news details |
|
|
| Unity in State Congress a distant goal? | | Congress Convention | | Rustam
JAMMU, Aug 31: Will the today's Congress convention of executive committee members of the State Congress end factionalism and enable it to present a united face in the upcoming elections? If one goes by the various posters put out by certain Congressmen at different places in Jammu and the manner in which various delegations discussed the state of the Congress with AICC general secretary and in-charge Jammu and Kashmir Congress Ambika Soni, then one can easily say that the unity in the Congress is a distant goal. This, notwithstanding the fact that both the factional leaders - JKPCC president Saif-ud-Din Soz and Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad - were present during the convention.
The posters and what transpired during the meetings between Soni and various delegations, which met with her in the State Guest House on the day of her arrival for the Congress convention, clearly suggested that the exercises were no more than show of strength by both the factions.
That the Congress is a divided house could be seen from the fact that even the Congress Ministers from Jammu have hardly worked as one man during all these years of coalition rule. There are at least three Ministers who openly side with one factional leader and the remaining Congress Ministers from Jammu are with the other factional leader. As for three Congress Ministers from Kashmir, they are not only a divided a lot but they also represent a different strand, as their constituency is Kashmir. Even the two Congress MPs are vertically divided, one supporting the JKPCC president and the other is known as Azad loyalist.
That the two factions within the State Congress lobbied not for the party but for the factional leaders directly or indirectly could also be seen from the different viewpoints the various delegations put forth during their meetings with Ambika Soni. It was not surprising when the visibly upset in-charge Jammu and Kashmir Congress told some Congressmen that she had not come to Jammu to "distribute mandate" and that her only objective was to get "feedback" from the party workers at the grassroots level.
It is important to note that factionalism in the Congress in Jammu and Kashmir is not a new phenomenon. Even when the Congress was not in power, factionalism was the order of the day. It is, however, true, that factionalism reached its zenith when Saif-ud-Din Soz took over as the JKPCC president. In 2008, when Assembly elections were held in the state, both the factional leaders had worked almost independent of each other. It was Azad who led the campaign not only in Jammu province but also in Kashmir.
Considering the nature of factionalism with the state Congress it is difficult to say that both the factions will iron out their differences. The reason is that the fight is personal. The next few months are very crucial for the Congress and it will be seen if the Congress presents a united face in the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
