AICC session on May 25
Tribune News Service and agencies

NEW DELHI, May 21 — After expelling the three rebels, the Congress tonight convened a special session of the AICC here on May 25 as part of efforts to persuade Sonia Gandhi withdraw her resignation as party president.

The special session is also likely to ratify the expulsion of the rebel leaders, Sharad Pawar, P.A. Sangma and Tariq Anwar, who had questioned the credentials of Mrs Gandhi to occupy the post of Prime Minister, party sources said.

The party spokesman Ajit Jogi told reporters that all former Congress members of the dissolved 12th Lok Sabha have also been invited to the session.

The decision to convene the AICC session was taken this evening at a meeting of the party working committee presided over by senior leader Pranab Mukherjee.

Mrs Gandhi, who put in her papers on Monday, today preferred to cancel all engagements barring a visit to Veer Bhumi to pay homage to Rajiv Gandhi on his eighth death anniversary and a blood donation camp organised by the Youth Congress.

Apart from a visit to a blood donation camp organised in memory of Rajiv Gandhi, the other public appearances were limited to a stroll down Akbar Road this morning to persuade those on ‘hunger-strike’ to end it and a visit to the residence of former party chief, Mr Sitaram Kesri to inquire about his welfare. Mr Kesri was heckled by party workers last night.

Several Congress workers have been on fast and dharna outside the AICC office, near her 10, Janpath residence demanding that she withdraws her resignation.

However, she did not indicate as to what would be her decision even as several groups including a delegation of minorities from Haryana led by the PCC chief, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, asked her to reconsider it.

The Congress Working Committee is (CWC) meeting again tonight to decide on calling an emergency session of the All India Congress Committee, next week.

An informal meeting of the members of the CWC took place at the residence of Mr Madhavrao Scindia. The possibility is that the AICC session would be called on May 25.

It may be recalled that several senior party leaders and the party Secretaries had suggested to convene a session of the AICC to express faith in the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi as the party President, a move that will show that the rank and file were firmly with her.

There is intense pressure in the party to avoid electing an ‘interim leader’. At one stage last evening a word spread around that the CWC was contemplating doing so, and immediately the party workers became restive. Senior leaders had to rush out to quash the reports.

At the daily briefing, the party spokesman Mr Ajit Jogi said that Mrs Sonia Gandhi continued to be the party president and that the CWC had not accepted her resignation. "There is no question of electing an interim leader’’, he said.

Mr Jogi maintained that the Congress had been strengthened after the expulsion of the three leaders, Mr Sharad Pawar, Mr Purno Sangma and Mr Tariq Anwar.

He charged that there was a nexus between the three expelled leaders and the BJP. Mr Jogi said the fact the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, also commented on their expulsion only "reveals the nexus".

"Mr Vajpayee’s criticism of CWC decision as unconstitutional is unwarranted and uncalled for. This is a clear interference in the internal affairs of the Congress. It would be better if he sets his own house in order with dissidence growing in UP, Haryana and Gujarat,’’ Mr Jogi said.