Congress plans to ride on 'people-centric' issues of inflation, unemployment

New Delhi: The Congress, which started the year on a high after a grand victory in Karnataka, had to face a huge setback in the assembly polls in the three Hindi heartland states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, with Telangana being the only consolation. However, it is hopeful of coming back to give a tough fight to the ruling BJP-led NDA at the Centre in the 2024 general elections.

Even as the BJP-led NDA is targeting 350 seats for its third consecutive term with the strong face of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress has decided not to announce its Prime Ministerial candidate and has left the decision to be taken after reaching the majority mark along with the INDIA bloc partners.

Despite Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee proposing the name of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge as the INDIA bloc face for the top post, which was also endorsed by Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, Kharge downplayed it asking all the partners to first focus on winning more seats and then deciding the face after the poll results.

Even as the talks for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc parties are currently underway to decide the seat sharing formula, the Congress is preparing on a massive scale to improve its tally in the 2024 elections, as the party lost in the general elections badly in 2014 and 2019.

The Congress, which lost in the recent Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh Assembly polls, is hopeful that the results will not have any effect on the party's performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as it has retained its vote share.

In the meantime, the Congress is focusing on strengthening the organisation ahead of the crucial battle next year.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi have already held meetings with the leaders of 24 states in the last two months to discuss poll preparedness.

The Congress leadership has emphasised on taking the ideology of the party to the grassroots through various programmes.

During the Congress Working Committee meeting held on December 21, the party decided to hold state level conventions of the party leaders and workers to discuss the party's preparations and give them training.

The Congress has also roped in party strategist Sunil Kanugolu, who had joined the party in May last year and worked to ensure its victory in Karnataka and Telangana with his aggressive campaign and strategy to reach to the voters with people centric guarantees.

The aggressive stand of the party is visible in its strategy as the Congress announced a 16-member Manifesto Committee with former Finance Minister P Chidambaram as its chairman.

The party also announced a five-member National Alliance Committee on December 19 with Mukul Wasnik as its chairman to take forward the seat sharing talks with the regional partners in all the states.

The party leaders feel that there is strong anti-incumbency against the government at the grassroots level over the soaring inflation, unemployment, widening gap between the rich and the poor and its demand for a caste-based census.

A party leader, wishing not to be quoted, said that it plans to raise people-centric issues, as inflation has already broken the back of the poor and the middle class in the country and it will work in its favour in the elections.

He added that the increasing atrocities against the poor, the marginalised, Dalits and women will also work in the party's favour besides the issue of unemployment which is at a 40 year high.

The parry leader said that the Congress will raise these issues prominently before the people to attract the votes of the poor and the middle class by highlighting the failures of the Modi government.

The leader said that the party is hopeful that highlighting the other issues like the suspension of 146 MPs from Parliament for demanding a detailed statement by Home Minister Amit Shah in both the Houses on the December 13 security breach and then the passage of crucial Bills like the three criminal laws Bills and the Telecommunications Bill that will have a huge impact on the common people will also help the grand old party to revive its fortunes across the country.