In yet another indication of the growing discomfort in sections of Congress with the handling of the Anna Hazare crisis, a senior party leader on Monday said that the government underestimated the Gandhian's movement against corruption and asked it to enter into dialogue with him.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi will not be attending the swearing-in of Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee as West Bengal Chief Minister in Kolkata on Friday.
Party sources said Gandhi is likely to be the sole candidate for the post and is 'deemed to be the next party chief on Dec 5.
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has now set Thursday evening as the deadline for the Congress to reach a seat sharing agreement for the forthcoming West Bengal state assembly polls. Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee met Mamata late on Tuesday to resolve last-minute differences. Ahmed Patel, Gandhi's political secretary, called Mamata and asked her to wait till March 21, when the Congress president returns from London. But she has turned down the request.
When Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee came to the All India Congress Committee headquarters on Tuesday evening to meet the Congress Working Committee members and party office bearers and hear their suggestions on what should be incorporated in the coming budget for the aam admi, he was bombarded with suggestions.
There was veiled criticism of the Manmohan Singh government by members of the Congress Working Committee for allowing Anna Hazare and his team to hijack a democratically elected government, and for the use of pressure and the threat of fasts to ensure that the government acted as per their diktat.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi has convened a special meeting of the Congress Working Committee on Friday at 4 pm to discuss the Lokpal bill which has been consistently in the news for the last couple of months. Sources say the ongoing Telangana agitation is also expected to be discussed.
Scattered incidents of violence, including torching of buses and clashes, occurred and 1,600 people were arrested during the 12-hour bandh.
Taken by surprise, the Congress on Saturday said it has sought more time to resolve its differences with ally Trinamool Congress, which had made a unilateral decision to announce a list of candidates for the West Bengal assembly polls. "This is a new situation, new development. The party central leadership will discuss the issue in detail and then take a decision," said Congress Working Committee member-in charge for West Bengal Shakeel Ahmad.
Without Hyderabad, Telangana loses its charm. So, in spite of taking the issue forward by endorsing the demand for a new state, the CWC endorsement lacks the political force needed to make the idea instantly attractive.
The much-awaited reshuffle of the Congress hierarchy, which took place today, saw the exit of veteran Arjun Singh and six others from the Congress Working Committee (CWC) and two general secretaries Mohsina Kidwai and V Narayanasamy, who was recently made Minister of State in PMO.
A master manipulator of power politics, Arjun Singh was a one-time Congress bigwig who was known to set his eyes on the highest political throne but saw his political fortunes dwindle in the last decade and a half.
Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asked party workers to dispel doubts about the party regaining power in Tamil Nadu in the future, but urged them to strengthen it by focusing more on local body polls instead of being 'preoccupied' with Parliament or assembly elections. "Most youth Congress leaders are preoccupied with assembly and parliamentary elections and do not care about panchayat and local bodies. We have to strengthen it from the grassroots," he said
Venkat Swamy, who served in the cabinets of Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and PV Narasimha Rao and was also the member of Congress Working Committee, lashed out at Sonia, holding her responsible for the sliding fortunes of Congress part as well mounting corruption.
The Congress Working Committee and the All India Congress Committee secretariat were on Friday reconstituted by Sonia Gandhi, who dropped veterans like Arjun Singh and Mohsina Kidwai and G Venkatswami, who attacked her recently, and inducted new faces in the hierarchy.
With the Congress leadership reportedly inching towards a favourable decision on Telangana statehood demand, a party member of Legislative Assembly and several YSR Congress legislators from non-Telangana regions on Thursday said they have "resigned" in support of united Andhra Pradesh.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Saturday paid his last respects to former chief minister of Kerala and Congress Working Committee member K Karunakaran at the Thrissur townhall.
Congressmen are watching carefully how Rahul positions himself and manage the grand old party, reports Aditi Phadnis.
The Congress is likely to hold its plenary session in Mumbai or in some other part of Maharashtra in December, indicate highly placed congress sources.
Faced with poll debacle in four states, the Congress is expected to hold a 'chintan shivir'.
Giving a clear indication that some senior leaders would be dropped from the party's highest decision making body -- the Congress Working Committee -- Congress president Sonia Gandhi said that some leaders would have to face disappointment, reports Renu Mittal
The concern of the Congress leadership over the situation could be gauged from the fact that Chidambaram was specially called to the meeting despite not being a CWC member.
Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council K S Eshwarappa alleged that the government has 'misused' the office of the President by getting Tipu's name mentioned in the speech.
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are among the top leaders participating in the meet, which is also expected to discuss the situation in the Kashmir valley
Earlier, two women devotees could not proceed to the shrine after protesters forced them to return. Protesters pelted police with stones and the latter hit right back with vengeance wielding batons with telling effect, leaving many fallen and writhing in pain on the road.
The Union Cabinet is set to discuss the Group of Ministers' report on Telangana and also consider the Telangana Bill clause by clause.
Two days after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) witnessed Pawar-bashing at the hands of senior Congress leaders, the party once again attacked the Union Agriculture Minister, saying that prices were responsibility of the Agriculture and Food Ministry and "it is natural for the party to articulate the concerns of millions of people".
The Congress Working Committee meeting witnessed Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar being targetted by senior Congress leaders on the issue of spiraling price rise. The three leaders who attacked Sharad Pawar but did not name him were former maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, All India Congress Committee general secretaries R K Dhawan and Satyavrat Chaturvedi.
A one day meeting of the All India Congress Committee is being held on Tuesday at Delhi's newly refurbished Talkatora stadium even as Sonia Gandhi, the president of the 125 year old Indian National Congress is all set to once again be authorised by the members to nominate the Congress Working Committee, the highest decision making body of the congress party.
The 63-year-old Sonia Gandhi has created a record of being the longest-serving Congress party president and completed over a decade since she took over the top post in the wake of the party's dismal showing in the Lok Sabha polls that saw the exit of Sitaram Kesri from the post
Ahead of the Congress Working Committee meeting on Monday, party leader Manish Tewari said the resignation of the party leadership after the poll debacle is not the way forward.
With the elections to municipalities and a civic body due in May-June and assembly elections next year in West Bengal, alliance partners Trinamool Congress and Congress announced on Tuesday that they would contest the polls jointly.
Daughter of former deputy PM late Jagjivan Ram, Kumar, 72, was also the first woman to occupy the high office of the LS speaker
With the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Praja Rajyam Party clamouring to join hands with the Telangana Rashtra Samiti over the demand for a separate state, pressure is mounting on Congress president Sonia Gandhi to initiate steps to deal with the issue immediately. The growing unrest within the party, especially among the leaders of Telangana region, came to the fore on Sunday with Congress Working Committee member G Venkat Swamy openly supporting the demand for Telangana.
Virtually cocking a snook at the Congress Working Committee which had criticised Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar failing to control the price rise, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh praised the Pawar for doing a splendid job. The praise came just a day after the CWC meeting, when the prime minister addressed the chief ministers during a conclave on price rise.
Former Kerala Chief Minister and Congress working committee member K Karunakaran's condition remains critical. The 91-year old Congress leader was admitted to a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
'Wisdom demands Modi moves to restore the critical institutions of the State and dial back on the cult building around his persona,' say Sonali Ranade and Shealja Sharma.
The West Bengal Congress on Thursday said the Centre should caution the state over repeated violence there, but did not favour immediate imposition of President's Rule as demanded by Trinamool Congress.
Dikshit is said to have issued a letter to all ministers and Congress MLAs asking them to follow the decision of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) and party president Sonia Gandhi in practicing austerity.
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