New Delhi, Mar 20 (TNN): 'Inspired' by Rahul Gandhi’s speech at the plenary session of the Congress earlier this week, where he called for the old guard in the party to make way for the young generation, the president of the Goa Congress Shantaram Naik, who would turn 72 on April 12 this year, today submitted his resignation to Rahul.

“Inspired by Congress president Rahul Gandhi's speech at the plenary session where he said that the younger generation should come forward to take leadership, I have resigned from the post of Goa Congress president,” Naik said.

Last week, during the plenary session of the Congress party, Rahul had hinted that veteran members of the party may have to make way for the younger generation.

In a veiled reference, the party president said that party could only be changed by demolishing “the wall” between workers and leaders — calling it his “first job” at the top.

Although he “sugarcoated” the messages by saying he would “bring down the wall, not by anger but with love, and by showing respect to veterans”, the intent to phase out the old guard could not have escaped the veterans seated in the front rows.

The Gandhi scion said “the wall” manifested itself in organisational malaises like election nominations to “aspirants who parachute from above” and in denial of tickets to those who lacked financial muscle.

Seventy-one-year-old Naik was appointed as the head of Goa Congress on July 7, 2017.