Rahul unquestioned choice but anyone can contest: Congress

Stressing that party Vice President Rahul Gandhi is the unquestioned choice for the post of party President, the Congress on Wednesday said being a democratic party, it will not shy away from allowing any leader to contest against him in the organisational polls.

The party also said that the question on Gandhi's elevation as party President would be laid to rest in a month's time, with the culmination of organisational polls.

Addressing reporters, Congress spokesperson Randeep S. Surjewala said many times the party had seen unanimity and many times the party had welcomed a contest.

He said that Rahul Gandhi was ready to take on the challenge.

"Rahul Gandhi continues to remain the unquestioned choice of every Congress leader and worker for becoming the President of the party," he said.

According to him, Rahul Gandhi was democratic enough and the party was resilient enough to welcome anybody to come and aspire to any post in the party, including the post of President.

"We are in a democratic party with internal democracy. Congress party has never shied away from a democratic challenge inside the party," Surjewala said.

"The process of orgninasational election is going on in the states and within a month, the picture related to party President will be clear."

However, Surjewala underlined that party leaders and workers had expressed several times that Rahul Gandhi should take up the responsibility of Congress leadership.

The leaders, he said, had also expressed the desire that current Congress President Sonia Gandhi should keep guiding and work as party's mentor.

Citing from the past, he recalled that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had successfully fought the challenge of President's election, while Mahatma Gandhi and Subhas Chandra Bose contested against each other.

Be it Indira or Sonia, the Nehru-Gandhi family had never shied away from any such contest, he added.

--IANS

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