In a bid to contain the damage from within ahead of the general elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday sought to rein in dissidence and groupism in the party by asking party workers to adhere to discipline and cohesion and ensure that the Congress came back to power.
?We are often our worst enemies. Let the 2009 parliamentary elections herald a new beginning of discipline and cohesion. All of us will gain if our party comes back to power,? she told party MPs on Wednesday morning at a meeting of the CPP, the last in the 14th Lok Sabha. ?After the candidates have been announced, we must remain united and put our combined weight behind them. As I have said, party comes before self,? she added.
Gandhi?s exhortations to party workers are not something new, which she has made before each elections, whether at the state or national level. Party circles, however, contend that workers will have to seriously adhere to her appeal as a small swing in votes could alter the outcome drastically. Congress leaders have calculated that as many as 15 to 20 seats succumb to factionalism in important states. After the defeats in the recent assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Gandhi bluntly told workers that the party was not able to unseat the BJP because it was divided in these states.
Asking members of Parliaments not to be complacent where it appears that it is well placed, Gandhi said the party cannot take anything for granted. She further said that it had to fight hard in tough seats. ?It is vital to adopt a fighting position where it may appear that we have a difficult battle. A defeatist attitude does not help. Let us remind those who held such an attitude in 2004, how wrong they were. Let us face the coming challenge with boldness, confidence and determination to win?.
The Congress president also had high praise for the UPA government?s coercive diplomacy, saying it ensured Pakistan?s admission, after weeks of denial, on involvement of Pakistani elements in the Mumbai attacks. The UPA chairperson also referred to the successful conclusion of the Indo-US nuclear deal. Maintaining that the Congress enjoyed widespread support and goodwill across the country, Gandhi said, ?It is for us – and us alone?to translate this into electoral advantage?, adding, ?let us give the coming battle our all?.
Emphasising on the need to propagate party?s achievements extensively, she said, ?we must propagate our achievements extensively right to the remotest parts of the country. We must aggressively counter the negative propaganda of our political opponents?.