The emergence of Rahul Gandhi as a star on the political firmament was among the key outcomes of the Congress plenary that drew some 20,000 enthusiastic leaders and delegates from all over the country.

The three-day national convention, the first since it took power in May 2004, has made it amply clear that the Gandhi-Nehru dynasty will continue to steer India's oldest political entity.

The party vowed to strengthen itself in the country's politically consequential north, where it is now a mere also ran, and, even amid a political crisis that could oust it from power in Karnataka, told its allies unequivocally not to cross the 'limits of criticism'.

The plenary is also seen as a much-needed morale booster ahead of elections in five states where the Congress is unlikely to do well.

But the most important aspect of the meet was Rahul Gandhi, the 35-year-old son of Congress president Sonia Gandhi and the late former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi who left a mark on delegates by stating he was not hankering after power and would accept a leadership position in the party only after some hard work.

The plenary began with Rahul Gandhi as the hero - and ended the same way. The clamour for Rahul Gandhi's induction into the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the highest decision making body of the party, dragged him to the dais. Making an impressive speech, he politely rejected the demand, saying he was still a learner in politics.

He did not hesitate to speak out some bitter truths about the state of the Congress in the country's north, a region where it once was the undisputed boss but now finishes far behind even regional parties in electoral battles.

Without mincing words, Rahul Gandhi, elected to the Lok Sabha from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, attributed the decline of the party in the north to its failure to fight for people's cause, rather than the emergence of so-called communal, caste-based and regional parties.

The brief but crisp speech by a confident Rahul signified his arrival on the bigger political stage and, among hardcore supporters, raised hopes of a revival of the party in its erstwhile strongholds.

"The Congress has again proved that it is the only party which admits where it went wrong and expresses readiness to correct itself," said Mumbai South MP Milind Deora, echoing an opinion widely shared by others.

"It is also the only party which has leaders who put development as a priority, keeping aside issues like religion and caste," Deora told IANS.

Interestingly, Rahul's younger sister Priyanka Vadra, who was once projected as a successor to the legacy of her grandmother and former prime minister Indira Gandhi, was conspicuous by her absence. Party sources said she kept away so that the focus would not shift from Rahul.

Congress leaders claim the plenary has given the party, founded in 1885, a new direction and hope.

"The plenary has given the party fresh inspiration to the cadres and provided a new outlook for the future of the party and government," said Madhu Yeshki, a party MP from Nizamabad in Andhra Pradesh.

The Congress seems to have come to terms with the reality of coalition politics, but at the same vowed to maintain and build up its independent entity.

Sonia Gandhi did not hesitate to say that the Left allies would not be spared in West Bengal and Kerala though the Congress-led federal coalition government survives only with communist support.

The party conveyed a strong message to allies that running the coalition was a joint responsibility and could not be an exclusive Congress headache.

"In their anxiety to protect and project their own individual line, if any coalition partner crosses or is seen to be crossing the limits of constructive criticism, then the coalition is weakened and its public credibility eroded," said the political resolution.

Sonia Gandhi, who earned brownie points when she gave up the chance of becoming prime minister in 2004 paving the way for Manmohan Singh, won further respect by urging her colleagues to steer politics from money and muscle power and to avoid a pompous lifestyle.

She also told them to fight female foeticide, one of the many social evils that India's politicians are normally not fond of addressing unless it earns them any votes.