Getting into election mode, the Congress on Thursday said its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls will be decided "very soon" and asserted that it would take all necessary steps to make the INDIA bloc an effective bulwark against the BJP and its allies.
During a four-hour meeting of the Congress Working Committee in New Delhi at the All India Congress Committee headquarters, former party chief Rahul Gandhi was also requested to undertake Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 from east to west and the proposal is being "considered with positive intent", a senior leader said.
Asked about the possibility of such a yatra, which was mentioned by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge in his initial remarks at the CWC meet, Congress general secretary, organisation, KC Venugopal said the decision on the yatra will be taken "without any delay".
Addressing a press conference alongside AICC general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh after the meeting, Venugopal asserted that the party would be in election mode without any delay and candidates for the Lok Sabha polls would be decided "very soon" with the screening committee being constituted this month.
He said the manifesto committee for the general elections would be constituted in a day or two.
Asked about seat-sharing among INDIA bloc partners, Venugopal said the Congress has already constituted an alliance committee and it has been given a clear direction by the Congress president that discussions on alliances have to start this month itself.
"They (the committee) are in the process of calling state units and taking the view of our state units after that there will be a conversation with allies also," he said after the meeting of the Congress' highest decision-making body, which was chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were among the 76 leaders who attended the meeting.
In his remarks at the CWC meet, Kharge said the Congress has learnt valuable lessons from the recent assembly polls and urged party workers to focus on the 2024 Lok Sabha elections now. The Congress is committed to not repeating the same mistakes, he said.
This is the first CWC meeting after the party's debacle in the assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. The Congress won in Telangana.
In the meeting, the party's top brass discussed the assembly election results and the in-charges of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan explained the reasons behind the disappointing performance.
Noting that the outcomes of the elections were "disappointing", Kharge said the Congress has conducted a preliminary analysis of the results and identified the reasons behind its performance.
"Despite the results, there are some positive indicators, such as the vote share in these states, that give us definite hope that given due attention, we can certainly turn things around," he said.
"We have learnt valuable lessons from the mistakes we have made and are committed to not repeating them," Kharge said.
He said the fourth meeting of the Opposition Indian National Inclusive Developmental Alliance was held on December 19 and it was unanimously decided that the seat-sharing talks must start immediately.
"The Lok Sabha elections are not too far, we don't have much time left. I would urge everyone to concentrate on actionable points and the necessary steps that can be taken for the upcoming general elections," the Congress chief said at the meeting.
On the suspension of opposition MPs from the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha over the last eight days, Kharge alleged it was part of a "conspiracy" to convert Parliament into a platform for the ruling party.
In a resolution that was passed unanimously after the CWC meeting, the party also alleged that the suspension of MPs from Parliament was done to ensure that the opposition was not present to challenge the Narendra Modi government "as it bulldozed three draconian criminal justice laws through".
The Congress also asserted that it would take all necessary steps to make the INDIA bloc an effective bulwark and force against the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies, while vowing to be fully prepared at the earliest to fight the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The Congress expressed its firmest resolve to be fully prepared at the earliest to fight the Lok Sabha elections both as a party and also as a member of the INDIA bloc.
The CWC also reiterated the determination of the Congress to take all necessary steps to make the INDIA bloc "an effective bulwark and force against the BJP and its allies", it said.
Venugopal asserted that despite the Congress losing in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, it had a very strong vote percentage and therefore, the party has "nothing to worry" for the parliamentary elections.
He said that Lok Sabha poll preparedness meetings had been held for 23 states and would be done for other states before the end of this month.
January onwards, state-level workers' convention will be held in which the president and other leaders will participate, Venugopal said.
The CWC members were urged to start election campaigns in states.
Asked about the Bharat Jodo Yatra 2.0 proposal, Venugopal said, "The Congress president told Rahul Gandhi ji that he is getting opinion from party workers and leaders from across the country that he should do a second yatra from east to west and after that all the CWC members unanimously also requested Rahul Gandhi for the same."
"The decision of the yatra will be taken without any delay," he said.
In his remarks, Kharge also said those responsible for protecting MPs have failed in their constitutional duties, in an apparent attack on the Lok Sabha speaker and the Rajya Sabha chairman over the suspension of opposition members.
