Congress Eyes 2019 Poll Victory with Rahul Leading Alliance

Congress leaders said that the party will win the 2019 election with Rahul Gandhi as the prime ministerial face.

‘Alliance’ was the key word in the first meeting of the Congress Working Committee.

(Photo Courtesy: Congress)

One word sums up the first meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), led by Congress President Rahul Gandhi – alliance. The meeting, which discussed the party’s future in the upcoming 2019 general elections, emphasised on Congress’ need to form an alliance with regional parties – with the same ideology – in order to defeat the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Rahul Gandhi is the Face of Congress

After the meeting, Congress Chief Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said:

Congress’ decision is clear, Rahul Gandhi is our face. We will go to the people under his leadership. When we will get the majority, naturally, he (Rahul) will be the face. There is no scope for doubt.

Randeep Surjewala

Surjewala also said that Congress expects a better performance than 2004. He said when Congress becomes the biggest party and bags 200 seats or more, it will naturally lead the coalition.

Even before 2004, questions were asked about Sonia Gandhi. We used to say that the public will decide and the public has decided.

Randeep Surjewala

We Are Setting Up a Group for the Alliance: Rahul Gandhi

After stressing on the importance of the coalition, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said, after the meeting, that a group will be formed soon, which will work to link Congress with parties sharing the same ideology.

In his concluding speech, Rahul Gandhi said that building the base of the party is the biggest task. According to Gandhi, Congress has to work on the strategy that can identify the people who do not vote for the party and work towards taking them into confidence.

Sonia Too Lobbied for a Coalition

In the CWC meeting, Congress President Rahul Gandhi expressed concerns over the targeting of Dalits, Adivasis, Other Backward Classes and minorities and told Congress workers that the party needs to stand up for them. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi also lobbied for an alliance between parties with same ideologies and said that the reverse countdown of the BJP has now begun.

Chidambaram’s Mission 300 Formula

In the meeting, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram outlined the party’s 'Mission 300' formula for the 2019 elections. In his presentation, he said that the Congress can win 140-150 seats in 12 states. Besides this, he said there were 265-270 seats, of which the Congress can clinch 150 if they can strategically form an alliance with regional parties. In this way, they can cross the magic figure of UPA 272 and can likely touch the figure of 300 seats.

But many leaders like Sachin Pilot, Shaktisinh Gohil and Ramesh Chennithala insisted that Congress leaders are the face of the coalition. That is, many Congress leaders do not want to leave the party’s ‘Big Brother’ approach. This is the approach that troubles leaders like Mamata Banerjee.

Speaking to TheQuint, Rajasthan Congress President Sachin Pilot said that Congress was confident of taking on the BJP:

‘Jumla’ Culture Won’t Work: Manmohan Singh

In the CWC meeting, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a scathing attack on PM Modi and said:

PM Modi’s focus is more on fabrication. For the claims of doubling the income of farmers till 2022, the agricultural sector needs a growth rate of 14 percent annually, which is not visible anywhere.

10 Issues in a 5-Hour Meeting

In the 5-hour long CWC meeting 239 members participated and more than 30 people gave a speech.

The 5-hour-long CWC meeting witnessed the presence of 239 members and a host of speeches from more than 30 people. In course of the meet, 10 key issues were discussed:

1. Agricultural crisis: Farmers are committing suicide while prime minister is celebrating an increase in MSP
2. Unemployment: The country’s youth do not have jobs or opportunities
3. Sluggish economy and industrial development
4. Violence against Dalit and Tribal communities
5. Discrimination of Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
6. Women safety
7. Internal and external security from Naxalism to Doklam
8. Congress will launch agitation against attempts to paralyse institutions
9. Discussion on Andhra Pradesh's special status
10. Situation of Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir

(This article was first published on QuintHindi)