Ghulam Nabi Azad met Sonia Gandhi with a “final proposal”; Rahul and Priyanka also attended the meet

*Paromita Das

Subsequently, the debacle of Congress’s polls in five states, as well as a row and accountability over leadership; Ghulam Nabi Azad, a senior Congress leader and member of the dissident “G-23” group of leaders, has met party chief Sonia Gandhi at 10 Janpath on Thursday, March 17.

According to sources, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was also present at the meeting.

Azad’s meeting with the Gandhis is significant because G-23 leaders are dissatisfied with the Congress leadership’s working style.

Azad has presented the G-23 members’ final proposal to the party’s high command. The fate of the G23 will be decided after Azad’s meeting with Sonia Gandhi.

On March 16, Azad hosted a number of G-23 leaders at his home. Kapil Sibal, Shashi Tharoor, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari, Mani Shankar Aiyar, PJ Kurien, Parneet Kaur, Sandeep Dikshit, and Raj Babbar were among those seen arriving at his residence.

According to sources, this meeting was supposed to take place at the home of Kapil Sibal, who had invited the leaders of G-23 and other parties to his home for dinner. But the location was changed to Azad’s after Sibal’s recent “attack” on the Gandhis.

Sibal stated in an interview with a newspaper after the Congress’ rout in five assembly elections that it was time for a leadership change in the party and for someone other than the Gandhis to lead the Congress.

According to sources, the Congress leadership is extremely dissatisfied with both Kapil Sibal and Anand Sharma. According to sources, a middle path can only be found after Azad and Sonia Gandhi meet.