New Delhi: Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken is said to have resigned from his post citing health problems, but the Congress leadership is yet to acknowledge it publicly because a decision on his replacement has not been taken.

Maken, who is receiving backbone treatment outside India, couldn't be contacted. P.C. Chacko, the AICC in-charge of Delhi, denied reports of his resignation, saying: "Maken is temporarily out of action as he has gone abroad for treatment."

Sources, however, confirmed that he resigned on September 13, telling Congress chief Rahul Gandhi that his movements had been severely impeded because of back pain.

Speculation is rife about a possible electoral understanding with the Aam Aadmi Party after Maken's exit. He was strongly opposed to the AAP and some observers suspect he could have stepped aside in the face of pressure for such a tie-up.

Senior Delhi leaders have begun lobbying to replace him as state president, the sources claimed. Chacko, too, has been discussing this with senior leaders, including former chief minister Sheila Dikshit, according to the sources.

While one section is said to have proposed the name of former Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely, there has been violent opposition to his candidature as he had left the party to join the BJP after the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Lovely has returned to the Congress, but loyalists now see him with suspicion and argue that such behaviour cannot be rewarded.

The names of Raj Kumar Chauhan, Devender Yadav, Naseeb Singh and Rajesh Lilothia are also said to be doing the rounds as possible replacements.