Rahul Gandhi's absence continues to generate speculation

NEW DELHI: Pictures of Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi purportedly in a hill station generated speculation about his whereabouts but the party said they were taken in 2008.

Rahul has gone on leave of absence for a few weeks for reflecting on the party's string of electoral defeats, including in Delhi, and there was speculation he was away abroad.

But Jagdish Sharma, claiming to be family loyalist, has circulated pictures of Rahul inside and outside a tent and claimed he was at present in Uttarakhand and denied media claims that he was in Bangkok.

But Congress spokesman P C Chacko dismissed Sharma's claims saying whatever he has stated about Rahul "is not correct".

He said Sharma was neither in the party nor has he anything to do with it or the Gandhi family.

On Sunday night the party had disclosed that Rahul had sought a few weeks leave of absence to reflect on "recent developments and future course" of the party. It neither gave the issues on which he would reflect on nor as to where he was headed during his absence.

Yesterday, at the AICC briefing, Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala said he was on leave for two weeks.