NEW DELHI: A day after a stormy Congress Working Committee meeting where party president Rahul Gandhi offered to resign and the CWC unanimously rejected his call to quit, there was no clear communication from the Congress on where things stood on Sunday.

Several Congress leaders and workers took to social media to extend support to the Congress chief with a hashtag ‘IStandWithRahulGandhi’, lauding him for his efforts leading up the Lok Sabha elections and insisting that electoral loss should not be seen as the end of the road.

“‘You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.’ We are with you in this battle,” All India Mahila Congress said on Twitter.

Party sources, however, said Rahul, who was upset with several party seniors for putting personal interests over the party even though he accepted full responsibility for Congress’s poor showing in the Lok Sabha elections, refused to meet leaders on Sunday and remained unavailable on phone to party seniors who tried to reach him, seeming determined to stand by his decision to resign.

Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot , who was among those whom Rahul criticised, and who had left New Delhi for Jaipur on Saturday, returned to the capital on Sunday evening, leading to speculation that another post-poll review may be in the offing on Monday.

Rahul’s plain speak against party leaders like P Chidambaram, Gehlot and Kamal Nath had come along with his insistence that it was not necessary that only a member of the Gandhi family should succeed him.

Congress leaders will have an opportunity to regroup on Monday, which marks the 55th death anniversary of former PM Jawaharlal Nehru and for which Congress has organised a remembrance ceremony at Shanti Van.

While Gehlot’s return to the capital is likely to attend the ceremony, with all Congress seniors expected to be in attendance, it is likely that party leaders may persuade Rahul to reconsider his decision.



In Video: CWC unanimously rejects Rahul Gandhi’s resignation offer