Congress to form high-powered group in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, silent on Kishor’s entry

Aditi Tandon

New Delhi, April 25

The Congress on Monday decided to set up a high powered group to deliberate on the challenges in the run up to 2024 general election, while maintaining silence on the entry of strategist Prashant Kishor into its fold.

After a meeting Sonia Gandhi convened today with an eight-member committee set up to mull Kishor’s proposals for Congress Party’s revival and its battle readiness for all upcoming state and 2024 general election, the party said a decision had been taken to form an empowered action group 2024 to address the political challenges ahead.

AICC general secretary and media chief Randeep Surjewala announced the decision alongside another to hold a “Nav Sankalp” Chintan Shivir in Rajasthan’s Udaipur between May 13 and 15 to discuss the political, social and economic challenges of the times and deliberate on party restructuring with the general electios on mind.

Asked if Sonia Gandhi took a call on Kishor’s entry into the party, Surjewala said, “You will know when someone joins the Congress.”

The announcements on the empowered group and Shivir came a day after G-23 leaders flagged as “shams”, the constitution of committees, to introspect poll losses without any concrete outcomes.

The G-23 leaders speaking privately to The Tribune on Sunday also flagged “complete breakdown of trust with the top leadership and a growing divide” after being excluded from the ongoing consultation process.

A senior G-23 leader told The Tribune today, “This is not the first committee we will see. The report of the AK Antony Committee on the 2019 Lok Sabha defeat remains unknown; the Ashok Chavan Committee report on 2021 defeats in four states including West Bengal and Kerala has not been seen by anyone; reports of committees set up recently to list the causes behind the Congress’ debacles in Punjab, UP, Uttarakhand, Manipur, and Goa, with each panel headed by the screening committee chairperson who oversaw ticket distribution in those states is also not available. You had an eight-member committee discussing Prashant Kishor’s proposals and now you will have the empowered group. What have the past committees yielded?

“The Congress has lost 11 elections since G-23 flagged its rapid electoral slide in a letter to Sonia Gandhi in July 2020. We are being insulted for alerting the Congress of its precipitous decline. We had argued for Congress to bring together like minded parties but now we are witnessing divisions within.”

Surjewala for his part said Sonia Gandhi would constitute the empowered group over the coming days.

“I will share the membership of the group once it is constituted,” he said adding that after Sonia Gandhi deliberated with the eight-member panel today, the decision was taken to form the empowered group for 2024 general election.

He said Sonia had received the committee report on April 21 but discussions were held today.

“The empowered group will consider the political and organisational challenges the party faces,” Surjewala said, steering clear of queries on Kishor’s entry and also on his meetings with Telangana CM K Chandrashekhar Rao in Hyderabad over Saturday and Sunday with a decision that I-PAC, Kishor’s organisation would guide TRS in the 2024 state election.

On Chintan Shivir, Surjewala said 400 Congress leaders will participate to discuss current challenges.

“The current political, social and economic situation of the country and the challenges they pose to the society and the nation will be discussed. Also the issues related to the well-being of and trampling of the rights of weaker sections including SCs, STs, backwards, women, minorities, farmers and farm labourers. Matters related to the organisational restructuring will also be deliberated upon. The Shivir will discuss the broad strategy of the Congress for the 2024 election,” said Surjewala.