Letter to BS: Congress must encourage leaders to contest polls fearlessly

The forced consensus for the election of party posts stunts the emergence of quality leadership.

That Sonia Gandhi is back as the interim president of the Congress party shows other leaders of the party are fearful. They couldn’t have disrespected the Gandhi family by eyeing the top post. Otherwise leaders like Anand Sharma, Manish Tiwari, P Chidambaram and Kapil Sibal, known for their combative politics, could not have sat back and watched helplessly. Well-known for their erudition, elocution and allegiance to the party, they did stand a good chance of handling the top job. In the larger interest of the party, the Congress leadership must encourage its leaders to contest elections fearlessly. The forced consensus