In the upcoming 85th plenary session, the Congress could amend the party constitution to reserve 50% of the party posts to Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), women, and minorities in various party committees, sources said on Friday.
Though the party had announced its intention to do so at the Udaipur brainstorming conclave last May, it stopped short of making this a part of its official declaration.
As The Hindureported on Thursday, members of the Constitution Amendment Committee (CAC) mulled changes to the party document to implement the organisational reforms that were discussed at Udaipur as well as those that were part of the Udaipur Declaration.
Apart from reservation for SCs, STs, OBCs, women and minorities, the party would look at sticking at its promise of “50-under-50” so that half of its office-bearers are under the age of 50.
The composition of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) would also be changed to include former Prime Ministers and former party presidents as members to the highest decision-making body.
“These are all discussions at this stage but Thursday’s meeting was inconclusive,” said a member of the CAC.
Any change to the party constitution has to be ratified by the 85th plenary that will be held in Raipur between February 24 and 26, he added.
The plenary session will endorse the election of Mallikarjun Kharge as the party president but it is not clear if there would be elections to the CWC. As per the party constitution, 12 members of the CWC are elected while the remaining members are nominated by the party president.
