CWC will meet after Parliament session, says Congress leader Randeep Surjewala

The Congress Working Committee will meet after the current session of Parliament, the party said on Thursday, as speculation deepens about who will take Rahul Gandhi's place as the party president.

Rahul Gandhi is very much a part of the working committee and would attend its next meeting, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

"The CWC will meet after the current session of Parliament, but a date for the same has not been finalised yet," he said.

Surjewala said as and when a date is finalised for the meeting of the CWC, it will be made public. The CWC is the highest decision-making body of the Congress.

The current session of Parliament is likely to end on August 7.

Surjewala was speaking to reporters after a meeting of Congress general secretaries and leaders in-charge of various states.

Congress leader P L Punia also said that during the meeting of party leaders, AICC general secretary organisation K C Venugopal proposed that a meeting of the CWC could be held after the Parliament session at the convenience of Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi resigned as party president after taking full moral responsibility of the Lok Sabha poll debacle at a meeting of CWC on May 28.

However, the CWC rejected his resignation and authorised him to restructure the party at all levels. Gandhi has made it clear he will not continue as president and neither will any member of the Rahul Gandhi family be the next president.

A host of leaders holding party positions, a majority of them in the middle-level, have since resigned to enable restructuring of the party ever since Rahul Gandhi resigned.

Top Congress leaders have been pondering over who could succeed Rahul Gandhi and several rounds of meetings have taken place, but a decision on his successor has not been taken yet.

Many names have been doing the rounds as possible choice for Congress president, with a debate generated within by some party leaders to instal a young leader to lead the party.

At Thursday's meeting, which was to be held on Wednesday evening, party leaders discussed preparations for the 75th birth anniversary celebrations of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi later this month.

The Congress plans to hold a big political event to commemorate the event