Congress working president Rahul Gandhi is to file his nomination papers today to contest for the post of party president as Congress is conducting inner-party elections to replace its incumbent president and Rahul’s mother Sonia Gandhi as president.

The polling is to take place, if the need arises, on 16th December and today is the last date for filing of nominations by party cadres.  Nominations would be scrutinized tomorrow and a final list of candidates in the fray would be revealed immediately.

So far, no other candidate has filed his nomination to contest as party president and this is expected to make Rahul Gandhi’s election as party president a unanimous one.  Rahul’s mother and party president Sonia Gandhi and Punjab chief-minister and Congress leader Amarinder Singh signed the nomination papers seconding his name and nominating him to contest the polls.

Amarinder opined that he had known Rahul when he was a young boy and said his election as party president would inject ‘fresh blood’ into the party.  “Rahul’s recent activities have clearly indicated his political maturity and he has been drawing huge crowds in Gujarat where Assembly polls are to be held.  I felt it as an honour to be seconding his name as the next president of the party,” Singh said.