Over 20,000 Congressmen coming together to celebrate the grand old party, the Indian National Congress completing 125 years of an eventful existence. But the mood at the 83rd Congress plenary, held with all the pomp and show in a grand tent, did not reflect the grandness of the occasion.
P Chidambaram was conspicuous by his absence on the dais at the second day of the plenary.
If you were present at the 83rd Congress plenary in New Delhi on Sunday, you would have thought that there is nothing wrong with the UPA-2 government, the government is not responsible for any corruption scandal, B S Yeddyurappa is the only corrupt politician in the country, and the BJP and the RSS are responsible for all that ails the country.
The two-day Congress plenary session in New Delhi, which met following weeks of turmoil in the Congress had less of introspection on corruption and crises, and more of the general Congress agenda: Promote Rahul Gandhi, project him as a mature leader who has taken the next step towards leading the nation and bash the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former All India Congress Committee chief Sonia Gandhi will address leaders in Nava Raipur, as well as political, economic and international affairs resolutions will be deliberated upon at the party's 85th plenary session on Saturday.
On the eve of the Congress plenary, Sahim Salim captures the mood in Burari, a town in northwest Delhi, which is all geared up for the mega event.
The meeting started under the presidency of Mallikarjun Kharge but former presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were yet to arrive and are unlikely to attend the steering committee meeting.
Our team is constantly posting updates as they happen, LIVE from the venue. ONLY on REDIFF.
The AICC meet will be the vindication of the policy of the 'coming together of secular forces' pursued by Sonia since she took over the reins of the organisation way back in 1998.
Enjoying the luxury of power at the Centre, Congress would have to trudge the middle path on key issues like alliances, lest it sends wrong singals to its allies in the coalition.
Interestingly, this is not being done surreptitiously or secretly but is a decision taken by senior AICC general secretaries who feel there is nothing wrong with the practice. This though is a first of its kind move by the AICC leaders.
As the All India Congress Committee Plenary session started in New Delhi, the party rank and file hoped that the Congress high command would be able to clear up the mess surrounding the party in the wake of the various scams surrounding it.
Over 20,000 congressmen came together to celebrate the Indian National Congress completing 125 years of existence. But the mood at the 83rd plenary, held with all the pomp and show in a grand tent, did not reflect the grandness of the occasion. The mood was somber to start with, the party delegates sat quietly neither cheering nor shouting slogans as they normally do, asking Rahul Gandhi to speak.
A special budget for farmers and interest-free loans for farmers and women are among the welfare programmes announced by Kadapa member of Parliament Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, which he said his YSR Congress Party would implement if it comes to power.
The Election Commission has defended its Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court, refuting allegations of mass deletion of genuine voters as exaggerated and politically motivated.
China's second-ranked general, He Weidong, is under investigation for corruption, along with nine other senior military officers punished for discipline violations and work-related crimes. This crackdown comes ahead of a key Communist Party conclave.
Only in the event of the RSS managing to force Modi into accepting a consensual candidate, will the party not continue to 'being' the 'next Congress', observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted raids at over a dozen locations in Chhattisgarh including at premises linked to state Congress leaders as part of an ongoing probe into the alleged coal levy scam, officials said.
The plenary session in Chhattisgarh's Nava Raipur will start from February 24 and is expected to be attended by around 15,000 delegates.
Vice Admiral Li Hanjun, chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), and Liu Shipeng, deputy chief engineer of China National Nuclear Corporation, have been expelled from the National People's Congress (NPC), the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
'He was not highly educated. He was Class 10 passed but his intelligence was high. He could impress any group of people.'
Implementation of sports bill in 6 months, regulation of participation standard safeguard: Mandaviya
The Election Commission of India (ECI) asserts that major political parties participated in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, deploying booth level agents despite opposing the exercise in the Supreme Court. The ECI defends its authority to conduct the revision to maintain the integrity of elections.
The party said it was 'an inexcusable slip-up', for which responsibility was being fixed and action would be taken.
P Chidambaram was conspicuous by his absence on the dais at the second day of the plenary.
A handwritten feedback letter purportedly written by BRS leader K Kavitha to her father and former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, highlighting both the negative and positive aspects of the party's recent meeting, has sparked discussions in Telangana's political circles. While the authenticity of the letter has not been confirmed, Kavitha's letter suggests that the party might be aligning with the BJP. She also criticized KCR for his silence on key issues such as 42 per cent reservation for backward classes, Scheduled Castes categorisation, and omission of Urdu from his address at the BRS Silver Jubilee event.
This, the Congress said in its political resolution, was necessary as there were misgivings on the 'misuse' of EVMs to 'manipulate the outcome contrary to popular verdict.' The resolution called for reverting to the old practice of paper ballot as adopted by other major democracies to help restore the credibility of the electoral process.
Second day of the Congress plenary at New Delhi will pass two crucial resolutions on Monday.
And while delegates from all over China attended the National People's Congress, all eyes were on one man, the anointed-by-personal-diktat ruler for life, Xi Jinping.
Congress is gearing itself up for the All India Congress Committee plenary session to be held on the outskirts of Delhi on December 18,19 and 20.
Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal has criticised Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar for questioning the judiciary over the timeline for the president to take decisions, calling it "unconstitutional " and a lowering of the dignity of the chair. Sibal asserted that Dhankhar's remarks are not neutral and amount to an attack on the judiciary by the executive. He also pointed out that the president acts on the aid and advice of the council of ministers, and therefore, the president's power cannot be curtailed. Sibal urged Dhankhar to seek a review of the judiciary's decision or an advisory opinion from the Supreme Court if he has problems with it. He also questioned why Dhankhar only focuses on actions taken during Congress governments and not after 2014.
Ramesh told PTI that an east-to-west yatra, probably from Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh to Porbandar in Gujarat, was being considered but its format could be a bit different from the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
'They (the Modi government) are trying to silence people who speak against this government, who speak with force and speak with conviction and want to speak the truth.'
'If they are not, then the Modi government should order a JPC immediately.'
The mood in the party seems to be in favour of not delaying any further the launch of the high-profile first-time parliamentarian into active politics.
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