Congress Plenary Session: Rahul Gandhi earlier indicated he favours election to pick CWC members.
Highlights
- Party sources have said that Mr Gandhi favours election to nomination
- But for nearly two decades, the party has followed the nomination route
- Mr Gandhi had indicated that he wants to make space for younger leaders
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, who favours internal elections to pick the members of the party's top decision-making panel, the Congress Working Committee, was authorized today to follow the traditional method of nomination.
Senior party leader Ghulam Nabi Azad - who made the proposal that was accepted at the 84th plenary session - said in the history of the Congress, election to the Working Committee had been held only about a dozen times. For the rest, the Congress president has constituted the committee through nomination.
Party sources have told NDTV that Mr Gandhi, who took over the reins of the party in December, favours election to nomination -- a procedure recommended by the party rulebook.The 47-year-old leader had earlier indicated that he wants to make space for younger leaders at the entrenched upper echelons of the party and a complete election was held when he took over as the party chief, even though there were no contenders.
The Congress' constitution stipulates that half of the CWC, which must have at least 20 members, must be elected. The other half can be nominated by the party president.
But for nearly two decades, the party has followed the nomination route. Elections were last held for the CWC in 1997, when Sitaram Kesri was the Congress president.
Sonia Gandhi, who took over as the party chief in 1998, nominated the CWC members till she stepped down in December last year, handing the baton to Rahul Gandhi.
Since he took over the party, Mr Gandhi has tried to revive several traditions of the party. Unlike his mother, he has started vising the party headquarters in Delhi's Akbar Road several times a week to meet leaders from the states.