Sonia Gandhi has asked to be relieved as Congress... ... CWC Meeting Live Updates: Sonia Gandhi to continue as party's interim president

Sonia Gandhi has asked to be relieved as Congress president and has asked the party to start looking for a replacement. Her decision was read out at the start of a crucial meeting of the Congress Working Committee taking place a day after an explosive letter written by 26 top leaders calling for "a full-time, visible leadership" emerged. Soon after Congress leader KC Venugopal read out Sonia Gandhi's reaction, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh requested her to continue. The dissidents' letter, demanding "collective decision-making", calls into question the leadership of the Gandhis, who have led the Congress for much of its 134-year history. As Rahul Gandhi started addressing the Congress meeting, AK Antony asked him to take over as chief.