Cong Begins To Walk The Talk One Month Since ‘Chintan Shivir’, Eyes Upcoming Polls

This comes as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had earlier at the Udaipur meeting stressed that they “have to go back to the people”.

Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. (File Photo: Getty Images)

New Delhi: The Congress party, which last month took several key decisions and adopted resolutions to revamp the organisation at the ‘Chintan Shivir’ in Rajasthan’s Udaipur city, has begun to walk the talk. Senior Congress leaders said the latest appointment of Jairam Ramesh as the general secretary in-charge of communications with publicity, social and digital media under him and Pawan Khera as the media chief has set the ball rolling for a new outreach wing, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported. The foremost agenda is strengthening the Congress party’s communication strategy to improve public engagement.

This comes as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had earlier at the Udaipur meeting stressed that they “have to go back to the people”.

The message of the three-day brainstorming and the decisions taken there have reached the grassroots, Congress leader Ajay Maken said, adding the state units have already been instructed to enforce the new pledges.

“These decisions include ensuring 50 percent representation to workers who are under 50 at state, district and block levels in the Congress and setting up of new mandal committees to have more feet on the ground,” the news agency quoted Maken as saying.

The Congress, as per the senior party leaders, has already embarked on the new path of revival.

The senior party leaders added the changes will be visible over the coming months once the recently constituted Task Force for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls reworks its strategy.

The party functionaries, according to Maken, holding positions for over five years will gradually be replaced and ‘one person, one post’ formula as agreed on in Udaipur will be enforced.

“We have started embarking on the path laid down by the Udaipur declaration. The outcome of the brainstorming session and tangible differences will be seen in the party and its functioning soon,” added Maken.

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala’s replacement as the in-charge of communications by Ramesh is the first major signal of relieving leaders from multiple posts.

The communications wing is also set to have dedicated units on research and data analytics, PTI reported sources as saying.

Sources added that the promised election management and public insight departments were in the works too.

The road to Congress’ electoral revival, however, remains rutted as the party faces an uphill task of challenging an aggressive Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in both Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat.

It is important for the Congress to win in these two states as it is in power only in two states - Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh - on its own.

Moreover, the trend of prominent leaders exiting also continues with Kapil Sibal, Sunil Jakhar and former Gujarat Congress working president Hardik Patel leaving the grand old party after the Chintan Shivir.