IMPHAL, December 6: The Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee has said that Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has called upon the party to fight back and reconnect with the people during the Indian Youth Congress Alumni Meet at New Delhi.
A statement of the MPCC media department chairman N Ibungochoubi quoted the national vice president of the party as saying `The Congress will only be able to fight back when its Youth fight back. It`™s you people who have to get down on the streets and expose this government. Today in Parliament, we decided to wear black bands before a statue of Mahatma Gandhi. Why? Because today when Kharge was speaking in Parliament they switched off his microphone. We were 10 years in power but never resorted to such tactics. We allowed everybody to speak. They are doing this because they think democratic values are useless.`
It said targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi`™s autocratic style of working, Rahul Gandhi said, `The PM thinks he alone can run India, and he is convinced about it. Look at their programmes, and look at our programmes. We brought nationalisation of banks, green revolution, MGNREGA, Right to Information, because we wanted to empower the people of India. They want to snatch power from the hands of people. They have already snatched jobs of people under NGREGA. It will have its repercussions. It has already started happening.`
The Congress Vice-president said the Congress party`™s battle is with forces which believe in symbolism and marketing, it said.
Rahul further asked the Youth Congress delegates to get down on the streets and reveal the truth to the people, it said.
`This party (Congress) is our party, this is the party of India, the party of India`™s masses. It is not a party that belongs to any one religion, any one community. This party (Congress) derives its strength from the people of India,` the statement quoted the party vice president.
It said a contingent of the MPCC including former MPYC presidents minister I Hemochandra Singh, parliamentary secretary M Prithiviraj Singh, MPCC general secretary L Tilotama, and incumbent MPYC president Amir Hussain took part in the in KARWAAN, the first IYC Alumni Meet of former national office bearers and State PYC presidents held at IYC Office, New Delhi.
Senior leaders including Oscar Fernendes, Anand Sharma, Ramesh Chennithala, Ashok Gehlot, Meenakshi Nataranjan, Jitender Singh, Randeep Singh Surjiwala, Ashok Tanwar, Manish Tiwari shared their political experiences and personal journey through the Indian Youth Congress, it said.
The statement also said that interacting with the Youth Congress Alumni from all over the country, AICC President Sonia Gandhi reassured the commitment of the party to serve the nation.