Congress announces major organisational reforms
On below-50 aged members and enforcing ‘one person, one post’, ‘one family, one ticket’ rules
The Congress on Sunday announced wide-ranging organisational reforms to make the party battle-ready for the next round of assembly and Lok Sabha polls, stressing on wider representation to those under 50 years of age and enforcing ‘one person, one post’ and ‘one family, one ticket’ rules with riders.
In its Udaipur Declaration adopted after deliberations at the NAV Sankalp CHINTAN SHIVIR (introspection camp), the Congress also decided to set up three new departments — public insight, election management and national training. The party announced enforcing the ‘one family, one ticket’ rule with exception to be made only when another family member has been working in the party for at least five years. The party also decided that no person should hold one party position for more than five years to give opportunity to new people.
The party has also decided to provide 50 per cent representation to those below 50 years of age at all levels of organisation. The Congress president will set up an advisory group from among Congress Working Committee (CWC) members to deliberate on political challenges, the party announced.
In her concluding address, Congress president Sonia Gandhi announced that a task force will be set up to initiate the organisational reforms. She said the Congress will launch a ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ from Kanyakumari to Kashmir beginning on Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti October 2.
The party will also launch the second phase of its ‘Jan Jagran Yatra’ at the district level from June 15, she announced.
The Congress held the threeday conclave in Udaipur in the backdrop of a string of electoral defeats and dissent in the party for the past many years.
Acknowledging that the Congress’ connection with people has been “broken”, Rahul Gandhi announced on Sunday that the party will undertake a yatra in October to re-establish and strengthen it.
Addressing the closing session of the party’s three-day ‘Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir’ in Udaipur, Gandhi said: “We have to accept that the Congress’ connection with the people has been broken.”
“Our fight is for ideology. We have to go to the people and sit
Congress leader
with them, the connection the party had with people has to be re-established,” he said.
“We have decided that the Congress party in October will got to
people and take out a yatra and strengthen the relation...with people. This cannot happen with short-cuts,” he said.
Hailing the frank discussions at the Shivir, Gandhi said which other political party would allow this kind of a discussion where the party leadership is bluntly told what the Congress party feels.
“Certainly, the BJP, and RSS would never allow such a thing,” he said.
The Congress has always provided a platform where people can hold deliberations without any fear or worry, he said.
Asserting that India is a Union of States, Gandhi said: “It is critical for the union of the country that the states and the people are allowed to have a conversation. The only alternative to a conversation between the people of India is violence between people of India,” he said.
He alleged a “systematic destruction” of various institutions was taking place.
“The day this country’s institutions stop working, the day this country stops having a conversation with itself, we will be in serious trouble,” he said.
He said there is fear that the country’s demographic dividend will turn into a demographic disaster and alleged that the BJP government was responsible for it. — pti
We have to accept that the Congress’ connection with the people has been broken. We have to revive our connection with people. This cannot happen with short-cuts”
Rahul Gandhi,