Nava Raipur, Feb 24 (PTI) As the Congress leadership has started deliberating on whether or not to hold elections to the party’s executive committee, Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge has urged members to express their opinions freely and collectively call for an important issue. Conclusion
Sources said the steering committee, which replaced the party’s top decision-making body, the Congress Working Committee (CWC), began deliberations at the start of the 85th plenary session here and approved the agenda for the three-day conference.
As former leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have skipped the meeting, it is likely that they will come later that evening. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was also absent from the steering committee meeting.
In his inaugural address on the CWC elections, Kharge said, “I want to urge you as Congress president to express yourself freely and take a collective decision. Whatever decision you take will be mine and everyone’s decision.”
Conducting elections to the EC is a major decision taken by the steering committee. The EC has a total of 25 members, including the Congress President and the Congress Speaker in Parliament, apart from 12 elected members and 11 nominated members.
It has been a tradition to have a consensus structure in the party and the committee gives the right to the Congress president to have a structure of his choice to avoid any splits.
The Congress leader, in his inaugural address, said the plenary session is being held at a time when democracy and the constitution are “under threat” and parliamentary institutions are facing severe crisis and political activities are under scrutiny.
He said that 84 sessions of the Congress Party have been held since 1885 and this convention is very special as it marks 100 years since Mahatma Gandhi was elected as the Congress President.
He added that many historic decisions have been taken in various plenary sessions, some of which are milestones.
E.T.K. As deliberations began on the key outcome of the elections, members were evenly divided on conducting the elections and some said that EC should be recommended. PTI SKC/ASK DV DV
