Rajya Sabha member K. Chiranjeevi caused a stir in the Congress by lamenting that the party was suffering from lack of coordination.
Mr. Chiranjeevi, member of the party’s coordination committee headed by AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad, made these candid remarks about the ruling party while participating in a brainstorming session to rejuvenate the party, organised by senior Congress leader V. Hanumantha Rao in Jubilee Hall on Saturday.
The actor-turned politician said there was urgent need to revitalise the party cadre. He did not mince words while criticising the party’s failure to take follow-up action on the report of 10-member Ministerial committee headed by Dharmana Prasada Rao about the reasons for the Congress’ debacle in the Assembly by-elections in May-June this year.
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Justice to BCs
Speaking about the need to render justice to Backward Classes, Mr. Chiranjeevi criticised party men who had benefited enormously by their association with the Congress, but were now shifting loyalties to newly floated parties. “I am ready to go to the people and strengthen the party,” he said responding to the plea from Mr. Rao to take the lead in invigorating the party.
He claimed that it was his Praja Rajyam that had given ticket to the maximum number BCs in the last Assembly elections. While it may be normal for the Congress to see highs and lows, the situation now was totally different.
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“We cannot remain quiet when the party’s future is at stake,” he said adding that every committed cadre has to pitch in with his efforts to revive party’s fortunes in coming days.
Mr. Hanumantha Rao convened a meeting of all former Andhra Pradesh Youth Congress presidents and office-bearers from 1972 onwards as part of the ‘Save Congress’ campaign.
He said the effort was aimed to restore confidence among the cadres who felt neglected. Former Ministers G. Chinna Reddy and Vasantha Nageswara Rao gave a call to the party men to unite and bring back the party’s glory.