"Ask Kharge ji...: Rahul Gandhi announces new party chief ahead of results

Even before the results of the Congress presidential elections were officially announced, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said Mallikarjun Kharge will decide his role in the party.

"I can't comment on Congress President's role, that's for Mr Kharge (party's Presidential candidate) to comment on. The President will decide what my role is...and where I will be deployed ask Kharge ji, Sonia ji," said Congress MP amid the Andhra Pradesh leg of Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Within an hour of his statement, the results were announced and Mallikarjun Kharge was officially declared the winner of the Congress presidential elections with 7897 votes, Shashi Tharoor got about 1000 votes.

It was for the first time in 24 years that the Congress party will be led by a chief who does not belong to the Nehru-Gandhi family.

Congress sources also said the elected president will take charge after Diwali in the presence of senior leaders in a programme at the Congress headquarters.

However, a few minutes later Presidential candidate Shashi Tharoor approached the election authority alleging that there were certain irregularities on voting day in some States.

Ahead of the counting of votes for the Congress presidential election, the Shashi Tharoor camp has approached the party's election authority alleging that it suspected "extremely serious irregularities" in Uttar Pradesh on the day of the polling and demanded that all votes from the state be deemed invalid.

Rahul Gandhi further targeted BJP and other regional parties for not conducting presidential elections.

"We are the only political party in the country that holds selections, we are also the political party that has an election commission inside it. Everyone asks questions about polls in Congress. I'm proud that Congress has had open and transparent polls. Why is nobody interested in elections in other parties, including the BJP and other regional parties?" said the Congress leader.

He further said that Andhra Pradesh should have one capital, and that should be Amaravati.

"As far as the bifurcation is concerned, the main thing from my perspective and from Congress's perspective when this bifurcation took place certain commitments were made by the Indian union to the people of Andhra Pradesh. We believe those have fundamental commitments and the commitments made by the people of Andhra Pradesh and we think those commitments should be fulfilled. That is our single most observation that those commitments that were made include special status should be fulfilled. We think that Andhra Pradesh should have one capital, and that should be Amaravati," he added.

The 3500 kilometres yatra will be a historic event for the Congress and the entire country. It is the longest march on foot by any Indian politician in the history of India, the Congress said earlier in a statement.

Notably, Mahatma Gandhi's Dandi march was the longest march by foot (389 kilometres in 24 days) between Sabarmati ashram to Dandi (Navasari) in Gujarat state.

According to Congress, the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' is being held to combat the divisive politics of the BJP-led Centre and awaken the country's people to the dangers of economic inequalities and social polar and political centralisation.

Notably, all the party MPs, leaders and workers along with Rahul Gandhi are staying in containers. Sleeping beds, toilets and ACs are also installed in some of the containers. The arrangements have been made keeping in view the intense heat and humidity with the change of places.

The Congress suffered a debacle in the assembly polls held earlier this year and the Yatra is seen as an attempt to rally the party rank and file for the upcoming electoral battles.

( With inputs from ANI )

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