Next Congress chief: KC Venugopal calls state leaders' meeting, may decide post-Rahul Gandhi action

In a bid to put an end to Congress' leadership troubles, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal, on Monday, has called a meeting of all General Secretaries and State Incharges of All India Congress Committee on July 31 at 6 PM, as per sources.

Sources report that this meeting's agenda is aimed at deciding the next course of action for the party president post and to discuss the situation on ground level.

Shashi Tharoor says lack of clarity hurting Congress

This development comes a day after Thiruvananthapuram MP and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor asserted that  "lack of clarity" over leadership following Rahul Gandhi's resignation is hurting the Congress.

He also backed Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's assessment that a young leader would be more suitable to lead the Congress at this juncture. Tharoor said he hoped that the Congress Working Committee (CWC) is taking the current situation "very seriously" and is doing its best to find a solution without further delay.

Lack Of Clarity At Top Hurting Congress; Polls To Key Posts, CWC Will Legitimise Leadership: Shashi Tharoor

Priyanka - next Congress president?

Sources had reported earlier that names of the probable candidates to take up the post of interim-president will be shortly submitted to Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal adding that the Congress Working Committee meet to decide the next Congress president will take place only after the resolution of the Karnataka crisis.

Meanwhile, amid growing demands for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to take over her brother's place at the party helm, former External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh and senior party leader Sriprakash Jaiswal has said that while Rahul Gandhi had said that 'no one from the Gandhi family will be party president', the decision is upto Priyanka herself.

Omar Abdullah Asks 'Who Is Congress President? Is It Still Rahul Gandhi?' After Purported 'Cong Chief' Makes Mumbai Appointment

Next Congress president saga

Meanwhile, the dilemma within Congress continues over the appointment of a new party chief following the dramatic resignation of Rahul Gandhi from the post. While Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh called for a young leader, some of the old guard comprising of P Chidambaram, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot have been skeptical to choose a young leader preferring a 'Gandhi loyalist' to take over as the party president.

Following this call by Singh, General Secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia and Congress Mumbai chief Milind Deora issued their resignations, stirring speculations over their entry in the race for the top post of the president of the Congress party. 48-year-old Jyotiraditya Scindia and 41-year-old Sachin Pilot are the front runners for the post, as per sources.