Rahul Gandhi Goes on 'Short Trip' Abroad, Sparks Off Speculation

A day after his 46th birthday, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi tweeted on Monday that he will be travelling out of the country for a "short visit", but he did not disclose the destination.

The Congress leader also took to Twitter to thank all those who met and wished him on his birthday.

Rahul leaves the country at a time when temperatures in the northern part of the country are still high. As usual, his tweet has set off wild speculation on social media about the choice of his holiday destination. Though, he has not stated if he is going on a vacation.

On Twitter, many trolled him for the timing of his trip - when there are severe problems within the party - while his followers wished him a happy stay abroad.

While Rahul's annual trips abroad are a source of light banter for his political rivals, for those within the party these are tense moments as there is always an ambiguity over where he goes, what goes on in his mind during these days, and what he would do when he gets back.

In early 2015, Rahul Gandhi was away from India fuelling speculation of a political sanyaas, but after nearly three months he returned rejuvenated from his 'chintan' vacation and made aggressive bids to take on the Narendra Modi government.

This time around, he is leaving at a time the Congress is looking at bleaker times, with a bad showing in recent state elections and rebellions in its units, from Karnataka to Haryana. The party has defended his tour saying he has every right to take a short break.

As per sources, Rahul has given his inputs on organisational changes in Uttar Pradesh to Congress President Sonia Gandhi. He reportedly had a series of meetings with UP leaders.