Always on holiday, is Rahul Gandhi quitting politics?

Rahul Gandhi's fascination for vacations is no secret. According to an IANS report, the former Congress president has once again embarked on an overseas trip -- this time to Indonesia -- merely a few weeks after his Thailand jaunt. It must be noted that his party, the Congress, has just lost two state elections in Maharashtra and Haryana.

The chief spokesperson of the Congress Randeep Surjewala said Gandhi was away at one of his regular 'meditational visits'.

The Congress scion had flown to Bangkok on October 6 ahead of the Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly polls. The Congress was facing internal strife and uphill electoral challenges in both the states, but that didn't deter the Congress scion from heading for a holiday just before the polls. On his return from Thailand, Rahul held just one rally in Haryana.

Though the Congress performed better than expected, it lost the polls to the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), which emerged as the single largest party in both the states.

Rahul’s repeated excursions have baffled the media: at a time when his party needs him the most, how can Rahul keep taking untimely vacations, seems to be the constant refrain. Rahul's seemingly indifferent attitude to politics has also led to rumours that he might be gradually weaning himself off politics and is likely to quit soon.

Whatever the case may be, Rahul should ideally come clean on his future plans as millions of Congress supporters have still pinned their hopes on him to revive the grand old party. And if he does wish to stay in the battle, there's a crying need for him to pull up his socks and dive headlong into the rough and tumble of Indian politics.