Rahul to take charge? Amarinder Singh hints at change in Cong top brass

New Delhi: Revealing that Congress President Sonia Gandhi has decided to pave way for the new generation, senior party functionary Captain Amarinder on Wednesday told a news channel that Rahul Gandhi's elevation to party's top position might come sooner than expected.

Revealing that Sonia has expressed her desire 'to hand over the baton to someone else', Amarinder told NDTV, “It's her decision, the party will decide, we should respect her decision.”

Captain Amarinder Singh is leading the party in the upcoming polls in Punjab next year.

Reports revealed that the Congress Working Committee (CWC) is expected to meet this month and take the decision.

With Gandhi being elevated as party's president, AICC reshuffle has also been predicted on the cards.

Younger Congress aspirants are reportedly expected to get key positions in the party, where as the older party functionaries will be asked to step down.

However, difference in opinion in this regard seems to exist within the party.

According to reports, most of the Congress veterans are uncomfortable with what some described as the Rahul's brusque and impatient style of functioning and wish for incumbent president Sonia Gandhi to steer the helm of the party for some more time.

Earlier in May, party leader Jairam Ramesh had said that the Congress expects Rahul to take over as its chief this year.

Ramesh had made the remarks virtually dismissing reports that he would be projected as the chief ministerial candidate in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections in 2017.

"Rahul Gandhi is MP from Amethi and Vice President of Congress. We all expect him to be the president of the Congress in 2016," Ramesh had said at the AICC briefing.

Rahul was made party Vice President in January 2013 at the Jaipur Chintan shivir held over a year ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in which he was the "face" of the party.

Since then Rahul has been more active in the organisation, with his mother and Congress President Sonia Gandhi taking a backseat.

There has been talk since last year, soon after his return from his mysterious 56-day sabbatical, that Rahul would take over as the party chief soon.

Soon after the Assembly poll results in five states were out, the Congress virtually threw a protective ring around Rahul by rejecting suggestions that the party Vice President should accept blame for its debacle in four states.

"Every election has its own issues. We do not see state elections in terms of any individual -- Tarun Gogoi or Oommen Chandy. We will analyse causes where we need to do better... We will discuss this in a cordial atmosphere...We reject this improper suggestion totally," Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said.

Sonia is at the helm of the party since March 1998 and has created a record of sorts by being the longest serving chief of the Congress.

Incidentally, Congress is the oldest political organisation in the country founded way back in 1885.