Congress will 'cease to exist' without Gandhi family: Shastri

Senior Congress leader and former PM Lal Bahadur Shastri's son Anil Kumar Shastri on Monday said that Priyanka Gandhi should become the party chief, adding that it would "cease to exist" if a non-Gandhi took over the party reins.

Shastri echoed the view that Priyanka Gandhi was following the legacy of former Prime Minister and her grandmother Indira Gandhi.

"There's no question of a non-Gandhi taking over as Congress president at this stage. The party will cease to exist. Priyanka Gandhi should be elected to lead the party. She is meeting several Congressmen and getting familiar with ground realities. Indira ji did the same," Shastri tweeted amid political grapevine that her brother Rahul Gandhi could again become the Congress chief.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Sunday had voiced his opinion on party matters. "I believe a revived @INCIndia is indispensable to provide a national alternative to the divisive policies of the BJP. This is why the current perception of drift must be ended," Tharoor had tweeted.

There has been a longstanding demand in the Congress to bring Priyanka to the front within the party. Ahead of the 2019 general elections, she was appointed the party's general secretary and party incharge for eastern Uttar Pradesh.

After the party's dismal performance, Rahul Gandhi resigned from the party chief's post and Sonia Gandhi became the interim president after the position remained vacant for many months. Party sources now say that Rahul Gandhi is likely to return as Congress president in April -IANS