Maharashtra and Mumbai Congress committees on Thursday requested Rahul Gandhi to remain as the party president. Terming the Lok Sabha election results shocking , the resolution passed by the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) said that it was time for the State leaders to take responsibility for the debacle.
The MPCC meeting also held a review of the party’s poor performance in the elections. Despite his offer to resign from the post of State Congress committee chief, Ashok Chavan is unlikely to be asked to quit. According to sources within the Congress, the Central leadership is unwilling to appoint a new leader at the helm of the State party at a time when the Assembly polls are round the corner.
“A new president would have an herculean task as only four months are left for the Assembly polls. Mr. Chavan has been holding the post for two years now and he knows the party equations in all constituencies of the State. A new person would find it difficult to deal with the situation,” said a senior leader who attended the MPCC meeting.
Mr. Chavan will be holding district-wise meetings from next week to prepare for the polls. “There has been talk about giving representation to the youth for the polls. It was unanimously agreed upon to give preference to the youth,” said the leader.
