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INDIA-RAHUL-RESIGNATION
Rahul formally quits as Congress president
NEW DELHI, July 3, 2019 (BSS/PTI) – Asserting that he is no longer the
Congress president, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said in a letter that it had
been an honour to serve the party whose values and ideals have served as the
“lifeblood of this beautiful nation”.
As president of the Congress, he said he is responsible for the loss of the
2019 Lok Sabha election.
“Accountability is critical for the future growth of our party. It is for
this reason that I have resigned as Congress president,” he said in an open
letter shared on Twitter.
Gandhi, who suggested that the Congress Working Committee be entrusted with
the task of finding a new party president and it would not be correct for him
to select his successor, also said he owes the country and his organisation a
debt of tremendous gratitude and love. He said he has at times felt “alone”
in his fight against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the RSS but is proud of
it.
“Rebuilding the party requires hard decisions and numerous people will
have to be made accountable for the failure of 2019. It would be unjust to
hold others accountable but ignore my own responsibility as President of the
party,” he said.
One must shed power to defeat opponents, Gandhi, who has been firm on his
decision to quit as party president, said.
“We will not defeat our opponents without sacrificing our desire for
power,” he said.
“The Congress must radically transform itself, it is the party’s duty to
defend people’s voices that BJP is crushing.
“I was born a Congressman, this party has always been with me and is my
life’s blood and forever that way it shall remain,” he said in his letter.
Many of his colleagues suggested he should nominate the next Congress
president,
“While it is important for someone new to lead our party, it would not be
correct for me to select that person,” he noted.
The scion of the Gandhi family who led the party from December 2017 said
his fight has never been a single battle for political power.
BSS/PTI/SSS/1959 hrs