CWC meet today, a decision on Congress chief likely

Congress is expected to decide on the schedule for electing the new Congress chief in its key CWC meeting.

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New Delhi: A key meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the highest decision-making body of the party, will take place on Saturday (October 16) at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters in New Delhi. 

During the first in-person meeting of the CWC since the COVID-19 outbreak last year, upcoming assembly polls in five states next year including Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, organisational elections, the current political situation, price rise, farmers' protests and the economic situation of the country are likely to be on agenda, PTI reported. 

The meet would be attended by the CWC members, permanent invitees, and special invitees of the committee along with the chief ministers of the Congress-ruled states. 

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel confirming his presence told ANI, "I am going to attend Congress Working Committee meeting on Saturday, wherein upcoming Assembly elections, as well as organisational elections, will be discussed.” 

This meet becomes crucial as the party has recently been witnessing rumbling in Congress-ruled states like Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. 

Moreover, the meet comes weeks after Gulam Nabi Azad, a G-23 member, had written a letter to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi to convene an urgent CWC meet.

After political turmoil in Punjab Congress broke out last month, Kapil Sibal had said G23 leaders' grouping is "not a Jee Huzur 23" and questioned who in the party was taking decisions in the absence of a "full-time president". 

With these demands in mind, the party leadership is expected to decide on the schedule for electing the new Congress chief, PTI reported. Youth Congress, NSUI, Mahila Congress and Social Media`s National Executives have passed resolutions to appoint Rahul Gandhi as the new Congress president. 

Sonia Gandhi took the baton from Congress MP Rahul Gandhi after he stepped down as the President of AICC accepting the responsibility of poll debacle in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.  The party in its CWC meeting held on January 22 had decided to elect a president by June 2021, but the same was deferred at the May 10 CWC meet in the wake of the COVID-19 situation.

(With agency inputs)