Rahul may become Congress president

New Delhi, Rahul Gandhi may be elevated to the post of the Congress president at the AICC session planned to be held sometime in April, marking a generational change in the party.

There were indications that Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who has been delegating party work to vice-president Rahul, may choose to pass on the mantle to him.
The change of guard at the top could also trigger a generational shift in the AICC with several younger leaders, who are currently secretaries at the headquarters, getting bigger responsibilities.

A senior leader said the changes could take place at the AICC session expected to be held sometime in April.

It was not immediately clear whether the elder leaders, mostly identified with Sonia Gandhi, would be given advisory roles. “She is best placed to choose a role for herself,” a senior leader remarked when asked about Sonia Gandhi’s role if she passes on the leadership mantle to Rahul.

After the Lok Sabha debacle, it is Rahul who took the lead in analysing the reasons for the defeat by holding meetings with a cross section of leaders. It was at the instance of Rahul that party leaders are getting inputs from workers at the district and state levels on changes they would like to see in the party. “The Congress is re-strategising its social-eco-political policy, reworking its organisation structure and would go back to the basics by April 2015,” AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh said on Twitter.

Last month, Congress president Sonia Gandhi had written to party’s state unit chief to make suggestions on organisational reforms to progressively devolve power, increased accountability of leaders at all levels and the way forward for the party to win back confidence of all sections of the society.

These suggestions, along with the outcome of Rahul’s discussions with leaders, would form the “agenda for action” for the party which could be put before the AICC when it meets in April.

Another senior leader, also identified with the Rahul camp, gave indication that the party would shed its pro-reform image and aggressively take up pro-poor issues. “Carrying out reforms is the job of the government. While in opposition, you have to take up pro-poor issues and identify with the masses,” the leader said, adding that the party would aggressively take up the issue of easing up land laws through the ordinance route.

With Agencies Inputs