Express News Service
K C Venugopal, AICC general secretary (organisation) and the most trusted lieutenant of former Congress president Rahul Gandhi is evasive when it comes to interviews, especially when things are in a fluid state within the party.
On the eve of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, 59-year-old Venugopal, who was on a whirlwind tour to Thiruvananthapuram, however, spoke to TNIE’s Cynthia Chandran. Excerpts:
How is the stature of Congress going to be changed following the Bharat Jodo Yatra?Yatra aims to further strengthen the Congress Party’s connection with the common man. The most important objective of the yatra is to interact and mingle with a common man from various walks of life hailing from diverse socio, economic, and cultural backgrounds.
Congress has the backing of the silent majority and public opinion is swaying in favour of Congress. Congress is going to reignite the connection with people across India through the yatra.
Earlier, Congress used to be the only alternative for the BJP. But now Congress is having a hard time uniting the smaller parties under a common umbrella. What’s the biggest challenge before Congress as the main opposition to bring down the Modi regime?If not Congress, who else? Congress is the only for the opposition to take on the BJP nationally.
The Congress-led alliance will set a trend to work against the BJP. Without congress, there is no opposition. Those who think they can form an effective Opposition alliance against BJP without Congress are living in a fool’s paradise.
Congress has been and still is the adhesive that brings together all the regional parties and is the cementing factor in fighting BJP’s Sangh Parivar agenda.
The intrinsic ability of Congress to attract regional parties and inspire their loyalty and trust to keep the flock together against the BJP’s money-power politics. In the 90s and after we have seen experiment after experiment failing without congress.
In UPA, Congress was the leading party and we have seen how congress had accommodated all regional parties in a broad manner and both the terms of UPA was cordially concluded. In the imminent Congress presidential election, the party is seeing it in a broadminded way and transparent manner.
You have been instrumental in launching several nationwide agitations against the BJP Government’s fuel price hike. But except in a few places like Delhi and Kerala, the agitation had not created any ripples, especially in the North Eastern States. When this is the case, how can the Congress emerge stronger?
It’s grossly incorrect to say the agitation launched against price hikes or fuel price hikes is only confined to a few pockets like Delhi and Kerala. The agitation had, indeed, gained momentum across India, including large states like UP etc. with very visible and significant public participation.
Unfortunately, a section of the media has chosen to suppress such stories buckling under pressures from the BJP government.
Never before has the media was controlled by any political party.
One of the objectives of Bharat Jodo Yatra is to highlight the simmering discontent and unspoken anguish against the establishment over the relentless price hike.
Your intervention in the day-to-day affairs of the KPCC’s organisational powers has always come under scrutiny. Has it posed serious challenges before you to stay away from your home state?
The functioning of KPCC is the responsibility of the local state leadership and KPCC has an efficient and able leadership, capable of resolving the state issues here.
I don’t interfere in any of the state issues unless asked or requested by the KPCC leadership.
To help them coordinate with high command AICC has appointed a General Secretary in charge of the state, that’s Tariq Anwar.
He has been discharging his duties in an impeccable manner. I’m not involved in any manner.
K C Venugopal, AICC general secretary (organisation) and the most trusted lieutenant of former Congress president Rahul Gandhi is evasive when it comes to interviews, especially when things are in a fluid state within the party.
On the eve of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, 59-year-old Venugopal, who was on a whirlwind tour to Thiruvananthapuram, however, spoke to TNIE’s Cynthia Chandran. Excerpts:
How is the stature of Congress going to be changed following the Bharat Jodo Yatra?
Yatra aims to further strengthen the Congress Party’s connection with the common man. The most important objective of the yatra is to interact and mingle with a common man from various walks of life hailing from diverse socio, economic, and cultural backgrounds.
Congress has the backing of the silent majority and public opinion is swaying in favour of Congress. Congress is going to reignite the connection with people across India through the yatra.
Earlier, Congress used to be the only alternative for the BJP. But now Congress is having a hard time uniting the smaller parties under a common umbrella. What’s the biggest challenge before Congress as the main opposition to bring down the Modi regime?
If not Congress, who else? Congress is the only for the opposition to take on the BJP nationally.
The Congress-led alliance will set a trend to work against the BJP. Without congress, there is no opposition. Those who think they can form an effective Opposition alliance against BJP without Congress are living in a fool’s paradise.
Congress has been and still is the adhesive that brings together all the regional parties and is the cementing factor in fighting BJP’s Sangh Parivar agenda.
The intrinsic ability of Congress to attract regional parties and inspire their loyalty and trust to keep the flock together against the BJP’s money-power politics. In the 90s and after we have seen experiment after experiment failing without congress.
In UPA, Congress was the leading party and we have seen how congress had accommodated all regional parties in a broad manner and both the terms of UPA was cordially concluded. In the imminent Congress presidential election, the party is seeing it in a broadminded way and transparent manner.
You have been instrumental in launching several nationwide agitations against the BJP Government’s fuel price hike. But except in a few places like Delhi and Kerala, the agitation had not created any ripples, especially in the North Eastern States. When this is the case, how can the Congress emerge stronger?
It’s grossly incorrect to say the agitation launched against price hikes or fuel price hikes is only confined to a few pockets like Delhi and Kerala. The agitation had, indeed, gained momentum across India, including large states like UP etc. with very visible and significant public participation.
Unfortunately, a section of the media has chosen to suppress such stories buckling under pressures from the BJP government.
Never before has the media was controlled by any political party.
One of the objectives of Bharat Jodo Yatra is to highlight the simmering discontent and unspoken anguish against the establishment over the relentless price hike.
Your intervention in the day-to-day affairs of the KPCC’s organisational powers has always come under scrutiny. Has it posed serious challenges before you to stay away from your home state?
The functioning of KPCC is the responsibility of the local state leadership and KPCC has an efficient and able leadership, capable of resolving the state issues here.
I don’t interfere in any of the state issues unless asked or requested by the KPCC leadership.
To help them coordinate with high command AICC has appointed a General Secretary in charge of the state, that’s Tariq Anwar.
He has been discharging his duties in an impeccable manner. I’m not involved in any manner.
