Sonia Gandhi was today unanimously reelected the Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party at a meeting of the party MPs from Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
In her address after being elected, she thanked the members for reelecting her as the CPP and assured she will do her best.
Expressing confidence and satisfaction over the revival of the party, she pointed out, “many wrote our obituaries”.
Hitting out at Prime Minister Modi, she said that he had suffered a political and moral defeat as he had sought the mandate solely in his name to the exclusion of both his party and its allies.
“In reality, he has lost the mandate he sought and thereby lost the right to leadership as well”, she observed, while adding, “yet, far from taking responsibility for failure he intends to get himself sworn in again tomorrow”.
Congratulating the newly elected parliamentarians she told them, “you have fought a tough election under the most challenging of circumstances. You have surmounted many obstacles and campaigned so very effectively”.
She told them that their success had given the party a much greater presence in the Lok Sabha and a more effective voice in its proceedings, both of which will help give greater strength to our participation.
“Our numbers in parliament have increased significantly”, she said, while adding, “not only is the Indian National Congress a large contingent in the Lok Sabha but we are bolstered by the strength of our INDIA partners, some of whom have themselves come back impressively”.
She told them that as members of the CPP, they have a special obligation to be “watchful, vigilant and proactive in holding him (the PM) and his new NDA government accountable”.
“No longer can and should parliament be bulldozed like it has been for a decade now. No longer will the writ of the ruling establishment be permitted to disrupt parliament, whimsically mistreat members or push through legislation without due and proper consideration and debate”, she said, adding, “no longer can and should Parliamentary Committees be ignored or by-passed like they have been since 2014.
No longer will Parliament be muzzled and stifled as it has been over the past ten years”.
Ms Gandhi said, the Indian National Congress has once again demonstrated its resilience. “It was up against a mighty and malevolent machine that was doing its utmost to destroy us”, she observed, while pointing out, “it tried to cripple us financially. It carried out a campaign against us and our leaders that was full of lies and defamation”.
“Many wrote our obituaries! But under the determined leadership of Kharge Ji we persevered”, she said while praising the leadership of Mr Kharge, adding, “he is an inspiration to all of us. His commitment to the party organisation and its ideology is truly extraordinary and we all have to learn from his example”.
She praised Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra and the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, saying these were really historic movements which rejuvenated the Congress at all levels.
“Rahul deserves special thanks for his tenacity and determination to fight on in the face of unprecedented personal and political attacks”, she observed, while adding, “he also shaped our narrative of guarantees and protection of the Constitution very sharply”.
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