Ahmedabad, April 7 (IANS) Congress is reasserting its ideological core with a two-day national convention in Ahmedabad on April 8 and 9 in Gujarat.
Reaffirming its commitment to the values of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi and first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the party has positioned the event as a strategic response to what it calls the Modi government’s “bulldozer politics” and Constitutional “subversion”.
Addressing reporters at the Ahmedabad airport, Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal laid out the party’s agenda, saying: “The Congress party is reclaiming the Gandhian path. We are committed to the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel. The Modi government is bulldozing democratic norms with impunity, and we are ready to resist.”
The national convention comes at a critical political juncture, with the Congress seeking to consolidate opposition momentum and revive its organisational strength.
Venugopal said the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on April 8 will chart a roadmap to counter what he described as the Centre’s relentless assault on democratic institutions.
“There is no freedom, no space for expression. We’re not even allowed to speak in Parliament,” he said, adding that parliamentary conventions have been hijacked under the BJP-led regime.
Congress leader Pawan Khera also invoked Gujarat’s historical role in shaping India’s destiny.
“From Mahatma Gandhi to Sardar Patel, Gujarat has always shown the way in dark times. Today, as the country faces a democratic crisis, Congress draws strength from this legacy,” he said.
Khera expressed confidence that resolutions from the Ahmedabad convention would have a decisive impact on national politics.
Speaking on internal reforms, Congress General Secretary Sachin Pilot noted that the party is undergoing a generational shift, with young leaders stepping into key roles.
“The convention comes at a crucial time. We are focused on accountability, ideological clarity, and strengthening the party in Gujarat — a state that once stood as the Congress’s ideological bastion,” Pilot said.
The party also launched its official calendar ahead of the event, marking the beginning of a symbolic and strategic political mobilisation from the land of Gandhi.
The event has seen the arrival of key Congress leaders in Ahmedabad, with over 90 per cent of CWC members, including Mallikarjun Kharge, Shashi Tharoor, Ashok Gehlot, and Venugopal himself, expected to participate.
The Congress high command – Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi – will arrive on April 8, completing a high-powered leadership lineup.
–IANS
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