Perform or perish: Cong's strong message to party cadres at Ahmedabad session

Ahmedabad | After two days of brainstorming, the Congress on Wednesday sent out a strong message to party cadres from the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel to strengthen the organisation and take on the BJP electorally on the basis of its ideological strength.

After hours of deliberations at the AICC session organised on the banks of the Sabarmati river, the party hit out at the BJP over the issue of nationalism saying while the Congress binds people together, the saffron party seeks to divide.

The Congress adopted three resolutions at the session, including 'Nyaypath' that seeks to take the BJP head-on over its nationalism push and strongly pitched itself as the defender of the Constitution, vowing to "fight back every assault on the federal structure".

While one resolution was on seeking to assert the legacy of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 150th birth anniversary year passed by the CWC on Tuesday, the other special resolution - 'Why Congress is needed in Gujarat' with motto of 'Nutan Gujarat, Nutan Congress' (new Gujarat, new Congress), focussed on bringing the Congress back to power in Gujarat, where the BJP has been in power since 1995.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge set the tone for the session by giving a stern warning to non-performers to rest or retire.

Talking tough in his inaugural address, he said, "I also want to say that those who do not help in party work, need to rest, those who do not fulfil their responsibilities must retire," amid applause from Congress leaders and workers.

He also alleged "fraud" in elections and said the Maharashtra polls were won like this as he made a strong pitch for return to ballot paper. He attacked the Election Commission for not stopping the "irregularities" and instead taunting the parties raising questions.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also attacked the Narendra Modi government on domestic and international issues, saying the the Waqf (Amendment) Act as "anti-Constitution" and an attack on the freedom of religion while warning that the BJP-RSS will soon go after the rights of other minorities soon.

He also hit out at Modi over his "silence" on imposition of tariffs by the US and asked where he was hiding. He also recalled how Modi used to "boast about his friend".

"Where is the 56-inch chest", Gandhi asked after alleging that Modi did not speak anything while being seated next to Bangladesh chief adviser Mohammad Yunus, who gave adverse remarks.

Kharge also hit out at the ruling BJP government accusing it of inciting communalism by raising 500 years-old issues and seeking to divide people and promote hatred among them, instead of preparing for future challenges.

Such dangerous thinking should never be supported, he said.

Kharge also stressed that role of district Congress committee presidents in the organisation will be greatly enhanced and they will henceforth have a say in the selection of party candidates.

"The role of district presidents is going to be important in the formation of the organisation," Kharge said, adding that their appointment has to be done impartially and they would be involved in the candidate selection process in polls.

Kharge said we are once again fighting for India's independence, claiming that in this second battle for independence the enemies are injustice, inequality, discrimination, poverty and communalism.

The only difference is that back then foreigners used to promote injustice, poverty and inequality, now our own government is doing it, he said.

"Democracy is being finished slowly, slowly, slowly," he alleged, adding that monopoly is being established with resources being handed to a few crony capitalists.

"If this continues, the Narendra Modi government and Modi will sell off the whole country and go," he alleged.

The Congress chief also said the Supreme Court has come down harshly against Governors, who sat on bills passed in opposition-ruled states, and it was like a "tight slap".

The Ahmedabad session, themed "Nyaypath: Sankalp, Samarpan aur Sangharsh," was attended by more than 1,700 elected and co-opted AICC members.

Rahul Gandhi, who addressed the AICC delegates just before conclusion, cautioned of economic turmoil after tariffs, accusing Modi of succumbing to US pressures, even as he made a strong push for bring the caste census.

"Did you see the photograph of PM Modi hugging Trump? This time he ordered Modi ji that 'we will not hug but will impose new tariffs'. PM Modi did not say a word. To divert attention from this they ran a drama in Parliament for two days," he said, asking, "Where is the PM hiding?"

He also assured that the party would break the 50 per cent ceiling of reservation for SCs/STs/OBCs and pushed for a caste census across the country to provide equal share to people as per their population.

Gandhi lauded Congress-ruled Telangana for showing the path to the country by conducting the caste survey by raising the reservation of OBCs to 42 per cent.

"We will break the wall of 50 per cent reservation. What Telangana has done, we are going to do across the country," he asserted.

"Modi ji talks 24 hours about backwards, tribals, but when it comes to their 'bhaagidari' (participation), then BJP people keep quiet," he noted.

The former Congress chief also hit out at the BJP-RSS for their polarising agenda, alleging that they were full of hatred. He attacked them over the recent incident in Rajasthan, where a temple was purified with 'Gangajal' after CLP leader Tika Ram Jully, a Dalit, visited it.

Referring to an article in an RSS-linked magazine, Gandhi alleged that it reveals that the BJP and RSS have now set their sight on the rights of Christians, and Sikhs would be next.

Noting the fight is for the Constitution and it is not easy, he said, "They have everything at their disposal but we have truth and the love of the people on our side."

Exhorting the party workers to be battle ready, Gandhi said, "change is in the air" as people are fed up with the BJP.

In the resolution, the Congress said nationalism for the Congress means binding people together, while the "pseudo-nationalism espoused by the BJP-RSS" is marred by vitriol and prejudice.

It also accused BJP of being in a "Machiavellian quest for exploitative power".

The party also asserted that its commitment to secularism was inspired by the age-old traditions of India while the BJP government and its affiliates were "determined to fracture" the core national spirit for "political gain" and "lust for power".

