"Will consider," says Rahul Gandhi after appeals to become Congress chief

Rahul Gandhi had resigned from the post of party president in 2019 after the Congress had performed badly and lost in the Lok Sabha elections.

During the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on Saturday, former Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that he "will consider" the proposition of becoming the party chief again, according to sources. While responding to the requests of senior Congress leaders to become the party President, Mr Gandhi said that he will consider and added that he "needs clarity at the level of ideology, from the party leaders," reported TOI.

Rahul Gandhi had resigned from the post of party president in 2019 after the Congress had performed badly and lost in the Lok Sabha elections. The resignation of Mr Gandhi from the post had further affected the party as it suffered a leadership crisis. Following which, Sonia Gandhi had become the interim president of the Congress.

The CWC meeting was headed by Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday morning to discuss main issues such as current political scenario, upcoming assembly elections as well as organisational elections. According to reports, the election to the party's chief post will be held in September, 2022.

Sonia Gandhi, hitting out at the G-23, who have been demanding an organisational overhaul for over a year in view of the party's performance in the assembly elections, said, "I am a full-time and hands-on Congress President." She also said that every party member wants revival of Congress but it requires "unity" and keeping the "party's interests paramount."

In reference to the letters that were released by G-23 members, Ms Gandhi said that she was ready for a "free and honest discussion" and reminded all party members that "what should get communicated outside the four walls of this room is the collective decision of the CWC." She asserted that she has "always appreciated frankness and there was no need to speak to her through the media." This was the party's first in-person meeting since the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country last year.