Aditi TandonNew Delhi, August 20On the eve of the commencement of Congress president’s election process on Sunday, the grand old party is faced with a peculiar dilemma — a disinterested heir.Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi has not made up his mind to run in the impending elections and there is no plan in place for succession, sources say.Conundrum resurfacesSources say former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi has not made up his mind to run in the impending elections and there is no plan in place for successionAs the poll looms, there is no candidate in sight to take over the party’s reins from SoniaOn October 16 last year, interim Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had approved the schedule for the election of a full-time party president between August 21 and September 20, 2022, after the Congress Working Committee endorsed the same.Now, while the election looms, there is no candidate in sight to take over the party’s reins from Sonia, who accepted the role of interim chief after then Congress president Rahul stepped down following the embarrassing 2019 Lok Sabha election loss.Not a great time for transitionRahul may also be wary of taking up Congress chief’s mantle ahead of tough elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh later this year, with the party facing an aggressive incumbent BJP in both states, sources say. All in all, this does not qualify as a great time for transiting from Sonia to anyone for that matter. —A senior AICC leaderCongress Election Authority chief Madhusudan Mistry, meanwhile, said on Saturday that they were ready with the list of delegates who would vote in the internal election and kickstart the process once the CWC clears the final schedule.A section of the Congress does not rule out further delay in the process, with Rahul refusing to make the long awaited comeback despite loud calls within to take the plunge for good.On what Rahul might have in mind, most leaders expressed cluelessness, while some noted, “He does not seem interested.” A while ago, sources said, there was a proposal to field Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot in the party chief’s race should Rahul remain reluctant but that, too, has not seen formal acceptance yet.About Rahul, who recently spent a lot of time with party leaders after police detention for opposing ED summons to Sonia, a Congress source said, “It seems he feels he does not have the kind of backing from the party as his mother has or that level of acceptance.”
