Rahul stopped Sonia from becoming PM in 2004, claims Natwar

July 30, 2014

New Delhi, Jul 30: Sonia Gandhi declined to become Prime Minister in 2004 because of strong opposition from her son Rahul Gandhi who was afraid she would be killed like his father and grand mother if she accepted the post, former External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh claimed today.

Singh(83), an estranged Gandhi family friend who quit the Congress in 2008 after he had to resign from the UPA-I Government in 2005 in the wake of the Iraqi food-for-oil scam, claimed that it was not Sonia's "inner voice" that prevented her, as she had stated at the time, to take up the PM's post.

To persuade him from not referring to this particular episode in his autobiography, the Congress president along with her daughter Priyanka Gandhi met him on May 7 at his residence but he decided to disclose facts as they were and tell the "truth", Singh claimed in an interview to Karan Thapar on Headlines Today.

The book titled "One Life is Not Enough: An Autobiography" is due to be released soon.

"Rahul was totally against her mother becoming Prime Minister. He said she would be killed like his father and grand mother and as a son he would not allow to become the PM. He was very adamant," Singh said, recalling a May 18, 2004 meeting where Manmohan Singh, Gandhi family friend Suman Dubey, Priyanka and he were present.

Manmohan Singh later went on to become the Prime Minister.

Rahul's opposition was conveyed to them by Priyanka, he said.

"As a son full marks to Rahul," he said. Rahul was 34 years at that time.

Singh claimed that Sonia also said "sorry" to him at their May 7 meeting after he narrated how he was victimised by the UPA government and refused to believe her claim that she was not aware of it.

"She said I did not not know (about treatment meted out to him). I said nobody will buy it because nothing happens in Congress without your knowledge, without your approval. Same is the case with government. She said I am sorry," he said, adding that the Congress President had also embraced him.

Singh endorsed the claim of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's media adviser Sanjaya Baru that important government files were taken to Sonia by Pulok Chatterjee, who was in PMO, saying any question of protest over this did not arise as she was the "foremost" leader.

He also disclosed that the then Vice President Shankar Dayal Sharma was Sonia's first choice as the Prime Minister in 1991 but Sharma, who then became President, declined the offer due to his poor health.

It was then she chose PV Narasimha Rao whom she never knew and they could never share warm relations, he said.

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Over 58 lakh names dropped from draft voter list in Bengal ahead of polls

News Network

December 16,2025

The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

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