The Congress on Monday decided to defer temporarily organizational elections for electing a new party chief in the wake of “emergent conditions prevailing on account of unprecedented coronavirus pandemic”. The Congress Working Committee, which met here over the results of the recent Assembly elections, adopted a resolution that said the energies of party workers should be channelized towards saving every life and helping every coronavirus-affected person. Discussion was held during the meeting on the election process for the party’s new president and senior leaders like Ashok Gehlot, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma said that there was no need for elections at this time because of the situation created by Covid-19. The resolution said CWC considered the election schedule for electing the AICC president as proposed by Central Election Authority of the party.
“In view of the nationwide emergent conditions prevailing on account of unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, the CWC was unanimous that all our energies should be channelized towards saving every life and helping every Covid-affected person. CWC, therefore, unanimously resolved to defer the elections temporarily in the midst of these challenging times,” it said.
In her opening remarks, Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi said that the Covid-19 situation had become “even more catastrophic” and “governance failures have become even more stark” in nearly four weeks since the last CWC meeting in April .
She alleged that scientific advice “has been willfully ignored” and the country “is paying a horrendous price for the Modi government’s neglect of the pandemic, indeed its willful patronage of super-spreader events that were allowed for partisan gains”.
“A far deadlier second wave has now overwhelmed us. Some scientists have now cautioned about a third wave overtaking us soon. Some states have already announced a complete lockdown. The public health system across the country has all but collapsed. Vaccination coverage is woefully short of need and not expanding at the rate at which it must. The Modi government has abdicated its responsibility. It has obliged the states to bear the cost of vaccinating the hundreds of millions in the 18 to 45 age group,” she said.
Gandhi said every expert has said that it would have made more sense and it would have been financially more equitable for the Centre to bear the costs of vaccination.
“But we know the Modi government has other priorities, pursuing grandiose projects against the force of public opinion and the face of widespread criticism. It is also a shame that the Central government continues to discriminate against Opposition-ruled states,” she said.
Gandhi said the international community has rushed to India’s help over the past few weeks. “On behalf of the Indian National Congress, I wish to thank all countries and organizations who are helping us in so many different ways. That we should be placed in such a position reflects the monumental arrogance, incompetence and vain triumphalism of the ruling establishment,” Gandhi said.
She also said that the government should call an all-party meeting over the Covid-19 situation.
As for the party’s performance in the Assembly elections, Sonia Gandhi said that a small group would be formed to look at every aspect of the party’s reverses in the three states that went to the polls recently, saying that there was a need to take “note of our serious setbacks” and to “candidly understand” why the party failed to dislodge incumbent governments in Kerala and Assam and drew a complete blank in West Bengal.
In her remarks at the CWC meeting, she added that the results suggested that “we need to put our house in order”. She said candid stocktaking would yield “uncomfortable lessons,” but if the party does not face up the reality, it will not draw the right lessons.
“We have to take note of our serious setbacks. To say that we are deeply disappointed is to make an understatement. I intend to set up a small group to look at every aspect that caused such reverses and report back very quickly. We need to candidly understand why in Kerala and Assam we failed to dislodge the incumbent governments, and why in West Bengal we drew a complete blank. These will yield uncomfortable lessons, but if we do not face up to the reality, if we do not look the facts in the face, we will not draw the right lessons”, she said.