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Major changes in Congress in the offing |
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After election defeats in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, the Congress is set for major changes in the party organisation. This may coincide with a reshuffle in the Union Cabinet.
The States which may see emergence of new leaders include Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhat¬tisgarh and West Bengal. There are reports that some Union Ministers may be asked to take on organisational responsibili¬ties. Young blood may also be inducted in the Government, with only a little over a year left for the next Lok Sabha polls.
AICC spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said in New Delhi on Jan. 28 that the party would soon effect focussed changes in terms of individuals and strategies for the coming polls.
“We have deeply analysed not only Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh but have taken an all-India view of everything in the light of the ten Assembly elections coming up this year,” he said.
Reacting to BJP president Rajnath Singh’s “lack of cohesion” remarks about the United Progressive Alliance, he said: “The BJP should set its house in order first.”
“Having failed as an opposition party, the BJP has decided to forget its failures and divert attention by attacking the UPA government. Have they introspected about the number of days wasted in Parliament due to their obstructionist attitude ?”
Party CMs should take others along : Sonia Gandhi
In the backdrop of electoral defeats in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked the party Chief Ministers to give up the individualistic approach and take others along.
“In the states where we are in power, the party Chief Min¬isters must work in tandem with the party (state unit) presi¬dents,” she wrote in the editorial of party mouthpiece Congress Sandesh. Striking a stern note of caution about implementing the UPA’s flagship programmes, she said, “It is important for our Chief Ministers to fulfil the promises made in our party manifes¬to and ensure that our workers are heard and their views and opinions taken into account.”
Clearly, Sonia Gandhi is worried about a perceived distance between the governments in the Congress-ruled states and party workers. The government-party rift has been blamed for the Con¬gress rout in states like Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
In a pointed reference to the CAG report indicting the government for poor implementation of the ambitious Rural Em¬ployment Guarantee Scheme, she said, “Some reports suggest that the NREGS has not been systematically implemented across the states; this must change if social development measures are not to remain only on paper,” Sonia said.
With elections in as many as 10 states drawing close, Sonia Gandhi told the party activists to come forward to salvage the situation and take the message of the programmes to the people. Seeing a larger role for the party functionaries, she said, “Our party cadre needs to turn itself into an engine for social change.”
She admitted that the defeats in Gujarat and Himachal were “disappointing”. While the poll results are being analysed to discern the political subtext, the Congress in no way will give up the ideological war, Sonia explained. “This fight does not end with winning or losing elections,” she said.
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