Rahul Gandhi is expected to file nomination for the election to the Congress president's post on December 4, party sources said here.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh and ex-Union minister A K Antony are likely to propose his candidature.
The notification for the election will be issued on Friday. Nominations can be filed till December 4. Following scrutiny of nominations on December 5, the list of valid candidatures will be put out on the same day at 3:30 pm.
The last date of withdrawal of nomination for the election is December 11 and polling will take place on December 16 in case more than one candidate is in the race. Counting of votes and declaration of results will take
However, the sources said that no other contender is expected to challenge Gandhi.
"The Congress vice president is expected to file the nomination on the morning of December 4," a source said. Meanwhile, forms were distributed today to state returning officials (PROs) appointed by the party for the organisational polls.
The forms will carry names of Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) delegates, who in turn will nominate the contender for the top post. The number of delegates to be nominated varies from state to state.
For example, a small state may have 10 delegates. Big states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra or Bihar may have 30-40 delegates.
"It is a foregone conclusion that each delegate will back Gandhi's nomination," another source said.