CWC picks Sonia Gandhi as interim chief of Congress
New Delhi : Ending 77-day curiosity on who will head Congress party after another Lok Sabha poll debacle, the CWC on Saturday night announced that Sonia Gandhi will be the interim chief of the party. Rahul Gandhi had resigned 'taking responsibility' of the poll debacle.
The decision hints that the party wants to stick with the experience than the new face.
Sonia Gandhi, who headed the party from 1997 to 2017 before she handed it over to Rahul Gandhi, was nothing less than a surprise as everyone was expecting the new chief to be a non-Gandhi.
The CWC also discussed situation in Jammu and Kashmir after removal of Article 370; it urged Centre to allow the leaders to visit the state. It also passed a resolution hailing Rahul Gandhi's leadership and Sonia Gandhi's appointment as interim chief of the party.
Srujewala said that Sonia Gandhi has accepted the request and CWC can only appoint an interim chief.
He said Sonia Gandhi, who is the lone Congress MP from Uttar Pradesh, will emerge as the "most potent voice of the opposition" and refused to answer if Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's name was also suggested during the meeting.
The decision to chose Sonia Gandhi was taken in the second meeting of CWC on Saturday.