Senior leaders Sushil Kumar Shinde and Mallikarju Kharge could be elected as next party chief.
Bypolls will be held on Wednesday in 31 assembly seats spread across 10 states and Kerala's Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, from where Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is making her electoral debut. Though these bye-elections are not going to have any bearing on the governments, they are seen as a big test for the Congress and the INDIA bloc which failed to put up a united show in the recent Haryana assembly polls. Most of these seats fell vacant after the sitting MLAs contested the Lok Sabha elections and won while in some constituencies, the bypolls are being held due to death of the representatives. The Wayanad seat was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, who also won from the Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency which he kept. Voting will be held in seven seats in Rajasthan, six in West Bengal, five in Assam, four seats in Bihar, three in Karnataka, two seats in Madhya Pradesh, and one seat each in Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala and Meghalaya. Votes will be counted on November 23.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would participate in the Karnataka leg of the "Bharat Jodo Yatra" led by Rahul Gandhi that will be entering the state on September 30, state party chief D K Shivakumar said on Friday.
Born on 19 November, 1917, Indira Gandhi served as prime minister from 1966 to 1977 and then again from 1980 until her assassination in 1984.
Kerala Chief Minister and veteran Marxist leader Pinarayi Vijayan intensified his attack on the Congress, alleging that its general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, is contesting the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election with the backing of Jamaat-e-Islami.
'I have joined the Congress to save the Constitution of the country'
Rahul Gandhi's focus will be on his Nyay Yatra, rather than the INDIA bloc's election campaign, leading to speculation among allies that the Congress leader is already looking at the Opposition's fight beyond May 2024.
The resignation also signals a continuing saga of unaddressed concerns of young leaders, once considered close to former Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
The Congress' backfiring brainstorming sessions Sonia Gandhi's retirement date Ajit Jogi robotic legs and new ambitions All this and more in this week's Dilli Gupshup.
Gandhi had urged the Congress Working Committee to entrust a group of people with the task of finding a new president as it would not be proper for him to do so.
Scenes from day two of the Opposition conclave in Bengaluru on Tuesday, July 18, 2023.
The opposition party's attack came after Shashi Tharoor, not part of the four leaders nominated by the Congress, was named as the head of a delegation to key partner countries to convey India's message of zero tolerance against terrorism following Operation Sindoor.
In a major development in the Congress, the party has formed an informal committee comprising General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, spokesperson Janardan Dwivedi, political secretary to Sonia Gandhi Ahmed Patel and Defence Minister AK Antony to look into the party's affairs, as the Congress president will be away since she is undergoing treatment in the United States.
The meeting comes a day after Danish Ali faced verbal abuse from BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri in Lok Sabha.
"The two parties always had a tacit understanding in Uttar Pradesh," Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh told media persons when asked his views on the BJP and BSP describing party general secretary Rahul Gandhi's 'padayatra' in UP as a political drama.
The Congress Working Committee finally accepted Rahul Gandhi's resignation during its second meeting of the day.
As Anna Hazare stepped up his campaign for the Jan Lokpal Bill, Congress on Sunday accused the activist of insulting Parliament and indulging in politics by attacking Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and party general secretary Rahul Gandhi.
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi has all the potential to become the next prime minister, at least the Congress seems to think so. But senior analyst B Raman raises a few doubts over his ability to lead the nation
Those responsible for protecting MPs have failed in their constitutional duties, said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi is stable and recovering well, sources at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi said on Saturday, nearly a week after she was admitted to the facility owing to post-Covid issues.
Scenes from the Opposition leaders' dinner meeting, in Bengaluru on Monday, July 17, 2023.
The Congress general secretary said that the Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party and Bharatiya Janata Party was responsible for corruption in the state and flayed them for pilfering funds sent by the Centre. Sharat Pradhan reports
Giving impetus to Congress' election campaign in Haryana ahead of next month's assembly polls, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, party chief Sonia Gandhi and general secretary Rahul Gandhi will address public rallies in various parts of the state.
'As Bharat Jodo Yatra entered Delhi, on 24th December 2022, the security of the Bharat Jodo Yatra was compromised on multiple occasions'
Corporate magnate Ratan Tata on Friday said that Congress general secretary, Rahul Gandhi had opened a door for investments in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Bharatiya Janata Party announced on Saturday that Navya Haridas, a two-time councillor in the Kozhikode Corporation, will be the National Democratic Alliance candidate for the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election.
Targeting All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray said the Congress leader has no prospects of becoming prime minister of the country.
Asked whether the Congress will go it alone on all the 403 assembly seats in the state or align with some political party, the party general secretary told reporters in an informal meeting here, "It is too early to say."
The Congress on Friday said the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is being organised by the party to raise voice against the 'injustice' of the last 10 years, as it released a 'Nyay anthem' with the tagline 'Saho Mat, Daro Mat (do not suffer, do not be scared)'.
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Tuesday criticised the Congress for not doing enough to curtail corruption, black money and militancy in Uttar Pradesh. Baba Ramdev described Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh as a piece of garbage and rejected material and warned that Rahul Gandhi was following in the latter's footsteps.
As a transgender woman, Reddy has been involved in social activism and also has taken up cases of child rape.
Can Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi win allies for their parties if made the prime ministerial candidates for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections? Saroj Nagi analyses
'Rahul Gandhi is the face of the INDIA alliance. If he contests against a BJP candidate and defeats her/him, it will send a strong message.'
'I just invited PM Modi for Kalki Dham for shilanyas, so what crime did I commit as a Congressman?'
Declaration of Rahul Gandhi as prime ministerial candidate cannot be ruled out, Congress hinted on Monday in the backdrop of conflicting statements from party leaders including Digvijay Singh.
Ahead of the launch of its 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' on Wednesday, the Congress said it is a turning point in Indian politics and marks a 'new beginning'.
The Congress on Sunday said it was not stopping anyone from being part of diplomatic delegations to be sent to various countries following Operation Sindoor and that its leaders who have been named at the instance of the government must listen to their conscience and contribute to the exercise.
Informed sources in the Congress party feel that had Priyanka cared about keeping this meeting a secret, it would have remained so. But the attempt to alert the media, thus setting off wide speculation, is part of the Congress's design to enthuse its workers that Rahul's candidature for the top job would bring in Priyanka as well.
Chief ministers of 3 Congress-ruled states, other national and state party leaders are also likely to accompany Rahul to the court.
Rahul Gandhi has received a setback because he has been rudely reminded that a two-third majority in the Lok Sabha is against his first political endeavour, reports Sheela Bhatt.
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