Pranab says old leaders should make way for younger ones

New Delhi: Close on the heels of External Affairs Minister SM Krishna saying Rahul Gandhi should join the government, Pranab Mukherjee today appeared to echo these sentiments, saying the younger generation should play an important role in national politics. Mukherjee, who is the UPA Presidential candidate, said the older generation should make room for the younger generation. [caption id=“attachment_363618” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The former Finance Minister said he had been informed in advance that he could be the UPA’s presidential candidate. PTI”]  [/caption] He was replying to a question on the vacuum created by his exit from active politics. “Therefore, I would like to recommend that the older generations should make room for the younger generations to come and play their due role,” he said in an interview to Doordarshan. Making light of his significant contribution to the UPA government, the former Finance Minister said, “I was never indispensable, nobody can be indispensable in this system, nature has its own way of filling the void.” Mukherjee’s comments have come soon after Krishna said he felt Gandhi should join the government. However, the External Affairs Minister had said he was aware that Gandhi does not want to do so. In the course of the interview, Mukherjee said before his candidature for the presidential poll was announced, he had been sounded by Congress President Sonia Gandhi that he is emerging as the UPA candidate. PTI