Sonia flags a ‘lack of clarity, cohesion’ among Congress leaders

Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday called on her party to “fight the diabolical campaign of BJP and RSS ideologically” and said that the fight to defend democracy, the Constitution and the party’s ideology should begin with being fully prepared to identify and counter false propaganda.

Chairing a meeting of the party’s general secretaries at the party headquarters, Sonia Gandhi also asked her party leaders to re-emphasise the paramount need for discipline and unity and train party workers on the unceasing onslaught of malicious disinformation campaigns at the behest of the BJP/RSS. The Congress interim President said, “We must fight the diabolical campaign of BJP/RSS ideologically. We must do so with conviction and expose their lies before the people if we want to win this battle. The AICC releases important and detailed statements almost every day on issues that the nation is facing. But it is my experience that they do not percolate down to our grassroots cadres at the block and district level. There are policy issues on which I find a lack of clarity and cohesion even amongst our state-level leaders.”

“You must train our workers to take on the unceasing onslaught of malicious disinformation campaigns at the behest of the BJP/RSS. And you must train our people to fight it while upholding and projecting the core Congress ideology,” Sonia Gandhi said. She said that the party must re-double its fights for the “victims” of the present ruling party in the Centre.

Launching a scathing attack on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government in the Centre, the senior leader said, “The Modi government has sought to erode our institutions so it may evade accountability. Our own history bears witness to the fact that if an organisation is to succeed against injustice and inequality if it is to effectively champion the rights of the marginalised, it must become a widespread agitation down to the grassroots.”

Sonia Gandhi also gave emphasis on identifying and assigning Congress leaders and office bearers for the task of enrolling members in the party in a transparent fashion. She also talked about the training programmes for the party workers.

“You must ensure the clear delineation of the responsibilities of these individuals at the state, district, block, ward and village level. This is a vital responsibility that you are entrusted with,” she said. “Training programmes for our workers are therefore an absolute necessity. I want to emphasise that you should take it on priority. The fight to defend our democracy, our Constitution and the Congress party’s ideology begins with being fully prepared to identify and counter false propaganda.”

“Five states are going to election in the coming months. Congress party workers and leaders in these states are gearing up to take on these battles. Our campaign must be founded upon concrete policies and programmes emanating from widespread discussions with all sections of society,” she added.

Earlier in the day, Sonia Gandhi presided over a meeting with core party leaders to discuss the upcoming Assembly elections to Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa, among other issues. The meeting was held at party headquarters today. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Congress leaders attended the meeting.