Ahead of the Assembly elections in Gujarat, Congress President Sonia Gandhi [Images] has stressed that the party must continue its fight for a secular and constitutional democracy.

"One of the main principles of the Congress has been its commitment to secularism. This is particularly important in
Gujarat where communal politics has polarised society and undermined the pluralist and tolerant ethos of our nation,"
Gandhi said in the latest issue of Congress Sandesh.

She noted that the Congress, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi [Images], fought for India's independence along with men
and women of all faith.

"It was a nationalism that espoused equal rights for all its citizens irrespective of caste and creed. Our workers and
supporters need to once again bring out the importance of our fundamental principles of non-violence and inclusive
development. We must continue our fight for a secular and constitutional democracy," Gandhi said in a letter to
partymen.

In its editorial, the party mouthpiece attacked the BJP government in Gujarat, charging it with shattering the ethos
of "inclusive nationalism" in the state.

"The recent exposure of the brutal manner in which the minority community was targeted in Gujarat is shocking and
must be condemned by all Indians. Such acts are not Hinduism. They are instead the negation of a great and peace loving faith," it stated.

"In the land of Mahatma Gandhi, we have instead the destruction of all his principles. Nationalism for the BJP
means identifying minority groups and tribal cultures as targets," the editorial said, further attacking the BJP for
its alleged communalisation of the Sethusamudram project.

In her letter, Gandhi also spoke about her recent visit to China and said the Congress planned to exchange party-level delegations, especially from among the young leaders.

"We also expect to step up student exchanges and establish research programmes at the university level in
addition to wider cultural exchanges," she said.

Gandhi said it was important that the people of the two countries got to know more about one another. "Our two
countries will be a dominant economic force in the coming decades; working together, we can be a positive influence for
peace, prosperity and stability in the region and the world," she said.