Mallikarjun Kharge takes charge as Congress president

Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday took charge as the Congress' first non-Gandhi president in 24 years, citing Rahul Gandhi's slogan ‘daro mat’ to energise workers and declaring that the party will demolish the BJP government's “system of lies, treachery and hatred”. Soon after he took over as the new Congress president, all members of the Working Committee, general secretaries and in-charges tendered their resignations to enable the new chief to install his team.

There has been a tradition of all office bearers of the Congress resigning soon after the election of the new president. "All the Congress Working Committee (CWC) members, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretaries and in-charges have tendered their resignation to Congress president," said AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal.

According to the Congress constitution, the election of Kharge will be ratified at the plenary session of the party which is likely to be held in March-April next year. The new CWC, the top decision-making body of the Congress, will be reconstituted by Kharge soon after the plenary session. According to the party Constitution, 11 members of the CWC will be nominated and 12 will be elected. Besides the leader of the party in Parliament and the Congress president will also be the members of the working committee. However, till the time the election of Kharge is ratified, a new steering committee will be formed by the new party chief which will function as the CWC till the plenary session.

Kharge, 80, who defeated Shashi Tharoor to win the presidential election, takes over at a time when the party is struggling to find relevance. With the Congress at a historic electoral low — it is in power in just two states on its own — his immediate task will be to lead the party to power in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, where it will contend with the BJP and AAP.