It is an honour for me to serve the Congress Party, whose values and ideals have served as the lifeblood of our bea… https://t.co/og6nsgwezg — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) 1562148426000

@RahulGandhi We are proud to have @RahulGandhi ji as our leader! Congress President or not, he would always be the… https://t.co/qGOG4Zg0Ey — Ajay Maken (@ajaymaken) 1562153455000

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi 's decision to formally step down as Congress president triggered mixed reactions on Tuesday, with the BJP dismissing the move as "brand new drama" of the party and the Congress asserting that the Gandhi scion will remain the "voice of the party workers".More than a month after declaring his intention to quit, Rahul today formally resigned as Congress president, saying he is responsible for the loss in the Lok Sabha election and that accountability is critical for the party's future growth.Senior BJP leaders were quick to take a dig at the Congress following Rahul's announcement, with Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi calling it "yet another drama of the grand old party".Union minister Prakash Javadekar said the timetable for organisation election and membership drive is already in place in the BJP, referring to a long spell of continuing uncertainty in the Congress after Gandhi first offered to resign following his party's drubbing in the recent Lok Sabha elections.Asked for her reaction, Union minister Smriti Irani, who had defeated Gandhi in Amethi in the Lok Sabha polls, merely said, "Jai Shri Ram".BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli described the Congress as a family-run party unlike the BJP which is, he said, runs democratically.BJP ally Shiv Sena expressed that Rahul's resignation will pave the way for restructuring of the main opposition party and herald a new era in the 133-year-old organisation.Shiv Sena spokesman and MP Sanjay Raut said with the resignation, the Congress has become "Gandhi family-free" under the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."The Modi storm has uprooted Rahul Gandhi. It is during Modi's tenure that the Congress has become 'Gandhi family-mukt'," he said.Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah lauded Rahul for sticking to his earlier decision and said that he is a young leader who can become party president again in the future."Mubarak Ho, that he stood by his decision. He is young and he can become president again in future. He had always wanted someone else in that position, I cannot say that his resignation was due to Congress's defeat in the recent elections. I think he will now work towards building the party," Abdullah told news agency ANI.Meanwhile, top Congress members asserted that Rahul will continue to be their leader and would always remain the "voice of the party's workers"."It is very sad to see him quit as he put in enormous effort and at one point, we felt he caught the pulse and we saw a return of the Congress. Even though he has quit as the Congress president, he continues to be our leader. Reluctantly we have to accept it. If he has announced it, his advice sadly has to be followed. We will put our heads together and do our best," former Union minister and senior party leader Salman Khurshid said.Former Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken said even after his resignation, Gandhi would remain the voice of the party's workers."We are proud to have @RahulGandhi ji as our leader! Congress President or not, he would always be the voice of millions of Congress workers and those who believe in its ideology! Rahul ji has taken a right decision-and we support him," he said in a tweet."We request him to take back his resignation because we know his struggle," deputy chief minister of Rajasthan Sachin Pilot said.