Salman Khurshid blames media, says didn't call Congress directionless

New Delhi: Law Minister Salman Khurshid clarified his statements on Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, saying his remarks were misinterpreted. The clarification came after the Congress asked him to do so, according to sources.

Clarifying his comment, Khurshid said, "I was asked some question in the present scenario of the country. My replies are being wrongly interpreted. We are trying to prepare for the future challenges. We are confident that we will be able to come up to the expectations of the countrymen." He praised Manmohan Singh and said the party was glad to have a Prime Minister like him.

Speaking on his comments on Rahul Gandhi, Khurshid said, "I have said that our new generation leaders should prepare themselves to face the new challenges. This should not be taken negatively." He also added that he had never said that the Congress was directionless.

"We take the responsibility for the poll results in UP and we have been saying this every now and then, there is no question on this issue," Khurshid added.

Blaming the media, Khurshid said, "With this trend of media reporting, I think such discussions and issues now need to be addressed only in party forum and not in the media."

Khurshid had kicked up a storm after his comment on Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In an interview to national daily 'The Indian Express', he had said that the root of the problems plaguing the Congress was the lack of "ideological direction" from its next generation leader Rahul Gandhi.

Khushid had also said that the governance and politics had not been the strong point of UPA-II, hinting that the Prime Minister was not in charge of the government.

Khurshid had told 'The Indian Express', "We need a new ideology to be given by our next generation leader Rahul Gandhi to move forward and to meet contemporary challenges. The fact is that he is undoubtedly and unquestionably the number two leader in the party. Yet he has not taken up the mantle or accepted a functional responsibility. He is so far not willing to accept the number two position."

"In UPA II, governance and politics have all got intermingled. The political props have got mixed up. It's a scattered situation. The stage has to be set up again and only the Congress president can do it. She is the one who has the stature. The Prime Minister can then run the government, but he cannot set the stage," Khurshid added.

When asked about India's economic crisis, Khurshid had said, "It's not only economic reforms that have slowed down. Even political and administrative reforms have not happened because of this situation."