Rahul's dilemma continues as loyalists mount pressure on him to take charge

New Delhi: With the notification of the Congress president polls just days away, Gandhi family loyalists and state units have stepped up efforts to mount pressure on Rahul Gandhi to take the party's reins amid indications that he was unlikely to change his earlier stance of not being AICC chief. The Congress units in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, the only two states where the party is in government on its own, have passed resolutions that Gandhi be made the party's president. Also, the Gujarat Congress on Sunday demanded that Rahul Gandhi be made the party's national president.

This comes days after the party said the Pradesh Congress Committee delegates would pass resolutions authorising the incoming Congress president to appoint state chiefs and AICC delegates.

On Sunday, while passing the resolution authorising the incoming Congress president to appoint state chiefs and AICC delegates, the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (CPCC) also passed a resolution that Rahul Gandhi be made the party president.

The Rajasthan PCC passed both the resolutions on Saturday. Interestingly, while other party state units are also likely to pass such resolutions, the two states that took the lead in doing so Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh have Congress governments led by Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel respectively, who have repeatedly called on Gandhi to take on the mantle of party president.

Gehlot and Baghel both are also seen as facing pressure internally to their position with Sachin Pilot and T S Singhdeo, seen as aspirants to take on the job of chief ministership in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh respectively.

While some political analysts see the passing of the resolutions as an initiative of Gehlot and Baghel to reaffirm their loyalty to the Gandhi family, others see it as a genuine attempt to convince Rahul Gandhi to take on party reins.

Similar resolutions were passed in 2017 before Rahul Gandhi was elevated as the Congress president. He, however, stepped down in 2019 after the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha elections.

Gehlot had also sought to play down reports about him being the front-runner to become Congress president, and said efforts would be made till the last moment to persuade Rahul Gandhi to take over the reins of the party again.

In June this year also, the CPCC passed a similar resolution that Rahul Gandhi should become the party president.

Talking to reporters in Raipur on Sunday, Baghel said he had moved the resolution for appointing Rahul Gandhi as the party's president, which was seconded by PCC chief Mohan Markam, state Assembly Speaker Charan Das Mahant, and ministers TS Singh Deo, Shivkumar Dahariya and Premsai Singh Tekam.

To a query, Baghel said the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee passed the resolution on Sunday, and the party's Rajasthan unit had done it as well. "If similar resolutions are passed in other states, then Rahul-ji should rethink it as the party's presidential election is nearing. Keeping in view the sentiments of all party workers, I think Rahul-ji will agree (to become party chief)," he said.

The demand by the Gujarat Congress to make Gandhi the party chief was made at the state executive committee meeting held in Ahmedabad.

Rahul Gandhi said earlier that he had made his decision on whether he would take up the party presidency but did not divulge his plans.