Congress panel to formulate stand on ordinances

NEW DELHI:  After a letter by senior leaders seeking collective leadership and discussions on the party line on important issues, the Congress on Wednesday said it has constituted a five member committee, comprising members from both Houses of Parliament, to discuss and formulate the party’s stands on key ordinances promulgated by the government.

A statement by AICC general secretary KC Venugopal announced the formation of the panel. Rajya Sabha members P Chidambaram, Digvijaya Singh and Jairam Ramesh and Lok Sabha MPs Amar Singh and Gaurav Gogoi are part of the committee. Ramesh is the convener.

In fact, the committee was constituted on August 14 and had already met once. It is scheduled to meet again to discuss the key ordinances ahead of the monsoon session next month.  According to party sources, the names have now been made public to send a message to the letter writers, as they had flagged the issue of collective discussion on the party’s stand on important matters. 

The leaders who wrote to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, after coming under fire at the Congress Working Committee meeting earlier this week, clarified that it was not meant to question the Gandhi family but to highlight the areas the party needs to focus upon to take on the BJP.