Sonia Gandhi says she is ‘full-time and hands-on Congress president’

After a constant delay, the elections for the subsequent nationwide president of the Indian National Congress (INC) will probably be held in September 2022, virtually a yr later, sources stated on Saturday. The publish of Congress president has remained vacant since occasion chief Rahul Gandhi resigned after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Since then, Sonia Gandhi is main the occasion as interim president.
Elections for Congress president to be held in September 2022: Sources pic.twitter.com/UBVtIHw1rA— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2021
Despite virtually a yr remaining for the elections to happen, Sonia Gandhi, the interim president of the Congress, as we speak tried to place herself forth as the one viable contender for the place. She made her intention clear on the key assembly of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) that was chaired by interim occasion chief Sonia Gandhi and attended by 52 occasion leaders on Saturday, October 16.
Opening remarks of Congress President Smt. Sonia Gandhi on the CWC assembly:- pic.twitter.com/74K4qjGkZS— Congress (@INCIndia) October 16, 2021
In her opening remarks on the Congress Working Committee (CWC) assembly, Sonia Gandhi stated: “I am, if you will allow me to say so, a full-time and hands-on Congress President.”
Sonia Gandhi added that within the final two years since she has taken up the function of the interim president she has by no means let any difficulty of public significance or concern go unaddressed.
Excerpt from Sonia Gandhi’s opening assertion at CWC assembly held as we speak
“You are conscious that I’ve been taking them up with the Prime Minister as have Dr Manmohan Singh and Rahul ji. I’ve been interacting with Like-minded political events regu­larly. We have issued joint statements on nationwide points and coordinated our technique in Par­liament as properly.
I’ve at all times appreciated frankness. There isn’t any want to talk to me by means of the media. So allow us to all have a free and trustworthy dialogue”, added Sonia Gandhi, trying to place oneself as essentially the most deserving candidate for the place.
Notably, Congress was as a result of elect a full-fledged occasion president by June 2021 finish. However, the CWC in its assembly held on May 10, 2021, had deferred the election citing the second wave of COVID-19. The occasion had then not fastened a timeline for the subsequent election.
Sonia Gandhi by no means gave up Congress’ reigns
Interestingly, Sonia Gandhi has continued to be the interim President of Congress since August 2019 because the occasion has so far not elected a full-time occasion president.
She was made the ‘interim’ occasion president in 2019 after Rahul Gandhi had stop as occasion president after the defeat within the 2019 common elections. While Rahul Gandhi was adamant that the occasion president’s publish mustn’t go to a Gandhi and will go to a youthful chief, ultimately his 72-year-old mom was made the chief once more.
Prior to him, Sonia Gandhi herself had held the publish of occasion president until December 2017. In truth, she served because the occasion head for nearly twenty years. 
When she had change into the Congress president for the primary time in 1998, the then Congress chief Sitaram Kesri was reportedly locked up in a rest room in Congress headquarters at Akbar Road so he couldn’t cease Sonia Gandhi from coming into the workplace along with her supporters to take over because the occasion president.
After she was made the interim president of the occasion in 2019, her tenure had come to an finish final yr on tenth August 2020. However, she continued to be the interim President of Congress because the occasion had not elected a full-time occasion president until then.