Call for Rahul as Leader of Opposition

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Saturday unanimously urged Rahul Gandhi to take on the mantle of the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and he told the party's top brass that he will take a decision on it "very soon".

Also, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi was unanimously re-elected as the chairperson of the Congress parliamentary party. Mallikarjun Kharge proposed her and it was seconded by Gaurav Gogoi, K Sudhakaran and Tariq Anwar.

The CWC, the party's highest decision-making body, was chaired by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and attended by Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, among others. The the party's Lok Sabha polls showing was hailed but it was also decided that separate committees would be set up in states where the performance was below expectations.

Two resolutions were unanimously passed by the CWC, including one requesting Rahul Gandhi to assume the position of the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Asked if had agreed to take on the position, Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said Gandhi took note of the sentiments of the CWC members and told them that he would take a decision on it "very soon".

In the other resolution, the CWC congratulated the people for voting so powerfully to preserve democracy, protect the Constitution and enhance social and economic justice.

"They have decisively rejected both the substance and style of governance over the past decade. The verdict of the people is not just a political loss but a personal and moral defeat for the Prime Minister who sought the mandate in his name and ran a campaign anchored in lies, hate, prejudice, divisiveness and extreme bigotry," the resolution said.