Amid demand for the return of Rahul Gandhi as Congress President, the party has set the ball rolling to identify the successor to incumbent Sonia Gandhi, asking state units to submit details about AICC members who form the electoral college for the presidential election.
Tasked with conducting the organisational elections, Madhusudan Mistry, Chairman of the Central Election Authority of the Congress said in a letter that the meeting of the AICC is to be convened “as soon as possible”.
“You will be intimated as dates and venue is finalised,” Mistry said in the letter to AICC General Secretaries and in-charges; and PCC chiefs.
The presidential election was necessitated after Sonia Gandhi asked party leaders to choose her successor amid a revolt by 23 leaders, who had questioned the day-to-day functioning of the Congress party and sought a full-time president.
The 73-year-old leader had stepped in as interim president in August last year after Rahul quit the post accepting responsibility for the defeat of the Congress in the Lok Sabha elections.
After the July rebellion by the Group of 23 in the Congress, Sonia had offered to step down as Congress President but was persuaded by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and senior leaders A K Antony among others to continue in the saddle till a successor is appointed.
Congress President recast the party organisation giving representation to both the young and the veterans in running day-to-day affairs of the party.
The election process is expected to be completed soon with the AICC meeting expected in January, well before the next round of assembly elections in 2021.
The dissenters have been demanding election to the Congress Working Committee as well and the party is likely to consider it favourably.
(Published 30 October 2020, 15:03 IST)
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