Sonia Gandhi will remain as Congress party’s interim president for now and the new chief will be elected within next six months, the party decided on Monday.
This decision was taken at the eventful Congress Working Committee meeting that concluded after seven hours on Monday.
Congress Working Committee urged Sonia Gandhi to continue as interim party chief and to bring changes to strengthen organisation, PTI quoted sources.
“Members expressed faith in Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi & urged her to continue leading the party and she agreed. Next meeting will be called soon, probably within next six months, to elect new chief. Till then, Sonia Gandhi agreed to remain interim president,” said P.L. Punia, a member of Congress Working Committee.
Crisis and confusion marked the crucial CWC meeting on Monday, after a letter written by senior party functionaries, calling for a change in leadership, betrayed the fault lines in the party. While Rahul Gandhi slammed the letter criticising the Congress leadership, the party denied that he accused the signatories of the letter of “colluding” with the BJP.
Senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is one of the signatories of the ‘dissent’ letter and had said that he would resign if the “collusion with BJP” allegation can be proven, has clarified that Rahul Gandhi never said the ‘dissent’ letter to Sonia Gandhi was written in collusion with the BJP, reported ANI. “Was informed by Rahul Gandhi personally that he never said what was attributed to him,” said Kapil Sibal after slamming Rahul Gandhi for allegedly accusing the dissent letter signatories of “colluding with BJP.”
