Sonia to continue as Congress chief for the time being

After a 7-hour meeting of the Congress high command, it has been concluded that Sonia will continue as the interim President. This has come amidst rumours that had been floating around claiming that she might step down and let a non-Gandhi or a non-Vadra take over as President. The meeting that commenced at 11:00 A.M went on till 5 PM.

“In light of the deliberations, the CWC unanimously requests Sonia Gandhi to continue to lead the Indian National Congress until such time as circumstances will permit an AICC session to be convened,” said K.C. Venugopal, general secretary, in a press briefing. He added that Rahul and Sonia Gandhi have been at the forefront of fighting against the Modi government.

The new President might be elected within six months and there are detailed resolutions that are being drafted in this regard. Notably, Sonia had offered to step down as interim president following a letter by more than 20 leaders demanding an ‘active, full-time and visible’ president. At a press briefing, party general secretary K.C. Venugopal says CWC took note of the letter written by certain Congress leaders, demanding ‘full-time and effective leadership’.

Sonia had completed a year as President after Rahul Gandhi stepped down on August 11, 2019. She was a full-fledged party president for over 19 years from May 1998 to December 2017 when Rahul Gandhi took over the reins from her and resigned in May 2019 owning moral responsibility for the party’s rout in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.