CHANDIGARH:Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee President Mr. Sunil Jakhar said that
the letter-politics seeking change in the party reflects the insecurities
and political ambitions of the certain signatories.
“Now that Congress President Sonia Gandhi had clearly stated that the
party organization and president would be elected in six months, it
was unfortunate that some leaders continue making unwanted statements.
Such statements become even more ridiculous as the demand for elections are being made by
the leaders who either never contested the elections themselves or now even
they themselves may not remember when they contested last, Jakhar said.
Pointing that there were inherent contradictions in the letter written by them,
he said they target Rahul Gandhi for “abetting division within the ranks” by holding
Youth Congress elections, and on the other hand they want elections to be held from
block level to the national body despite pandemic crisis. Is it not applying
double standards? Will these elections then not create rift in the party itself, he questioned. Instead
of giving a serious thought before making statements on the issue,
some leaders were trying only to protect their positions , which was a
sign of frustration and weakness, he added.
Jakhar recalled that in the party's general meeting in 2018, the very
leaders who are now talking about party elections had proposed that
instead of holding the elections, the party president should be
authorised to appoint the working committee.
He said that a leader had tried to justify the Congress Working
Committee elections on the pretext that the person elected in this way
will have a guaranteed tenure and would be able to speak his mind without
fear of losing his seat. “I believe that any person, whether elected or nominated, who doesn’t have the courage of his conviction and is unable to
speak his mind for fear of loosing his position, has no right to be on the decision making body of the party”.
The PPCC chief said that in fact some leaders had lost self-confidence
and had forgotten how high their status in the party was. He said that
such status was not due to membership of any House but due to their
experience and contribution to the party. Those holding high positions
in the party should realize that their political standing would not be
affected with the expiry of their Rajya Sabha memberships.
Commenting on the idea of a ‘collective leadership’ suggestions made by some leaders,
Jakhar said, "I want to assure that they will always be a part of the party's
collective leadership as the party has invested a lot in them and wants to
benefit from their decades long experience in Rajya Sabha."
“Of course, I am a supporter of democracy in the party but there
should be regular brainstorming within the party and the modalities of
its implementation should be worked out through mutual deliberation,
Jakhar said.