Congress ready to take over: Sonia

“I cannot say how long the Vajpayee government will last. But one thing is for sure. It will collapse all because of its own contradictions,” Gandhi said, clad in a Gari-diya Kecha-paat Mekhela-chadar”, a traditional two-piece Assamese dress.

“Our position is very clear. We are not pulling it down at the moment. But our party is ready to take over,” she added. She said she would also not mind taking the support of the Left parties despite the fact that those parties had blamed theCongress for pulling down the erstwhile United Front government.

“Things have changed now. In politics, all sorts of things are said, as are also often forgotten,” she said, indicating that the Congress would adopt a forget-and-forgive attitude towards the Left parties in the event of having to form a government.

Replying to queries, Gandhi also ruled out the immediate possibility of the country heading for one-party rule. “Coalition politics is there at the moment. You never know, the people might soon prefer a one-party government,” she added, appearing optimistic about the return of the Congress to power.

The Congress president also revealed that she was keen on revamping the party and bringing it back to shape. “I am very confident of rebuilding it, and I also hope that those who had left us will soon return back to the fold,” she said, asked about Mamata Banerji’s Trinamool Congress and other breakaway groups.

Cong desperate for power: Vajpayee

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayeetoday said Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s call to her partymen to be prepared to shoulder responsibility was out of desperation to grab power. “The Congress is a fish out of water,” Vajpayee said while addressing a huge gathering at the Ramvilas Bag here this evening. He said despite all efforts by the Opposition to oust him, his government would complete its full term.