G-23 leaders' 'collective and inclusive' leadership call a warning for Sonia Gandhi

It is not the meeting of G-23 leaders but their black-and-white demand calling for “collective and inclusive” leadership that stands out. The statement – a first of its kind official announcement– comes three days after the CWC met.

The dinner meeting on Wednesday, hosted by veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, and the statement with a warning that “the next steps” will be “announced soon” were an euphemism for a pre-emptive no-confidence motion on the possible return of Rahul Gandhi as party chief as they wanted “collective and inclusive leadership and decision making at all levels”.

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This came despite Sonia Gandhi reaching out to Azad and calling him for a possible meeting even as the supporters of the Gandhi family pounded on the rebels, especially after Kapil Sibal gave an interview seeking Gandhis to step down and accusing Rahul of acting as president without assuming the responsibility.

At his meeting with the Gandhis, Azad is likely to put the “final” proposal of the change-seekers before the High Command. Azad’s tone and proposal as well as how far Sonia would budge would determine what would be the “next steps” of the G-23.

Another G-23 leader Bhupinder Hooda met Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, a day after he signed the joint statement, and then briefed Azad about his discussions. There were reports that Rahul had telephoned Hooda on Wednesday to find a way out and the reaching out by Gandhis are seen as an attempt by the leadership to douse the fire at the beginning and present a united face.

Earlier, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot tried to play the mediator before the CWC meeting but after Sibal’s remarks, he targeted the latter while his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel said some were trying to turn the party into “Congress of dinner” and “Congress of bungalows”. The reference was to Sibal, who was to initially host the dinner meeting and Azad, who retained the bungalow after his retirement from Rajya Sabha.

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The change-seekers also sought to show that their numbers are growing with the addition of at least two new members to the grouping – the surprise in Gandhi loyalist Mani Shankar Aiyar as well as Lok Sabha MP Preneet Kaur, a Congress MP. A friend of late Rajiv Gandhi, Aiyar was the first to speak in a Congress meeting at Parliament’s Central Hall in 2004 seeking Sonia to assume prime ministership after she refused to do so.

Also Read — Congress leaders slam Kapil Sibal for criticising party leadership

Preneet Kaur, the wife of former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh who quit Congress after his ouster from the post last year, has been staying in the party. The G-23 leaders were not happy at the way Singh was ousted and they had been complaining about the lack of consultation on the issue.

G-23 leaders claim now that they have become G-32 but Mukul Wasnik’s absence set the tongues wagging about him leaving the grouping. M Veerappa Moily, who had signed the August 2020 letter to Sonia seeking clarity on leadership, has distanced from the grouping already.

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Almost all those who were part of the G-23 were staunch Gandhi family loyalists and still vouch for Sonia’s leadership. However, they are against Rahul Gandhi assuming the post as the old guards feel that they are left out in his setup. At the CWC meeting, Azad had said that the next president should be “accountable and accessible”, in an indirect hit at Rahul.

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