Youth Congress passes resolution for Rahul Gandhi's appointment as party president again

The Indian Youth Congress on Monday passed a resolution for Rahul Gandhi to become the president of Congress again. The said resolution was passed in an executive meeting which is a two-day affair taking place in Goa's Panaji under the leadership of IYC National in-charge and All India Congress Committee AICC Joint-Secretary Krishna Allavaru and IYC National President Srinivas BV. All the national office bearers and state presidents of the Youth Congress from across the country were present in the meeting. 

Congress' leadership dilemma 

In a letter addressed to Sonia Gandhi on August 23, 2020, 23 senior party leaders observed that the uncertainly over the leadership and the drift in the party have weakened Congress and demoralized the workers. The letter reportedly mentioned many suggestions such as the need for a full-time leadership available at the national and state headquarters, conducting elections at all levels including the Congress Working Committee and state level, the formation of an Independent Election Authority and institutional leadership mechanism to guide the party's revival. Despite the high-octane drama at the CWC meeting, it was decided that the Rae Bareli MP will continue as the interim president at least until the next AICC session is convened.

But, the concerns were reiterated by Congress leaders such as Kapil Sibal, P Chidambaram, and Ghulam Nabi Azad after the loss in the Bihar Assembly election. Far from addressing concerns, the CWC on January 22, 2021, stated that the election to the post of party president will be held only after the conclusion of the Assembly polls in Assam, Puducherry, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. Apart from Tamil Nadu where its alliance with DMK bore fruit, Congress failed to make an impact in the other states. 

When the party's apex decision-making body met on May 10, Sonia Gandhi announced that the schedule for the Congress president's election had been prepared. But things changed towards the end of the day as the CWC delayed the process for electing a new party supremo indefinitely amid the COVID-19 crisis. The resolution mentioned that given the “nationwide emergent conditions prevailing on account of unprecedented Corona pandemic”, the party must channelize all its energies towards relief measures and “defer the elections temporarily”.

Image: PTI & @IYC-Twitter