NEW DELHI: Veteran leader Mallikarjun Kharge took over as the president on Wednesday in the presence of top party leaders including Sonia Gandhi.
The election certificate was handed over to Kharge at the AICC headquarters.
Kharge, 80, the first non-Gandhi to head the party in 24 years, had defeated Congress leader Shashi Tharoor by a huge margin in the recently held presidential election.
Congress leader Shivraj Patil, who was present on the occasion, has said that 'Kharge ji's policies will be in accordance with the policies of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. We have to strengthen democracy and socialism, we have to end the caste system...it may include some new policies also.
Congratulating Mallikarjun Kharge, former Congress President Sonia Gandhi said, "I congratulate the new party president Kharge ji. The most satisfying thing is that those who have been elected president are experienced and down-to-earth leaders. Working as an ordinary worker, he reached this height with his hard work and dedication.
Ahead of his taking over, Kharge visited Rajghat and paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi. He also visited the memorials of former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi and former deputy prime minister Jagjivan Ram, and paid tributes to the leaders.