Sonia doing a good job, says Manmohan

NEW DELHI, MAY 20. Close on the heels of the scathing attack on the Congress leadership by some leaders, the senior party leader, Dr. Manmohan Singh, today came out in strong support of Ms. Sonia Gandhi saying she was doing a ``very good job under difficult conditions'' and the party could bounce back to power under her stewardship.

``Sonia Gandhi is doing a very good job under very difficult conditions. There is no reason for my not supporting her,'' Dr. Singh told reporters after attending a public meeting on the noted Pakistani economist, Mr. Mahbub-Ul-Haq.

Dr. Singh, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, exuded confidence that Congress could bounce back to power on the basis of its proven programmes and policies.

Asked whether this was possible under Ms. Gandhi's leadership, he quipped, ``she is the leader of the party''.

Commenting on his recent remarks on non-merit subsidy cut and whether the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee's appreciation of it smacked of some political motive, he criticised the BJP and the United Front for their ``hollowness in economic policy.''

``It is good that the BJP is appreciating my policies. Both the BJP and the UF have exposed themselves. When in the opposition they say one thing and while in power they find no other programme than ours to function,'' he said.

Earlier, interacting at the meeting, Dr.Singh defended his 1991 liberalisation policy saying ``India was on the verge of a complete financial breakdown.''

The former Finance Minister said he favoured resumption of talks with Pakistan. New Delhi had maintained bilateral relations with Islamabad under all other military regimes, he said.

- PTI

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