A day after Rahul Gandhi made public his decison to quit as the Congress President, AICC General Secretary, Harish Rawat on Thursday tendered his resignation from his post, taking the responsibility of party’s defeat in 2019 elections.

It is the first resignation by any General Secretary after Gandhi’s resignation.

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Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday went public with a formal assertion that he has resigned as the Congress president, taking responsibility for the party’s decimation in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

“As president of the Congress party, I am responsible for the loss of the 2019 election. Accountability is critical for the future growth of our party. It is for this reason that I have resigned as Congress president,” Gandhi said in a four-page open letter posted on his social media accounts.

Earlier on Wednesday, Gandhi told reporters that he was no longer Congress chief and that the CWC should meet immediately to decide on the selection of his successor. Hours later, he made it public through his open letter.

“It is an honour for me to serve the Congress party, whose values and ideals have served as the lifeblood of our beautiful nation. I owe the country and my organisation a debt of tremendous gratitude and love,” he stated in his letter.

Rahul Gandhi has been adamant to resign from the post of Congress President since the party faced a drubbing in the recently held Lok Sabha elections in which Congress could win only 52 seats, only 8 more than its 2014 tally.

Gandhi himself was defeated by BJP’s Smriti Irani in family stronghold Amethi.

Over 140 party bearers had resigned from their post in support of the party President Rahul Gandhi’s offer to step down from the post following the dismal performance of the party in the Lok Sabha elections.

The party leaders from different states and holding several posts also gave three days to senior leaders to submit their resignation to give a free hand to Gandhi to restructure the party.

The Congress on Friday dissolved all the 280 block committees in the national capital with immediate effect.

On Monday, the Congress dissolved all district committees of its Uttar Pradesh unit and formed a three-member disciplinary committee to look into acts of gross indiscipline and anti-party activities during the Lok Sabha elections.

On June 19, the party dissolved the Karnataka Congress Committee sparing the state unit chief and the state in-charge.