Congress’ Central Election Authority meets on party polls

NEW DELHI:Amid a rift in the party, the Congress’ Central Election Authority met on Tuesday again on the list of the electoral college of the party for the proposed organisational elections.

The CEA, which is headed by Madhusudan Mistry and has Arvinder Singh Lovely, Rajesh Mishra, S. Jothimani and Krishna B. Gowda as members, will be sending the list to the Congress President for approval.

However, two states have not prepared the list of the AICC members, who form the electoral college to elect the party President and members of the Congress Working Committee, the party’s highest decision-making body.

After the submission of the list to the party President, the CEA will seek the CWC’s nod to conduct elections. Sources say that the party is planning to call an AICC session in last week of January and a plenary after Parliament’s Budget session but it will depend on the Covid situation in the country.

The CEA his also preparing to conduct digital elections for the post of party President in case of a contest.

The electoral college is the same as it was in 2017 when Rahul Gandhi was elected President unopposed. The Congress has started the process of elections after 23 leaders wrote to party’s interim chief Sonia Gandhi for reforms and election in the party.

The dissenters’ group has repeatedly demanded elections from block level to the CWC level for the revival of the party.

While the CEA has met thrice to set the ball rolling for elections, and has sought the list of the AICC members, the G23 — as the original group of dissenters is known — wants that process of AICC members’ elections should be done first as the old system of nomination should be done away with, and the election of the party President should be done only after new AICC members are elected.

They have also sought the revival of the parliamentary board which is defunct.

Source: IANS