Gandhi Dynasty Humiliated in India

07.03.2012

Rahul Gandhi was humiliated in crucial state elections Tuesday after leading his party to a crushing defeat, casting doubt over his future as heir to India's ruling Congress dynasty and fuelling speculation he may soon be replaced by his sister Priyanka.

The elections in Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state, were billed as a proving ground for Mr Gandhi to demonstrate his fitness to take over the Congress leadership from his ailing mother, Sonia Gandhi, and follow in the footsteps of his father Rajiv, grandmother Indira, and great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru.

He had identified Uttar Pradesh, which Congress once dominated but has not won since the late 1980s, as a key battleground in his campaign to revive the party throughout India. But senior party loyalists last night said his showing had been a "disaster" for both him and the Congress Party after its share of the vote plunged in comparison to its performance in the 2009 general election.

They had expected to win up to 100 seats in the state assembly, in line with their vote at the 2009 general election, but by last night they had failed to reach 30 and had been defeated in Amethi and Rae Bareily constituencies, which the Gandhi family has dominated since Indian independence.

Sonia Gandhi vows to "correct mistakes"