There are no magic wands to ensure the party’s accelerated revival except selfless work, discipline and an over-riding sense of unity and cohesion, Congress president Sonia Gandhi told the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Monday.
The CWC met to formalise the agenda of the three-day long Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir in Udaipur from May 13. Making her opening remarks, Ms. Gandhi noted that the brainstorming meet should not be reduced to a ritual and urged her colleagues to repay their debt to the party in full measure.
Key areas
The heads of the six panels that were formed to draft discussion papers pertaining to political issues, economy, social justice, farmers, youth and organisational issues made their presentations.
A separate wing to manage elections, revival of the Parliamentary Board, regular training of workers and a cooling-off period for District and Pradesh Congress Committee chiefs were among the key discussion points. The need for ideological clarity was also discussed at the CWC meet, a source said.
Growing communal polarisation, hate campaigns against minorities, compromising the dignity of parliamentary institutions, misuse of Central agencies to target opponents, and Centre-State relations were among the key political issues that were raised.
Only bullet points on each of the six broad areas were shared by the heads of these subject committees, the source added.
A senior CWC member is said to have pointed out that a separate meet to strategise on how to effectively carry out a Jan Jagaran Abhiyan (people’s movement) should also be held on the lines of the Chintan Shivir.
‘Repay debt to party’
The tone for the meet was set by Ms. Gandhi who stressed the point of discipline and noted that “self-criticism within party forums is needed but it should not be done in a manner that self-confidence and morale is eroded and an atmosphere of gloom and doom becomes all-pervasive”.
“There are no magic wands. It is only with selfless work, discipline and a sense of consistent collective purpose that we will demonstrate our tenacity and resilience,” Ms. Gandhi said.
“The party has been central to the life of each and every one of us. It has expected our total allegiance and has been good to each and every one of us. Now, when we are at a crucial juncture, it is imperative that we step forward and repay our debt to the party in full measure,” she added.
At a press conference later, senior leaders Jairam Ramesh and Randeep Surjewala announced that 422 party members, out of which 50% were under the age of 50 and 21% women, would take part in the Chintan Shivir.
