Photos: The elevation of Rahul Gandhi to Congress party president
Updated On Dec 11, 2017 04:56 PM IST
From Rahul Gandhi's first electoral win to a 56-day hiatus from politics, a speech at UC Berkeley, and his eventual anointment as the Congress party president on December 11, 2017 --a look at the political career of the Gandhi family scion.
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Rahul Gandhi was officially declared Congress president-elect on Monday December 11, 2017. He will take control of the country’s principal opposition party from his mother Sonia, who served as the Congress chief for a record 19 years. From his first electoral win to a 56-day hiatus from politics and the journey thereon, a brief look at his political career. (Amit Dave / REUTERS)
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Rahul Gandhi (C) is seen with former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Mother Teresa on the occasion of Nehru Jayanti on November 14, 1972. Born in 1970, the first child of Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi, Rahul and sister Priyanka have spent their entire lives in the political spotlight. (Virendra Prabhakar / HT ARCHIVES)
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In this November 06, 1986 photo Rahul Gandhi is seen embracing his father Rajiv Gandhi. Rahul was just shy of his 21st birthday when his father was assassinated in Tamil Nadu in 1991. Rahul attended The Doon School in Dehradun, Uttarakhand from 1981 and then joined St Stephen’s College in Delhi, before moving abroad for further education. After he finished his M.Phil, he worked at a management consulting firm in London. (Santosh Gupta / HT ARCHIVES)
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Congress President Sonia Gandhi with son Rahul Gandhi after his appointment as the General Secretary of All India Congress Committee (AICC) on September 24, 2007. Rahul’s first foray into active politics was in 2004, when he contested the Lok Sabha elections from his father’s former constituency Amethi. Ever since, he has had to contend with labels such as ‘prince’ and political rivals have focussed on his links to the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty to attack him. (PTI)
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Rahul Gandhi is seen having dinner with a family in Jhansi on December 23, 2009. The first test of Rahul’s political mettle came in 2009, when he campaigned during Uttar Pradesh elections. The Congress, which had been struggling in the state, won 22 out of 80 seats, its best show in years. But this victory was short-lived. He could not land Congress a victory in the state in the 2010 state elections. (PTI)
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Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi during his 2011 protest march against the Mayawati government from Bhatta Parsual to Aligarh. In 2011, Rahul made national headlines when he took on the Mayawati government during the anti-land acquisition protests by farmers in Bhatta Parsaul. Gandhi dodged the police to enter the village, riding pillion on a farmer’s motorbike, and was arrested by the administration. (PTI)
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Rahul Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi during the AICC meeting at Birla Auditorium, in Jaipur, Rajasthan on January 20, 2013. Rahul refused any cabinet position under both terms of the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government. In 2013, he was appointed as the Congress Vice-President at this party conclave in Jaipur. (Ajay Aggarwal / HT Photo)
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Rahul Gandhi during the Lok Sabha election campaign from Varanasi constituency in Varanasi on May 10, 2014. The 2014 general elections were Gandhi’s litmus test, but the incumbent Congress government faced a humiliating defeat as the BJP-led NDA claimed a landslide victory, winning 336 seats. The run-up to the elections were marked by a fierce contest. The BJP’s party machinery painted Rahul as the ‘shehzada.’ (Arun Sharma / HT Photo)
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Rahul Gandhi followed by senior Congress leaders at AICC headquarters in New Delhi on February 6, 2015. On February 23, 2015, the Gandhi scion took an impromptu 56-day break from politics, prompting “missing” posters with his face in Amethi. It also drew a slew of political commentaries that painted Gandhi as a reluctant politician. In May, the same year, Gandhi’s office opened a Twitter account, which now has a following of 4.85 million. (Vipin Kumar / HT Photo)
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Rahul Gandhi addressing a meeting with NRIs at Times Square in New York City on September 21, 2017. His speech at University of California, Berkeley, earlier this year garnered praise for his frankness in answering questions on dynasty in politics and the BJP’s economic policies. (PTI)
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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi with party leaders during the filing of his nomination papers for the post of party president, at the AICC office in New Delhi on December 04, 2017. (Arun Sharma / PTI)
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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi being greeted by a young supporter during his road show in Bharuch, Gujarat in 2017. Gandhi’s astute use of his Twitter account, laced with humour and sarcasm, challenged Modi government’s policies such as demonetisation and GST and increased his social media following. (PTI)
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