India's senior Congress members resign

Senior Congress members have resigned from their posts and are meeting the party's President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on Wednesday to persuade her to rethink her decision not to accept prime ministership.

All members of India's Congress Working Committee and office-bearers of All India Congress Committee (AICC) resigned Tuesday night in protest against Sonia Gandhi's decision, said Congress General Secretary Mmbika Soni at a press conference Wednesday morning.

Soni said a delegation of senior leaders including Manmohan Singh, Pranab Mukherjee and Arjun Singh would be meeting Gandhi at1:15 p.m. to put as much pressure as possible to make her withdraw her decision.

"We want to tell her that her decision was not acceptable and she should take it back," Soni told reporters.

It was "the verdict of the people of India and Congress workers across the country that Sonia Gandhi should be India's prime minister," Soni said.

Asked about meetings with allies and friendly parties, she said that they have all been pressuring and persuading Gandhi to change her mind and accept the top job.

Sonia Gandhi announced late Tuesday that she had decided to listen to her "inner voice" and "humbly decline the post of prime ministership."