Congress plenary in Delhi from March 16-18

With election fever gripping Karnataka, the Congress on Saturday decided to hold its three-day plenary in the national capital from March 16 to 18.

The plenary, considered as the biggest gathering of Congress leaders, will ratify the election of Rahul Gandhi as the party president and also evolve the future strategy for the nation and the organisation to deal with the tough challenges before it.

The decision was taken at the first meeting of the steering committee of the Congress chaired by Rahul.

Sources said besides Karnataka, the Punjab unit of the party too had offered to host the plenary at Mohali, near Chandigarh.

However, since Parliament would be in session, it was felt that Delhi would be a convenient venue to host the plenary.

"We are expecting about 25,000 party leaders and workers to attend the plenary. Organising the event in Karnataka would have diverted the attention from the ongoing election campaign," a senior Congress leader said.

The leader said the Karnataka Congress was ready to play host if the plenary was to be held in the first week of March, but the party leadership was of the opinion that Delhi would be a better venue.

Rahul said the plenary would show a new way forward to the Congress and the nation with a renewed focus on the party's policy and ideology. He said the new party organisation would be a harmonious blend of experience and youth with representation for every section of the society “ women, SC/ST, other backward classes and minorities.