Sonia Gandhi to trigger stalemate leaving Congress no choice but Rahul as boss: Sources

In a breaking development, Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi will express her intension to step down from the position and urge to initiate the process of finding a new chief but expect the stalemate to continue, in turn giving way to Rahul Gandhi to return, according to sources. This could lead the Congress back to exactly the same situation where it was last year with no consensus on who should be the new chief. 

If the Congress Working Committee (CWC) unanimously urges Rahul Gandhi to once again take over the reins, then the CWC members could offer their resignations and allow Rahul Gandhi to form an entirely new working committee. According to sources, Rahul Gandhi will not return unless given a free hand to pick his own team.

Surprisingly, there is no mention of senior leader P Chidambaram in the discussion for the role of national president. He was neither amongst the 23 leaders who earlier wrote to Sonia Gandhi nor was he amongst dozens of those who wrote the letters on Sunday.

However, if the zonal presidents are to be chosen then Sushil Kumar Shinde, Tarun Gogoi and Chidambaram from the west, east and south respectively cannot be ruled out.

Several Congress leaders, MPs and ministers on Sunday backed the Gandhi family amidst growing unrest with the party deeply divided on the leadership issue on the eve of the crucial Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting.

While former Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath who appealed party president Sonia Gandhi to "give strength to the Congress Party" by continuing as President and lead the party, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel appealed to Wayanad Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi to once again lead the party, whereas Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, "Congress is only safe in Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi's hands". Chowdhury maintained that the combined energies of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi made for a "winning combination", he opined that Congress workers and leaders should rejoice in this "potent formula". He recalled Sonia Gandhi's leadership in 2004 Lok Sabha elections contending that Sonia Gandhi has never been hungry for power.

As questions have been raised on Congress leadership from the opposition as well as within the party, former Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah called the questioning of the leadership of the Gandhi family as "unfortunate", by saying that "we should collectively strive to strengthen Congress & not weaken it". Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh also lashed out at the 23 leaders who have demanded 'structural changes' in the Congress party.

23 leaders seek 'structural changes'

Hinting at apparent turmoil within the Grand old party, 23 senior leaders have written to party's interim-Chief Sonia Gandhi raising a 5-Point Agenda to revive the Party. The letter emphasised on the need for active leadership in the party and raised questions about the party's condition and direction, demanding an internal election to the CWC. The five-page letter - drafted by two senior leaders bears the signatures of leaders from the Congress' 'old guard ' and the 'young guard' (i.e Rahul Gandhi supporters). Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, Kapil Sibal, Manish Tiwari,  Anand Sharma, Shashi Tharoor, Jitin Prasad, Veerappa Moily, Pramod Tiwari, PJ Kurien, Sandeep Dikshit, as per sources.  Meanwhile, Congress has denied that it has received any such letter.

READ | Congress Vs Congress: Leaders Slam Letter Signed By 23 Seniors Seeking 'structural Change'