Sonia Gandhi, who handed over the baton to Mallikarjun Kharge as he formally took over as Congress president today, called it a moment of ‘relief’ and said the party will move forward to tackle the challenges.
Addressing an event after the veteran leader got elected, the outgoing Congress president said, “Congress faces many challenges but with unity and strength it will move forward to tackle them as it has done before.” The Congress faces many challenges but with full strength and unity “we have to move forward and succeed” she said.
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Gandhi added she did her duty as Congress president to the best of her ability and was feeling relieved as she would now be free from this responsibility, reported news agency PTI.
She said it is her biggest satisfaction that the new Congress president is very experienced and has risen from being an ordinary worker to such heights through his hardwork.
Kharge is the first non-Gandhi to head the party in 24 years. He succeeds Sonia Gandhi, the longest-serving party chief.
Mallikarjun Kharge, the first non-Gandhi to head the Grand Old Party in 24 years, defeated Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor in a historic election for the top post after the Gandhis opted out of the race and after Ashok Gehlot also pulled out of contention following a fiasco.
Kharge thanked the party on Wednesday for making a 'majdoor ka beta' the president of the party. "I have worked my way up from the bottom and today I stand in front of you at this post. I have faced all struggles that any worker faces and for that reason, I can say we will face all obstacles together," he said.
Kharge said it was an emotional moment for him and he would like to thank Congress people for making a worker's son and an ordinary worker, president of the party. "I know it is a difficult time, efforts are being made to change democracy established by Congress," the 80-year-old leader said after taking over as party chief.