Will Rahul Gandhi contest Congress' presidential poll? Speculations on as election date inches closer

New Delhi: Will Rahul Gandhi contest the election for the post of Congress` President? The speculations continue as merely a few days left for the election, which the party had announced to be held between August 21 and September 20. Rahul Gandhi has so far not cleared his stance despite several attempts, said an ANI report. Congress strategists have so far failed to convince Rahul Gandhi to contest for the post of president and this might delay the election of the Congress' top post.  

Since Rahul Gandhi has not given any clear indication of contesting the elections, the meeting of the Congress Working Committee has not been called in which the date of the election is to be locked, said the report.

According to the Central Election Authority of Congress, the party has completed the preparations for the elections, while Authority, headed by Madhusudan Mistry, has indicated that it was ready for the elections on time. The ball is reportedly in the Congress Working Committee`s court to announce the poll dates.

Although election process in the states has not been completed yet, Mistry told ANI, "We will stick to our Schedule it is up to the CWC to take a final call for the poll Schedule. More than 9,000 delegates of all the states will be the voter at the polls."

Earlier the party had announced that the process of election of the Congress president was to start on August 21 and it would elect a new president before September 20. The presidents of the states were to be elected by August 20, but the process has so far not been completed in any state. Due to the lack of clarity on Rahul Gandhi`s stance, the leadership is in confusion and the organization is in doubt as to whether it will be completed by said date. 

Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to start his Bharat Jodo Yatra on September 7 from Kanyakumari and the journey is going to be long, so if the elections are not held by then, there is a possibility of further delay. 

The internal elections of Congress had earlier been postponed too, but in case of Rahul Gandhi's reluctance to take over the leadership, names like Ashok Gehlot, Mallikarjun Kharge, Mukul Wasnik, Kumari Sailja and KC Venugopal can be surfaced for consideration. In such a scenario, Sonia Gandhi could be the natural choice to bind the party and take on the National Democratic Alliance in the 2024 General Elections. 

Another jolt to party, Ghulam Nabi Azad quits J-K Congress campaign committee 

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Tuesday resigned from the post of chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Congress campaign committee hours after his appointment. Azad refused to assume the post of Campaign Committee chairman of Jammu and Kashmir due to health reasonsand the same was conveyed this to the Congress leadership. The development came after Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday appointed Vikar Rasool Wani as the party`s J-K unit president and Raman Bhalla as working president. 

Earlier, the J-K Congress president post was held by Ghulam Ahmed Mir, who is believed to be a close aide of Azad. Sonia Gandhi accepted the resignation of Mir from the post of Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president. 

Congress on Tuesday constituted the campaign committee, political affairs committee, coordination committee, manifesto committee, publicity and publication committee, disciplinary committee and Pradesh election committee for Jammu and Kashmir. The campaign committee was formed constituting 11 members with Azad as the chairman and Tariq Hamid Karra as vice chairman. 

Notably, Ghulam Nabi Azad is one of the group of 23 leaders who were vocal about leadership change in Congress. 

(With ANI Inputs)