All is well b/w PM and Sonia, Singh to remain till 2014: Cong

Rejecting as "malicious campaign" and "rumours" suggestions that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could be replaced, Congress tonight said there is "no doubt" that he will continue till 2014 and that he shared a "perfect" and unparallelled relationship with party chief Sonia Gandhi.
"No new decision has been taken about this issue in any other manner. The party has repeated its position more than once. We had said it before 2009 Lok Sabha elections that Manmohan Singh will be our Prime Minister," AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said dismissing reports about Singh's early replacement.
"There is no doubt that Manmohan Singh will remain Prime Minister till 2014. What you are referring to as reports are not news reports but rumours and a malicious campaign, which we not only refute but also condemn.

"As far the relationship between the Prime Minister and party President Sonia Gandhi is concerned, this is a perfect relationship. There cannot be a better relationship between any party President and Prime Minister than the one which exists between the two," he said.
The party had yesterday also sought to dismiss perception that Gandhi had forced a reluctant Prime Minister to drop two Union ministers Ashwani Kumar and Pawan Kumar Bansal, saying it was a "joint decision".
Both Bansal and Kumar were seen to be close to the Prime Minister.

In an unusual rebuttal of media reports which said Gandhi had prevailed over Singh, who was not keen on removing the ministers, Dwivedi had said that "this perception is not correct".

The AICC general secretary today recalled that when the party's election manifesto was being released, Gandhi had covered with her hand her photo on its first page and showed Singh's picture to people saying that the latter will become Prime Minister after the elections if Congress won.
"Even after this, whenever there was an occassion, the party said clearly that Manmohan Singh will remain PM till 2014. The same situation prevails now," Dwivedi said.