Priyanka Gandhi As Congress Chief Will Be A "Unifying Force": Karan Singh

Amid growing voices calling for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to lead the Congress following Rahul Gandhi's resignation, veteran leader Karan Singh has said she will be a "unifying force" and will enthuse cadres if she takes on the mantle of party president.

"She is a very intelligent young lady. She did well on the Sonbhadra issue when she went there (to meet victims of the massacre). She speaks well, she has got a good personality, carries herself well. So yes, if she agrees (to be Congress president), then why not," he said. The former Union minister said Priyanka Gandhi will certainly be able to enthuse the people in the party and will be an asset as Congress chief.

He also said the Congress has "definitely been harmed" due to the indecision over the leadership issue and cautioned that remaining "headless" can be "seriously detrimental" to the party going forward.

Mr Singh said he agreed with Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor's views aired recently that a young leader will be more suitable as a replacement of Rahul Gandhi.

"Baffled" over the "state of indecision" in the party, Mr Singh on Saturday said there are some very senior people in the Congress Working Committee (CWC) and they should have come together earlier and done something about the situation arising out of Rahul Gandhi's resignation.

The Congress today announced that the CWC will meet on August 10. The party had said earlier that the CWC will meet after the Parliament session ends next Wednesday.

He said Rahul Gandhi's letter on July 3 made it very clear that he had already resigned. "If under the circumstances he made a decision that he wanted to resign, it is his decision, and we must honour that decision," Mr Singh said.

"We wasted one month pleading with him to take back his resignation which I don't think was necessary because he is not a whimsical person that he will today make a decision and tomorrow take it back," he said.

He also said the party is losing people to the BJP with many using the leadership issue as an excuse to switch over.

Rahul Gandhi announced his resignation as Congress president on May 25 following the Lok Sabha polls debacle. However, the CWC has not accepted the resignation yet.