP-Congress alliance in UP.

Dikshit stressed that the joint campaigning by Rahul and Akhilesh has had a positive impact on voters in UP.

When asked why Congress is shrinking to the periphery in several states, Dikshit said, ''The political language has changed quite a lot. In this change of approach, link, language and relationships, Congress is adjusting itself. And, please remember, Rahul is still not mature, his age does not allow him to be mature. He is what... in his forties. Please give him time. Having said all this, Congress believes in development of the weak and marginalised. Rahul is the only one who has spoken about farmers.''

When asked how much time should Rahul Gandhi be given, Dikshit said, ''I think he has come a long way. He is not yet prime minister because that opportunity will come later but he is doing things. He is attending meetings and he is one person who is known to speak his mind. I feel it is good that he is natural but if some feel that it is not so then one develops it on the way.''

Dikshit also expressed hope that Rahul Gandhi will be elevated as Congress chief by the end of this year. Dikshit also hailed Priyanka Gandhi as ''very sensitive and intelligent.''