The NC chief said the Congress vice-president should immediately take up the responsibility since he has already worked with Manmohan Singh.

After Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah too on Monday backed Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi as the party's prime ministerial candidate in the 2014 polls.



The union minister said the Congress vice-president should immediately take up the responsibility since he has already worked with Manmohan Singh.



He said the Prime Minister has done a commendable job by announcing Rahul's name as a contender for the post.



Abdullah, a former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, also congratulated classical music conductor Zuben Mehta for the success of his concert in Srinagar on Saturday.



He also supported talks between India and Pakistan but only after the neighbouring country stopped acts of terror. "If they are attacking us, what is the point of dialogues?" he said.



On the Muzaffarnagar communal violence, Abdullah said India was a secular country and all diversities must be protected.



He also supported the central government's stand on Syria. "We will always urge the US not to attack Syria," he said.