Rahul Gandhi to decide on CM name in Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh

According to Congress tradition, the final choice of the respective Ministers will be that of the party president Rahul Gandhi.

The suspense over who will be the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh was prolonged with the Congress legislators in the three states going through the ritual of authorising party president to take the final call.

“There was no need to give an impression that the Congress legislature party leader’s name will be announced this (Wednesday) evening itself. Emotional scenes by supporters could have been avoided. The Jaipur team should have done what their counterparts in Bhopal did — just collect the views of party MLAs and revert to Rahul Gandhi without giving an impression of announcement on Wednesday evening,” said a Congress functionary in Delhi Wednesday morning.

MP, Rajasthan CM race: Frontrunners arrive in Delhi to meet Rahul Gandhi https://t.co/F5h72kndOB pic.twitter.com/sRC4AcxEze

— Financial Express (@FinancialXpress) December 13, 2018

During closed-door interactions with observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC), the majority of Congress MLAs in MP and Rajasthan favoured Kamal Nath and Ashok Gehlot, respectively. In both the states, younger leaders Sachin Pilot and Jyotiraditya Scindia are also claimants for the CM’s chair.

A part of the political party is rooting for Kamal Nath and Gehlot, citing their experience, which would be crucial in stabilising the fragile new governments in both the states. But supporters of Pilot and Scindia are seeking a generational shift in leadership, saying it would send a positive signal to the youth.

Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has described her party’s return to power in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, as a “Congress victory over the BJP’s negative politics.”