Gujarat Congress to formulate action plan to oust Modi

Vadodara, Nov 6 (UNI) Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee proposed to formulate an action plan to further strengthen the party in the state with a view to oust the Narendra Modi government from power in the forthcoming assembly elections.

According to AICC general secretary and party's Gujarat affairs incharge B K Hariprasad, who is currently on a tour of the state along with GPCC president Bharatsinh Solanki and leader of opposition in Assembly Arjunsinh Modhvadia to collect feedbacks from party leaders, ''The current exercise which commenced from November 3, will be over tomorrow with a day-long meeting with south Gujarat leaders in Surat.'' Addressing a press conference here today in the midst of his meeting with party leaders of seven central Gujarat districts, Mr Hariprasad said the vital feedbacks given by the leaders right from taluka to the state levels on the political affairs, failure of administration and other issues, would help GPCC formulate the action plan to strengthen the party and effectively take on the ruling BJP.

''I am happy with the positive attitude shown by the leaders to strengthen the organisation,'' he said and added that GPCC would soon submit its report to party president Sonia Gandhi for immediate implementation of the proposed action plan.

Asked about the possibility of an early assembly election in the state with the five-year term of the Modi government scheduled to expire in November, 2007, the AICC general secretary said his party was ready to face elections any time. ''It is a shame on democracy the way assembly elections were held in riot-hit Gujarat in 2002. We don't think that will be repeated again,'' he remarked while denying that there was any difference or groupism among the Congress leaders in the state.

Mr Hariprasad said the party proposes to organise a 700--km long ''cycle yatra'' from the Sabarmati Ashram to Porbandar in the last week of February, 2007, to commemorate the centenary celebration of Gandhiji's Satyagrah movement. Both, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and AICC president Sonia Gandhi, would be requested to flag off the ''yatra'' and attend the concluding ceremonies respectively, he said.

Denying that the current exercise was to revamp the organisational structure in Gujarat, Mr Hariprasad said the party would effect changes wherever required but, otherwise, everybody would be allowed to continue.

Reacting to the last four years performance of the Modi government, the AICC general secretary said Gujarat, which used to occupy first and second position in the fields of FDI and industrial development a few years ago, has now slipped to the fifth position because of the ''disastrous'' law and order situation and ''faulty'' industrial policy.

''There is a huge decline in economic activities in this most prestigious industrial state as no multinational or IT industry is coming to Gujarat now,'' he said while claiming that a Congress rule was the only answer to this challenge faced by the state today.

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