“The Congress party has had a firm ground in Andhra Pradesh in the past, and the idea of Congress is very much relevant even today in the State,” asserts Manickam Tagore, who has been appointed the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Andhra Pradesh.
Ahead of the elections, the AICC on Saturday announced the names of AlCC general secretary in-charges appointed to different States.
Mr. Tagore is a Congress MP representing the Virudhanagar constituency in Tamil Nadu, and has held several important posts in the party in the past.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Tagore admitted that it may take some time for the party to regain its past glory in Andhra Pradesh. “The party will play the role of the kingmaker first,” he said, referring to the forthcoming elections in the State.
Mr. Tagore said his first task will be to visit the State and meet the party leaders to discuss the situation in view of the impending elections. “There is a space for the Congress party in Andhra Pradesh, which has been occupied by some other party. Congress is an idea, it cannot be confined to a single person,” he said.
Mr. Tagore is said to have played an important role in appointing Revanth Reddy as the president of the Telangana Congress party when he was the in-charge of Telangana.
His statement assumes significance in the wake of the once-mighty party making all-out efforts to wriggle out of the political wilderness in the State. Buoyed by the party’s victory in Karnataka and Telangana, the leaders and cadres of the party in Andhra Pradesh are upbeat, bracing for elections with a hope that it would help them strengthen the party position in the State.
