Jaipur: The Rajasthan unit of Congress on Saturday unanimously passed a resolution calling for the appointment of Rahul Gandhi as the party president.
The resolution to make Rahul Gandhi the Congress chief was proposed by Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot - who was seen as a strong contender for the post - at the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) meeting in Jaipur.
Rajasthan has become the first state to pass such resolution in a bid to persuade Rahul Gandhi to take over the reins of the party again.
The meeting comes ahead of the Congress presidential election, for which the nomination process will start on September 24.
After the meeting, Rajasthan minister Pratap Singh Khachariya said that a resolution was also passed authorising the incoming party chief to appoint the Rajasthan Congress president and nominate the members of All India Congress Committee (AICC) from the state.
"Congress is one and the resolution in favour of Rahul Gandhi was moved by the Chief Minister himself. People raised hands and left it to the Congress President to appoint the new state chief and AICC members from the state," he said.
Sources say former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot did not attend the meeting as he was in Delhi.
Playing down reports about him being the frontrunner for the post, Mr Gehlot last month had said that the party members across the country would be disappointed if Rahul Gandhi does not become the party chief.
"If he becomes president, the party will remain united," Mr Gehlot had said.
The Congress party's leadership crisis has been simmering for years and has only worsened with its back-to-back election defeats and string of exits by high-profile leaders.
Several Congress leaders have said that they want Rahul Gandhi to return as the party chief. Party insiders, however, maintain that Mr Gandhi is not ready to accept the role.
Mr Gandhi had resigned from the post of Congress president after the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019, taking moral responsibility for the defeat.
He has been turning down the appeals by his party members since then.
The notification for the Congress president's election will be out on September 22 and the process for filing nominations will be held from September 24 to 30.
The last date for withdrawal of nominations is October 8 and the election, if required, will be held on October 17. The results will be out on October 19.