Congress' Gandhi dynasty to end, finally

In a landmark change to the party's top leadership, India's main opposition Congress will vote to elect a non-Gandhi president today.

This is the first time in over 24 years that the party sees such a crucial reshuffle paving the way for 80-year-old Mallikarjun Kharge, considered close to interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and a relatively young Shashi Tharoor, a former UN diplomat, to become its chief.

A total of 9,000 Congress delegates, representing all Indian states and Union territories, are eligible to exercise their franchise in the poll.

While Kharge is a staunch Gandhi family loyalist with 50 years of political experience, 66-year-old Tharoor is an articulate leader who joined the grand old party in 2009 after nearly a 30-year stint in the UN.

A PhD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tharoor served as India's junior Foreign Minister when the Congress was in power from 2004-2014.

The results of the Congress presidential poll will be published on Wednesday.