Sonia Gandhi resigns as Congress chief but Rahul Gandhi unwilling to take charge: Sources

As clamour over the Congress leadership grows, Rahul Gandhi on Sunday has expressed reluctance in taking over the top post and again pressed for a “non-Gandhi” as party president before he finally takes charge. He also dropped hints on who might replace Sonia Gandhi as the party president.

According to sources, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi told his supporters that there are talks “that a leader of the stature of Dr MMS or AK Antony could be made the interim president” and then after the novel coronavirus pandemic is over, “a plenary session will be called” to make Rahul Gandhi the party president once again.

Earlier in the day, Sonia Gandhi told her aides that she “would like to step down from the party president’s post”. Sources confirmed to India Today that Sonia Gandhi has sent a formal reply in which she has said that her stint as interim president for one year is complete and that the party should choose a new president.

Sonia Gandhi was appointed as the interim president after Rahul Gandhi resigned from the post, owning to the Lok Sabha poll debacle last year. After one year of leading the party, her tenure was renewed on August 10.

Earlier, Congress general-secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had also said that she’s not keen on taking over reins of the party.

Answering a question on whether she would like to lead the party, Priyanka Gandhi dismissed the possibility and said that she would rather focus on rebuilding the party in Uttar Pradesh. Priyanka Gandhi has also said that she won’t mind working with a non-Gandhi leader as party president. She said that the family had respected the decision of Rahul Gandhi to resign and also his suggestion that no family member should become the party president.