Even as the Congress claimed that no doubts were raised over the election procedure for choosing the party president, sources have said that senior leader Anand Sharma did raise some questions. During the Congress Working Committee meeting on Sunday, Sharma, one of the G-23 leaders, raised the issue of electoral rolls and the process of election at the lower level, following which Sonia Gandhi asked Madhusudan Mistry to address the issue, sources said.
The party, however, dismissed this and said no doubts were raised. Congress General Secretary, Communication, Jairam Ramesh said in a tweet: "There is some dubious "source-based" plantation going on that questions were raised in the CWC meeting today on the Congress President's election process & schedule. This is to make absolutely clear that NOBODY raised any question or any doubt." Mistry said that the list of delegates will be available to the candidates who file nominations.
The Congress has announced that the election for its new president will be held on October 17 after a meeting of its Working Committee -- the party's highest decision-making authority -- on Sunday approved the poll schedule. The date of issuance of notification is September 22, nominations can be filed between 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. from September 24 to 30 while scrutiny will be done on October 1. The last date of withdrawal is October 8 and the date of polling is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 17 at all PCC headquarters. Counting will be held on October 19.
Senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who recently quit the Congress, had said that the election process is a sham. He had hit out at Rahul Gandhi -- whom many are pitching for to take the party leadership again -- for the party's performance in the last eight years.
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