Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi to offer their resignations after poll debacle? Here's what Congress has to say

Ahead of the Congress Working Committee meeting on Sunday, there have been reports that the Gandhi family members will resign from all party positions.

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New Delhi: Ahead of the Congress Working Committee meeting on Sunday (March 13, 2022) to discuss the outcome of the assembly elections, there have been reports that Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi will resign from all organisational posts. However, party spokesman Randeep Surjewala has dismissed as "wrong, mischievous and incorrect" reports claiming that the Gandhi family members will resign from all party positions.

"It is unfair for a TV channel to carry such unsubstantiated propaganda stories emanating from imaginary sources at the instance of ruling BJP," Surjewala said on Saturday.

It is notable that the Grand old party has lost Punjab to the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and could not wrest any of the four other states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur - from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

While Sonia Gandhi has not been actively campaigning for some time, Rahul Gandhi has been the star campaigner for the Congress besides Priyanka Gandhi, with the brother-sister duo also playing a major role in key decisions of the party. Despite a high-pitched campaign led by AICC general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the Congress could manage to win only two of the 403 assembly seats with the vote share plummeting to a meagre 2.33 per cent and most of its candidates losing security deposits.

Rahul Gandhi had resigned as Congress president after the party suffered its second consecutive defeat in general elections in 2019. Sonia Gandhi who took over the reins of the party again as interim president had also offered to quit in August 2020 after an open revolt by a section of leaders, referred to as G-23, but the CWC had urged her to continue.

Sunday's CWC meeting is likely to see some fireworks as the G-23 dissident leaders, who have questioned the leadership and pressed for organisation overhaul, have indicated that these issues will be raised again.

Noted historian and political analyst Ramchandra Guha has said that Gandhis must "retire from politics" immediately for the good of the party and democracy in the country as they are unable to revive the Congress.

(With agency inputs)