New Delhi: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday (September 18, 2022) said that Rahul Gandhi will always have a “dominant position” in the Congress, whether he is the president or not, adding that he is the “accepted leader” of the ranks. and file.
A few days before the notification of the election of the AICC chief, the former Union minister and member of the Congress Working Committee said, as of now, Rahul Gandhi has refused to take over as the party president, but may change his mind.
When asked about the controversy over the elections, Chidambaram said there was no occasion for any controversy over the fairness and transparency of the party president elections and added that the Central Election Authority chairman Madhusudan Mistry’s final statement on the concerns of some leaders had come. . The matter would have been resolved on the first day.
In an interview with news agency PTI, the former Union minister said that the PCC-wise voter list would be available for inspection at the office of the PCC concerned, while the all-India voter list would be available for inspection at the office of the AICC. Chidambaram also underlined that it is not the practice of any political party to publish the electoral college list.
“Every nominated candidate shall be entitled to get a copy of the voter list. Mr Mistry has since clarified these obvious points and MPs have said they are satisfied. The matter has been given rest,” Chidambaram said.
Earlier, Lok Sabha members Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Karti Chidambaram, Pradyut Bordoloi and Abdul Khaleque had written to Mistry seeking clarity on the voter list issue, to which the party’s election panel chief clarified that no nominations should be filed. wants. The list of over 9,000 PCC representatives for the post of Congress President will be available from September 20 at the AICC’s Central Election Authority office.
In the interview, Chidambaram also questioned the media whether they would raise such issues when the BJP or any other party chose their party.
“I can’t remember Mr JP Nadda asking for the voter list or filing my nomination!” They said.
Asked whether consensus or election would be better for the post of AICC president, Chidambaram said the election being the default option, “the better way – and all parties follow it – is to elect a national president by consensus”.
“If my recollection is correct, Mr. Nadda, and before him Mr. Amit Shah, Mr. Rajnath Singh and Mr. Gadkari, were all unanimously elected,” he said.
Asked whether Gandhi would heed the appeal of party workers and leaders, Chidambaram said he did not know the answer to the question.
“Rahul Gandhi is the acknowledged leader of the rank and file of the party. They want him to be made the president of the party as well. So far he has refused. He may change his mind,” the senior Congress leader told PTI.
The Rajya Sabha MP said that if Rahul Gandhi is elected Congress president, he will be both leader and president, but if he is not, he will continue to be the accepted leader of the party and there will be some other person to hold the post of president.
Chidambaram said, “Rahul Gandhi will always have a prominent place in the party.”
(with agency input)