Congress to get full-time president next September, says head of party's poll body

Madhusudan Mistry, president of the Congress' Central Election Authority, said the election process for the post of Congress president will be completed by September.

The Congress will get its full-time president by September next year, said a senior member of the grand old party.

Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

The party is currently headed by interim president Sonia Gandhi, who took over after her son and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi resigned from the post following the Lok Sabha debacle.

Madhusudan Mistry, president of the Congress' Central Election Authority, said the election process for the post of Congress president will be completed by September according to the schedule decided by the Congress Working Committee.

“As per schedule decided by Congress Working Committee, the election process for the post of Congress president will be completed by September: Madhusudan Mistry, president, Congress' Central Election Authority,” he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

The party has been facing internal rifts in multiple states, besides several senior party leaders openly calling for sweeping changes and an organisational restructuring.

In one of the last CWC meetings, Sonia had said the revival of the Congress requires “self-control, discipline, unity and keeping the party’s interests paramount.”

She had further said the party has started preparations for the upcoming elections but “undoubtedly, we face many challenges.” She had also underlined that if “we are united, if we are disciplined and if we focus on the party’s interests alone, I am confident that we will do well.”