Sushil Shinde Front-Runner For New Cong Chief As Rahul Remains Resolute On Quitting; Sachin Pilot Also In Race

With Rahul Gandhi not relenting on his offer to quit as president of the Congress, hit by a wave of resignations by middle-rung leaders in the recent past, the party is now deliberating over names that could replace Gandhi.

Image: PTI

New Delhi: As Rahul Gandhi remains adamant on stepping down as the president of the Congress party thrusting the party into a serious leadership crisis, serious deliberations are going on within the party over the name of senior leader Sushil Kumar Shinde as Gandhi's successor for the post. Name of Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot  is also in the race, sources revealed. The party is likely to elect a new party Chief outside Gandhi family this week, for the first time in 21 years. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and a Gandhi family loyalist Shinde is being pitched as a strong contender for the post of party president after Rahul Gandhi specified that he won’t backtrack on his decision. Shinde, who is a prominent dalit face of the Congress and a trusted person of the Gandhi family, however a faction within the party believes that Shinde had mentioned the term “Hindu terror” at Jaipur session, because of which the party had to face huge loss in 2014 and even in 2019 elections. Though, the supporters of Shinde argue that terrorists like Afzal Guru and Azmal Kasab were hanged in his tenure as the home minister. Rajasthan deputy CM Sachin Pilot is also among the frontrunners for the post, sources have said. Some leaders in the party are apprehensive of party’s leadership being given to an elderly leader, as it would raise some evident questions and also his loyality for the Gandhi family would be made a topic of discussion. As per the sources, Sachin Pilot who comes from backward community, is a dynamic leader who also held ministry in the UPA government and most importantly , he has a clean image up till now. He is also hailed as one of most successful youth leader of the party. He is one such leader on whom both the Gandhi siblings have utmost trust, sources said. Gandhi had offered to step down as the party chief on May 25, during the CWC meeting following the party's dismal performance in Lok Sabha elections, where it could manage to get only 52 out of 542 seats. He had himself lost from Amethi, his family pocket borough, to Union Minister Smriti Irani by a margin of 55,000 votes. He, however, was elected to the Lok Sabha from Kerala's Wayanad. Several attempts by leaders of various levels were made asking Rahul to go back on his decision, but he has time and again cleared his stand.