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Nobel Prize-winning economist Professor Amartya Sen has said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has “matured a lot” with time. But his real test will be how he leads the opposition in Parliament against the current NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sen, 90, said that Rahul’s “Bharat Jodo Yatra” has not only established him as a national leader but has also enriched the country’s political landscape. He explained how as a student at Trinity College, Cambridge University, Rahul was “unsure about what he wanted to do” in life as “politics did not attract him at that time.”
He said, ‘I think he (Rahul) is a very mature person now. I have known him since he was a student of ‘Trinity College’. The college where I studied and later became a ‘Master’ in it. He (Rahul) came to meet me at that time and at that time he was a person who was not clear about what he wanted to do. It seemed that he did not like politics at that time. ‘Bharat Ratna’ awardee Amartya Sen said that even though the Congress leader faced some difficulties in his early days in politics, he has changed a lot in the last few years and his recent performance has been ‘exceptionally good’.
The Nobel economist said that Rahul Gandhi entered politics and I think initially he had some difficulty in finding his feet. But his recent performance has been very extraordinary and I appreciate it very much. Of course, you cannot contest elections only on the basis of your qualities, it also depends on how your country is. Asked if he sees Rahul Gandhi as the next Prime Minister of India, Sen said that it is difficult to predict such possibilities.
What did Amartya Sen say on the possibility of becoming PM?
He said, ‘I will not answer this. It is very difficult to understand how people become Prime Minister.’ Sen said smilingly, ‘When I was a student in Delhi, if someone had asked me who among my classmates was least likely to become Prime Minister, I would have named Manmohan Singh because he had no interest in politics, but then he became Prime Minister and I think he became an excellent Prime Minister. So, it is difficult to predict these things.’
What did Amartya Sen say on Bharat Jodo Yatra
Referring to Rahul’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ initiative, Sen said, “Rahul has done a good job. I think this trip was good for India and for him. I think he has improved a lot in his ability to express himself, especially he expresses his views on politics much more clearly than before.” He said, “When he (Rahul) came to Trinity, he was probably trying to become a development specialist and we talked about what he should study. He was very eloquent at that time, but he was not so in terms of politics. But now he speaks very clearly even in matters of politics.”