Terming as "alarming" the alleged discovery of a large amount of cash from the residence of a high court judge, the Congress said a mechanism for judicial accountability, without compromising judicial independence, is the need of the hour.

Rampant unemployment nation's 'biggest epidemic' now: Congress resolution

Ahmedabad | The Congress on Wednesday dubbed the government "extortionist" over the recent hikes in the price of gas cylinders and excise duty on petrol and diesel, claiming that rampant unemployment is now the nation's "biggest epidemic" with demographic dividend turning into "demographic disaster".

The party made the claims in its 'Nyaypath' resolution adopted at the AICC session on the banks of the Sabarmati river here.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, party general secretaries K C Venugopal and Jairam Ramesh, among other senior leaders, participated in the session themed "Nyaypath: Sankalp, Samarpan aur Sangharsh".

In the resolution, which was passed after day-long deliberations with a show of hands, the Congress said the policy of economic liberalisation with inclusive growth espoused by the previous Congress governments provided a sound economic edifice for the nation.

"Between 2004 and 2014, India achieved a remarkable average GDP growth rate of 8 per cent per annum under the sagacious leadership of the Manmohan Singh-led Congress government.

"During this period, 27 crore fellow Indians were lifted out of poverty and a prosperous middle-class comprising nearly 40 crore people materialised as an important participant in our growth story," the resolution said.

The party said that while on one hand, refusal to conduct Census after 2011 has let to the denial of "Right to Food" to 11 crore people, on the other hand, 1 per cent of the richest Indians own over 40 per cent of the country's wealth.

"Wealth disparity is so extreme that 10 per cent of richest Indians now own 70 per cent of the nation's wealth. Tragically, the bottom 50 per cent of the poor and the middle-class possess only 6.4 per cent of the nation's wealth," the Congress claimed in the resolution.

"The gravely-flawed economic policies have broken the back of the common man. The soaring prices of essential goods have made them unaffordable for crores of ordinary households," the resolution said.

The "back-breaking" LPG cylinder price hike of Rs 50 with effect from April 7 has put an additional burden of over Rs 9,000 crore per year on the households, it claimed.

On top of it, an increase in the excise duty for petrol and diesel by Rs 2 per litre, with a view to "deny" the benefits of reduced petrol/diesel prices to the common man emanating from an unprecedented fall in the price of crude oil to USD 65 per barrel, the lowest in the past five years, is a "brazen loot" by an "extortionist government", the resolution said.

"Rampant unemployment is now the nation's biggest epidemic, as the unemployment rate touches a 45-year high. Nearly 30 lakh government jobs are lying vacant.

"Resultantly, our 'demographic dividend' is turning into 'demographic disaster', with our literate but unemployed young men and women being driven towards drugs and psychotropic substances owing to lack of opportunities," the resolution claimed.

The stagnant wages and deepening economic uncertainty in India have witnessed a staggering 300 per cent increase in gold loans over just five years, that too by mortgage of precious household jewellery by ordinary Indians, it claimed.

The Congress resolution also said that stalled consumption is dragging down India's GDP growth and discouraging the private sector from investing in capacity expansion.

"Private investment is at a historical low, which exposes the hollowness of the 'Make in India' campaign. The 'ideological somersaults' and 'policy about-turns' symbolise the character of the BJP regime," the party said.

Taking a sharp dig at the BJP, the Congress claimed its opportunist "about-turn" is evidenced by the BJP's strong opposition to direct benefit transfer (DBT), Aadhaar, GST, FDI in retail, FDI in defence, and Indo-US nuclear deal when in opposition, and becoming a stout champion of the same policies when in power.

It also accused the current government of systematically eliminating competition across sectors to pave the way for monopolies, duopolies and oligopolies -- manned by two or three favoured industrialists.

"On the contrary, MSMEs, which are the real job creators, have been pushed to the brink of bankruptcy. The cheap and highly-subsidised import of Chinese goods has further destroyed the financial viability of our MSMEs," the resolution said.

The Congress said it firmly believes that the revival, protection and promotion of MSMEs and mid-level industries is paramount for job creation and growth of domestic manufacturing.

It envisions an economy where India's young entrepreneurs and manufacturers thrive, become wealth creators through legitimate means, leading to genuine competition that breaks the grip of a handful of "favourite" sponsored monopolists, the Congress said in its resolution.

"India must also establish our leadership position in future-friendly technologies, including artificial intelligence, robotics, drones, battery storage, blockchain technology, renewable energy and emerging energy resources to reclaim its space in the league of nations," the resolution said.

Reiterating the demand for a legal guarantee of MSP for crops, the Congress said it resolves to enact a law for the same, fixation of MSP at 50 per cent over cost price, and take decisive steps for a debt-free future for the farmers.

On women's rights, the resolution said the Women's Reservation Bill was passed in Parliament in September 2023, but the ruling regime hasn't implemented it till date.

"Even at that time, the Congress strongly advocated for its immediate implementation, along with reservation for women from Dalit, Adivasi, and backward communities," it said.

"The BJP chief ministers, Central ministers, and their leaders are habitual offenders in making degrading, vulgar and regressive remarks about women's clothing, behaviour, character, education, food habits and decision-making abilities.

"Perhaps, this preconceived and parochial mindset is the reason why not a single woman has become BJP's national president in the last 45 years since its inception, nor has any woman been permitted entry as the head of the RSS or as its office-bearer," the resolution said.

Asserting that it is an ardent champion of workers on the gig platforms and the unorganised sector, the Congress also said it recognises the need for legislations to protect their rights.