BJP ‘misusing’ mandate, Sonia calls for agitation

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 12

In her first engagement with the Congress top brass after returning as the party president on August 10, Sonia Gandhi today told colleagues that mere tweeting won’t do as going directly to the people was the need of the hour.

“Go to the people directly,” was Sonia’s message to Congress CMs, working committee members and office bearers as she slammed the “grim” state of economy and the “vendetta politics that was at its peak and democracy at peril like never before”. “The mandate of 2019 is being misused and abused in a most dangerous fashion,” she said.

The occasion was a meeting to plan ways of marking the culmination of year-long celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary. By the end of it, the Congress decided to hold ‘padyatras’ across state capitals on October 2 with top leaders expected to attend.

Sonia, who doesn’t have a Twitter account yet, told colleagues today that their social media aggression was not enough to engage the people.

“We must have a concrete agitation agenda. It is not enough to be active on social media even though that too is needed and we need to do that better. Far more important is to go to the people directly,” Congress chief said as veterans Ghulam Nabi Azad, AK Antony, Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh among others listened.

Battle-hardened Sonia also shot down a proposal by party’s training in charge Sachin Rao to call outreach workers “preraks”. When Rao proposed the word, AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik objected saying it nearly sounded like RSS’ “pracharak”. Sonia agreed and the decision was taken to call outreach cadre “trainer-coordinators”.

With former party chief Rahul Gandhi absent (Congress said he wasn’t invited as he was not an office bearer), Sonia said the BJP was appropriating Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and BR Ambedkar to serve its “nefarious” agenda and called Congress defectors “opportunists”.

“Our resolve and resilience is being tested. This is the time when it will become clear as to who are those steadfastly devoted to the Congress as an ideology for strengthening the nation, and those who look to Congress as an opportunity for self-advancement. Some party colleagues have left. They have revealed their opportunistic character,” she said, adding that those speaking against the establishment were being “intimidated”.

Her reference was to colleague P Chidambaram, who remains in judicial custody in a money laundering case. She also tasked Congress CMs (barring MP’s Kamal Nath, all others attended) with delivering manifesto promises and running an accountable government.

“We have a special responsibility in states where we are in power — Punjab, Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh and Puducherry. These states must become examples of sensitive governance,” Gandhi said.

Why should youth join Cong, asks Tripura chief

Congress leaders were stunned when a young Tripura Congress chief Kirit Pradyot Deb Barman asked Sonia Gandhi to answer why any youngster should join the Congress. "Celebrating Mahatma Gandhi is all too well but youngsters in the northeast don't know much of him. He never came to the northeast. We need to answer a moot question: Why should any youngster join Congress. Can anyone answer that for me?" Barman asked Sonia, who nodded in agreement. 

Need to reach out

We must have a concrete agitation agenda. It is not enough to be active on social media even though that too is needed and we need to do that better. Far more important is to go to the people directly— Sonia Gandhi, Congress chief