Hyderabad, December 20: Former Minister & ex-Leader of Opposition in Telangana Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir welcomed the proposed changes in the organisation of Congress and hoped that they would help in party’s revival at the grass root levels.
Shabbir Ali, in a media statement on Sunday, said that the meeting held by Congress president Sonia Gandhi with senior leaders in New Delhi on Saturday would bring a lot of required changes in the organisation and functioning of Congress party. He said those changes would strengthen the party in Telangana State as it would boost the morale of Congress cadre at the grass root level. He claimed that Congress was still the largest political party in Telangana with its members having a strong presence in almost every polling booth. However, he said that the cadre was upset and a bit demoralised due to a series of defeats the party suffered since 2014.
“Victory and defeat in elections are part of electoral politics and Congress party has witnessed several ups and downs in its long history. We’ve lost a few elections as we didn’t compromise on our ideology and approach. We never cheated or misled the people for minor electoral gains. The other parties might have won elections through unethical and immoral means on the basis of money and muscle power, but the Congress party never indulged in such tactics. Congress party believes that electoral politics is the best way to serve people, especially the poor and we will continue to serve the people irrespective of whether or not we win elections,” he said.
Shabbir Ali also welcomed the suggestion that Rahul Gandhi should be made the president of All India Congress Committee (AICC). He said that the entire Congress cadre wants Rahul Gandhi to lead the party as it believes that he has the potential to bring the party to power in next elections. He said that the party leaders would get an opportunity to express their views in the proposed Chintan Baithak. He said it was a similar Chintan Baithak held in 2003 which rejuvenated the party across the country which eventually resulted in Congress winning the 2004 elections. He expressed confidence that the Congress party would return to power in next elections both in Telangana and at the Centre.