Congress to hold working committee meet on March 13 to discuss poll debacle

The Congress Working Committee will meet on Sunday evening for a post mortem of the party’s Assembly election debacle in which all eyes will be on what stand G-23 leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Mukul Wasnik will take.

There was speculation that interim president Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi would offer to resign but party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala described it as “completely unfair, mischievous and incorrect” and at the “behest” of BJP. CWC Special Invitee Manickam Tagore tweeted, “all rumour mongers will have egg on their face”.

Party’s only two Chief Ministers Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) and Bhupesh Baghel (Chhattisgarh) have also been invited to the meeting. Both the states will go to the polls next year. Chaired by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the meeting scheduled at 4 PM will be attended by 20 CWC members, 24 Permanent Invitees and nine Special Invitees.

Also Read: Like a drowning boat in turbulent ocean: G23 leaders on Congress debacle

Prior to the CWC, Sonia will also chair a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Strategy Group to decide on the strategy and issues to be taken up in the second leg of the Budget Session starting Monday.

Congress has been reduced to power in just two states, the worst record in its history, after 1998 when it had just three states under its control when Sonia Gandhi assumed the mantle. The party has not won a single Assembly election after its victory in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in 2018 and lost Kerala and Assam.

On Friday, a group of G-23 leaders met at Azad’s residence and decided to raise the issue of reforms in the party while not fighting it out in the media. Questions are also likely to be asked about the reports prepared on the poll debacle in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Assembly elections and the action taken thereafter.

Also Read | As G23 blames Rahul, Kerala Congress leaders target Venugopal for Assembly polls debacle

A committee was formed under senior leader Ashok Chavan to study the loss in 2021 and a report was said to be submitted to Sonia but it has not been shared with the CWC yet.

Though they will be outnumbered, the meeting will see sparks flying with G-23 leaders, who had in August 2020 written to Sonia seeking clarity on the leadership issue, pushing for accountability and clarity on the leadership. It will also be keenly watched who other than the G-23 leaders all will speak openly in the meeting.

Sources said it is expected that the G-23 members will highlight the leadership vacuum and troubles in state units. They are also likely to question the strategies adopted in Punjab and Uttarakhand. It is to be seen whether Rahul and Priyanka would come under attack, especially for the Punjab fiasco.

Also Read | Congress leadership brace for heated working committee meet

The previous CWC meeting on October 16 had seen Sonia blunting the G-23 leaders' campaign for immediate change in party leadership and sent a clear message to the rebels by asserting that she is a "full-time and hands-on" party president and there is no need to speak to her through the media. It had then decided on an organisation election schedule, membership campaign and an agitation programme on price rise.

A first-time Congress MP, who is not in the CWC, told DH, “the gap between the people and party is increasing. We are in a terminal decline. We are behaving as if we are doing people a favour. I am not saying I am right. There has to be a clash of ideas, discussions at the party. That is not happening.”

He advocated the need for “collective leadership” and said, “look at the BJP. Every ten years, they have a new leader emerging. We don’t have new leaders.”

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