Don't have such visions, says Rahul on prime ministership
London, Aug 26 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said he does not have any vision of becoming the prime minister and noted that the question of leadership will be decided only after the 2019 Lok Sabha election.
"Conversations (with the Opposition parties) on leadership, are going to happen after the elections, after we have pushed BJP and the RSS back," Gandhi said during his interaction with the Indian Journalists' Association here.
On being asked about alliances in West Bengal, Gandhi said: "You are asking me strategic questions. We are working out a broad coalition. In Bengal, we have an organisation. I tend towards asking my unit in Bengal and letting them decide. We are having those conversations. So, it's not decided yet."
"But the emphasis is... and there is a consensus among pretty much all leaders of the Opposition that the RSS is threatening the institutional order of India. They are systematically attacking organisations, and putting their people into them," he added.
"Four judges of Supreme Court have come out and said it that they were not allowed to work and they named the Loya case. We are defending that line," he also said.
Asked if he saw himself as the prime minister in 2019, Gandhi said: "I don't have these visions. I don't see myself... I view myself fighting an ideological battle. This is really the change that has come in me after 2014."
"I realised after 2014 that there is a risk to the Indian state, to the Indian way of doing things. I am defending that... how do I defend Indian institutional structures," he added.
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2 Indians killed, 10 injured in drone attack on Oman's industrial hub of Sohar
New Delhi (PTI): Two Indian nationals were killed and 10 others injured in a drone strike in Oman's Sohar city on Friday that marked the first Indian fatalities on land since the Iran-US conflict erupted on February 28.
Joint secretary (Gulf) in the Ministry of External Affairs Aseem Mahajan confirmed the killing of the two Indians in Oman at an inter-ministerial media briefing on the crisis in West Asia.
He also said that 150,000 Indian nationals have returned to India from West Asia after the conflict began.
"I wish to share with you an incident that happened in Sohar city today. There was an attack and in this incident two Indian nationals have died," he said.
"We express our deepest condolences to their families. Of the 11 injured (in the attack), 10 are Indians. Out of them, five have been discharged after receiving treatment, and five others are receiving treatment in local hospitals," Mahajan said.
"None of them is reported to have serious injuries. Our mission is in close touch with the concerned company and local authorities and is rendering all assistance," he said.
While Mahajan did not provide specific details of the attack, the Oman News Agency (ONA) reported that two drones crashed in Sohar, with one hitting the Al Awhi Industrial Zone and claiming the lives of the two expatriate workers.
These latest casualties brought the total number of Indian fatalities in the West Asia conflict to five. While the strike in Oman marked the first deaths on land, three Indian sailors have previously been killed in attacks on merchant vessels since the conflict erupted on February 28.
In the last few days, India has ramped up its diplomatic efforts to ensure safety and security of 10 million Indian nationals living in West Asia.
India has also been making efforts to secure safe passage for over 20 Indian-flagged merchant vessels currently stationed on either side of the Strait of Hormuz.
In his remarks, Mahajan also said that 15 Indian crew members of the US-owned oil tanker Safesea Vishnu were safely evacuated to a hotel in Basra city.
The tanker came under attack near Basra in Iraq on Wednesday. An Indian crew member was killed in the attack.
Efforts were underway to transport the mortal remains of the deceased to India , he said.
Mahajan said the Indian mission in Basra is also trying to ensure safe repatriation of the 15 Indian crew members to India.
The senior official said 150,000 Indian nationals returned from West Asia.
Around 2,900 Indians returned from Qatar in Qatar Airways flights over the past few days, and 1,000 Indians who returned from Bahrain.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said 117 Indian nationals have crossed over to Armenia from Iran through land border crossings and several of them have returned to India already.
We told all sides to adopt the path of dioplomacy and dialogue to resolve it the conflict as soon as possible, he said at the briefing.
We are also talking to BRICS member states so that a consensus evolves on this issue, he said.
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