‘Will make the Congress a grand old and young party’

NEW DELHI: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday reiterated his resolve to carry along both the young and the old in his is quest to make the party “a powerful instrument of change.”

In his first speech as the Congress president, Rahul sought to reassure the anxious old guard that seniors will play an important role in strengthening the party.

“We are going to make Congress, grand old and young party,” he said.

Nervousness among the veterans over the possible generational shift and proposed reforms in the organisational structure has been getting increasingly palpable ever since Rahul was elevated to the rank of the party’s vice-president in January 2013.

The immediate task for Rahul after the results of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh assembly elections on Monday would be to carry out an elaborate organisational reshuffle and reconstitute the powerful Congress Working Committee (CWC).

Outgoing Congress chief Sonia Gandhi is no longer a member of the CWC according to the party’s official website.

It remains to be seen what role her political secretary Ahmed Patel will play in the new dispensation.

At the same time, some senior functionaries such as Digvijaya Singh, Ambika Soni and BK Hariprasad had requested party leadership to relieve them of all the responsibilities.

Congress sources said Rahul will not shy away from fixing responsibilities.

The proverbial Damocles sword is also hanging on poor performers such as Mohan Prakash, CP Joshi and Mukul Wasnik.

In the run-up to his elevation, Rahul, who has been virtually running the party over the past two years with Sonia taking a back seat, carried out a piecemeal reshuffle, in which he relied on a mix of the young and experienced and doled out an equal share of responsibility to seniors and young leaders.