Indian National Congress: Sonia Gandhi elected president of the Indian National Congress

Former Indian National Congress president Sonia Gandhi was unanimously elected as the president of the Indian National Congress party on Saturday.Indian National Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge had proposed Gandhi’s name for the post at a party meeting, a proposal which was seconded by senior party leaders including Gaurav Gogoi, Tariq Anwar and K. Sudhakaran.

Rajya Sabha member Sonia Gandhi was re-elected to the post.

In his speech after his re-election, Gandhi praised his party’s performance in the general elections and said the Indian National Congress had once again demonstrated its resilience.

“We were up against a powerful and malicious organisation that was trying its best to ruin us. It tried to ruin us financially. It launched a campaign full of lies and smears against us and our leaders. Many wrote our obituaries,” she said. Sonia Gandhi added, “But under Khargee’s resolute leadership, we endured. He is an inspiration to all of us. His commitment to the party organisation was truly extraordinary and we all must learn from his example.” “It is good that she (Sonia Gandhi) has been re-elected to the CPP and she will continue to lead us,” Kharge said after the meeting ended. Shashi Tharoor said, “I don’t think there was any question. We all wanted her to return. She has led and guided the party for such a long time that no other name was considered. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge himself nominated her.”

Earlier today, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) passed a resolution recommending that Congress MP Rahul Gandhi be appointed Leader of the Opposition in the Indian Parliament.

As a result of the Indian Lok Sabha elections, the Indian National Congress increased its number of seats to 100, up from 52 in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, making it the second largest party in the recently concluded elections.

A host of prominent leaders of the Indian National Congress, including UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, party president Mallikarjun Kharge and general secretary KC Venugopal, attended the ongoing CWC meeting in the Central Hall of the Parliament.

Along with them, other prominent leaders like Karti Chidambaram, Rajiv Shukla, Randeep Surjewala, Ajay Maken, former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Shashi Tharoor were also present at the meeting.

Speaking at the opening remarks of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting here, Kharge celebrated the party’s “revival” but also said it should take a pause as it had not lived up to its potential and expectations in some states. He said people had placed their faith in the Congress and it had stood firm against “dictatorial forces” and those opposed to the Constitution.

“The people are raising their voices against the ruling party’s dictatorial and anti-democratic approaches. This is a resolute rejection of the politics of the last decade — of division, hatred and polarisation,” Kharge said.

(With input from each institution)