Cong Singhs reform mantra

The Congress Working Committee — the apex decision-making body of the party — has endorsed the reformist route taken by prime minister Manmohan Singh. Unfazed by the withdrawal of support by the Trinamool Congress, party president Sonia Gandhi asserted that the ‘government was stable’ as it had two new supporters  — the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

Setting the tone for the proceedings, Gandhi, in her opening remarks, stressed that there should be no roadblocks on the reformist path, and slammed the opposition BJP for its negative politics. Prime minister Singh exuded confidence about the quality of his decision making in the controversial coal allocations and made a declaration: “I am clean.”

The obstructive tactics of the BJP in disrupting the proceedings of Parliament over Coalgate figured prominently in Singh’s remarks as he laboured the point that the government had all the answers in this case, and the opposition as shying away from a debate.

His observations struck a responsive chord with the members who appreciated his televised address and also sympathised with him for being targeted in spite of his “unquestioned integrity.”

Union finance minister P Chidambaram, a special invitee, spoke at length about the inevitability of the reformist decisions against the backdrop of overall economic situation and the difficult global conditions. He argued that the government needs to curtail subsidies so that the flagship programmes are not starved of resources.

According to party’s chief spokesperson Janardan Dwivedi, 21 of the 30 members who attended the meeting spoke and supported the reformist approach of the government. He clarified that issues like separate statehood for Telangana were not discussed.

Whilst appreciating the government’s approach and supporting its decisions members expressed  concern about the need to correct the people’s perception on these controversial issues and observed that there is a need to reach out. “Although a section of the media is now supporting these decisions, we have been at the receiving end on several issues and we need to correct this impression,” said a member.