Rahul Gandhi took over as Congress chief in 2017 (File)

Rahul Gandhi has removed his designation "President, Indian National Congress" from his Twitter profile after he shared an open letter in which he listed reasons for his resignation as the party chief. Mr Gandhi's account now describes him as a parliamentarian and the "Member of the Indian National Congress".

"This is the official account of Rahul Gandhi | Member of the Indian National Congress| Member of Parliament," his Twitter bio reads after the update.

Mr Gandhi had taken over as Congress chief from his mother Sonia Gandhi in 2017. After his party won only 52 of 543 parliamentary seats in the May election, he resigned as party president at a Congress Working Committee meeting.

In the weeks since Rahul Gandhi quit, many Congress leaders have tried to convince him to change his decision. The Congress leader, however, made a public announcement of his resignation, signalling he would not budge from his position.

Mr Gandhi wrote in the open letter that it would be "unjust" if held others accountable for the crushing loss of his party in Lok Sabha elections, but "ignore my own responsibility".

"Rebuilding the party requires hard decisions and numerous people have to be made accountable for the failure of 2019. It would be unjust to hold others accountable but ignore my own responsibility as president of the party," the letter read.

Mr Gandhi also explained why he would not appoint his successor.

"Ours is a party with a profound history and heritage, one of struggle and dignity that I deeply respect. It is woven into the fabric of India and I trust the party will make the best decision regarding who can lead us with courage, love and fidelity," the letter read further.

After Rahul Gandhi, the Congress may choose between Sushil Kumar Shinde and Mallikarjun Kharge as new party president.