Cong to launch yatra 'from Kanyakumari to Kashmir'

As a part of the party's outreach programme, Congress will launch a nationwide yatra 'Kanyakumari to Kashmir Bharat Jodo' beginning on October 2, said the party's interim president Sonia Gandhi on Sunday.

Speaking at the concluding day of the three-day brainstorming session, Chintan Shivir, in Udaipur, Sonia Gandhi said, "We will launch a national Kanyakumari to Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra beginning on Gandhi Jayanti this year. All of us will participate in it.

"The Yatra is to strengthen the bonds of social harmony that are under stress, to preserve the foundational values of our Constitution that are under assault and to highlight the day-to-day concerns of crores of our people."

She said phase-2 of the district-level Jan Jagran Abhiyan that had been launched earlier will resume a month later on June 15.

This extensive campaign will highlight economic issues especially the 'growing unemployment and intolerable price rise that is destroying livelihoods'.

The Congress interim president informed that a compact Task Force will be set up to drive the process of internal reforms that are essential and that have been discussed in different groups at Udaipur.

With a focus on the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, these reforms will cover all aspects of the organization including structure, rules for appointments to party posts, communications and publicity, outreach, finances and election management.

The composition of the Task Force will be notified in the next two-three days.

"I have also decided to have an advisory group drawn from the Congress Working Committee that would meet regularly under my chairpersonship to discuss and deliberate upon political issues and challenges before our party.

"Of course, we do have the CWC that meets from time to time and that will continue. The new group is not, however, a collective decision-making body but will help the party get the benefit of the vast experience of senior colleagues. It too will be notified very soon," Gandhi said.

Congress Working Committee meeting was held on Sunday in Udaipur to give final shape to organisational reforms and the party's stand on key issues.

Here, CWC approved Congress 'Nav Sankalp' declaration at Chintan Shivir in Udaipur.

The three-day Navsankalp Shivir started in Rajasthan's Udaipur on Friday.

Six committees were formed for the workshop and 430 leaders deliberated on the party's strategy to deal with the emerging challenges.