Congress leaders in Telangana, AP backed Gandhi family

Hyderabad: Congress leaders of both Telugu states appear to have won the first round with the party deciding to pick UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi as the interim president.

TPCC working president Ponnam Prabhakar said state leaders unanimously told the high command that Mr Gand-hi should continue. Congress MP Komatireddy Venkata Reddy told the high command that if Mr Gandhi doesn’t continue, party leader Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra should take over.

The Congress collected the opinion of state party unit presidents, Congress Legislat-ure Party leaders, MPs and senior leaders. The Congress Working Committee (CWC) earlier passed a unanimous resolution rejecting the resignation of Mr Gandhi and asked to continue. It is learnt that Mr Gandhi is firm on not returning.

The TS Congress stand was made clear when the party collected the final round of opinions from state units. Congress leaders of TS and AP rejected alternatives offered as Mr Gandhi’s replacements — Mr Mukul Wasnik, the party’s former Lok Sabha leader Mallikarjun Kharge and former minister Sushilkumar Shinde.

TS and AP Congress leades had demanded that Mr Rahul Gandhi continue as party president. “At the present critical juncture only he can lead the party,” one of them said.

If that was not possible, they wanted someone from the Gandhi family. They said that at present, nobody other than a member of the Gandhi family can revive the party.