A Gandhi-less Congress soon? Top leader says Rahul Gandhi can't be forced to become party president

For a long period of time, the question that circulated the most in the Indian National Congress is: "When will Rahul Gandhi become the party's president?" As the Gandhi family has been at the centre of India's grand-old party, the successor in yet another Gandhi at the helm was something the second-string leaders and common supporters of the Congress wanted to see.

But things seem to have undergone a change now. On Tuesday (23), senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh told NDTV that Rahul Gandhi "can't be forced to become Congress president" if he is unwilling. Singh's remark came a day after Ashok Gehlot, the chief minister of the north-western state of Rajasthan, made a passionate appeal to Rahul to change his mind.

Rahul had succeeded his mother Sonia Gandhi, who is currently the interim president, in December 2017 but continued as the president for less than two years to step down in August 2019, months after the debacle in the general elections that year. His resignation saw Sonia, 75, taking up the post once again as the interim president.

The party supporters were hopeful that Rahul, 52, would return to the top post as the Congress is gearing up to pick its new president by September 20 and is already a few days late to set the process rolling. But after hearing Singh's remarks, one would believe that the top leaders of the Congress are finally acknowledging that Rahul no longer wants to lead the party.

Gehlot had said a day ago that the Congress is "unanimously" in favour of Rahul taking up the reins of the president and the workers would be disappointed if he didn't.

"If Rahul Gandhi does not become the party president, it will be a disappointment for the Congressmen in the country. Many people will sit at home and we will suffer. He (Rahul Gandhi) should accept this post by himself, understanding the sentiments of the common Congress people in the country," Gehlot, whose name is also in circulation as the party looks for a non-Gandhi for the top post, said.

When Singh was asked whether he would also like to make an "appeal" to Rahul to change his mind, the 75-year-old said, "The appeal is known to everyone. It depends on Rahul Gandhi... How can you force anyone? We are trying to get everyone on board."

The future of the party "is bright", he added, replying to reporters' questions.

Sonia, who is the longest-serving president of the Congress since 1998 with a gap between 2017 and 2019, has said that she couldn't continue as the chief any more because of her poor health.

Rahul's sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is also a top post holder in the Congress but earlier this year, she failed to guide the party to victory in the key state of Uttar Pradesh which is ruled by prime minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.