New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee has chosen former Congress president Sonia Gandhi to take over as interim president.
After outgoing president Rahul Gandhi refused to yield to party leaders’ requests to continue as chief, despite subcommittees passing resolutions for him to continue, Sonia was asked to step in.
She has accepted the post and will take charge as interim president till elections are held to elect a new president, a senior Congress leader told ThePrint. Despite Rahul saying that the party should look outside the family for the next president, the party has chosen Sonia to lead the party.
The Congress party had been facing a leadership crisis for over two months, ever since Rahul resigned on 25 May taking responsibility for the party’s poll debacle. Despite multiple requests from senior leaders in the party, Rahul has refused to reconsider his decision. In June, Rahul publicly shared his resignation letter.
Even at this morning’s CWC, Rahul told the others that while he’ll work “shoulder to shoulder” with them, he will not continue as party chief.
But rebellion in the Congress has been brewing, especially with the younger leaders taking on the old for not being able to “sense the public mood”.
Split over Article 370, many Congress leaders younger leaders endorsed the government’s move.
The party is also looking at elections later this year Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand.
Also read: The Congress doesn’t need a president
Call ignored for young leaders
The party came under heavy criticism for not resolving the crisis from within its own ranks with veteran Congress leader Karan Singh asking the party to take a decision post haste on 8 July.
The former cabinet minister suggested appointing four working presidents for north, south, east and west zones to introduce “younger people into positions of authority”. Singh has strongly urged the CWC to convene under the chairmanship of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and take the decision.
But Singh isn’t the only one making a case for inducting younger leaders in positions of power. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh Saturday batted for a “charismatic gen-next leader who can enthuse the people with her or his pan-India appeal and grassroots presence.”
