UDAIPUR (RAJASTHAN): One of the many reasons that have been cited as key to Congress’s gradual decline is its leaders’ propensity for nepotism. On the first day of the three-day Chintan Shivir in Udaipur, the Congress asserted that the Grand Old Party will witness a massive change as it discussed ‘one family, one ticket’.
Addressing the media along with senior party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, and Gourav Gogoi, former Union Minister Ajay Maken said, “After the Udaipur convention, a big change will be visible in Congress.”
Answering a question over the one family, one seat, the Congress leader said, “We have a discussion on one family, one ticket, and there is a consensus on the same. There is almost complete unanimity among panel members on the proposal to ensure that party leaders don’t give tickets to their kin or relatives without any work in the party.”
Maken said that at least five years of prior work in the party will be required for a ticket.
He also said that any person who is holding a post for five years has to step down, and there should be a cooling period of at least three years for that person to come back to the same post. “A person should not be on the same post for more than five years,” he added.
One of the most common complaints among the party workers is that those who work hard are not rewarded and those who are unable to meet the challenges are not acted upon.
Acknowledging the issue, Maken said, “So unanimity is being made to have an assessment department, to have a system to promote those office bearers who work hard and demote or take action who are unable to perform.”
Coming onto discipline in the party, the senior Congress leader said, “Similarly we had discussed enforcing discipline strictly. We have also discussed the kind of action should be taken for those who break the discipline,” he said.
Maken also said that the party has discussed strengthening the grassroots level. “We have discussed to have Mandal level body. This Mandal level body will have 15 booths to manage and three to five Mandal level bodies will form a block-level body,” he said.
Maken also said that the party will have a public “insight department” which should work round the clock to sense the issues of people. With an aim to attract the youth, Maken said that the party has discussed the option to have 50 per cent youth in all committees.