The long-awaited meeting between the head of Congress, Sonia Gandhi, and high-level leaders of the so-called Group of 23 ‘dissidents’ broke the ice between loyalists and those considered rebels, but could not completely mend ties.
The meeting took place in the context of a series of electoral defeats for Congress in the elections of state and local organs, as the dissidents had predicted in their letter to Sonia Gandhi in August. The group, which included Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Manish Tewari, had warned that the party’s fortunes would not change for the better in the absence of clarity in leadership.
At the meeting, sources say there was an indirect attack on Rajiv Satav and Randeep Surjewala, who were managing the by-elections in Gujarat and Bihar, respectively. Who will take responsibility for the losses, was the question posed by the rebel group. Surjewala also raised objections during Friday’s press conference in which he said 99.9% of congressional leaders wanted Rahul Gandhi to become party chairman. The alleged rebels felt that this statement was made to downplay the point they had made in the letter.
In the more than four hour meeting, the issue of the next president was not discussed. Sonia Gandhi made it clear that the electoral process had begun and that the question of leadership would be over soon. But some older adults like Harish Rawat and AK Antony said Rahul Gandhi should take over soon. Sources say Rahul responded by saying that the meeting was not called to decide who would be the next president. The meeting had to focus on strengthening the organization, he said, in a statement endorsed by Azad & Company. It was also suggested that another Chintan shivir must be held to formulate a plan to combat the BJP and recover.
Rahul Gandhi said that, contrary to perception, he was not against the party elders. Sources said that he told the meeting that he respected the senior leaders not only because of their experience, but also because they were colleagues of his father Rajiv Gandhi.
The statement is expected to help end the rift between seniors and juniors in the match at a time when it also suffers from a confidence deficit. Many older adults feel that the younger ones who are close to Rahul Gandhi were leaving them out. His outreach to the elderly is seen as a significant effort by Sonia Gandhi to ensure the party stays together.
Also present at the meeting was Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who pointed out that the party must take to the streets and cannot go through circulars and memoranda.
The reunion may not be able to stop the party’s downfall anytime soon. But at least for the moment, it contradicts the perception that Congress is deeply divided.
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